editor colorado
Inside: Papers try to capitalize on the power of Pinterest. PAGE 4
Official publication of the Colorado Press Association / coloradopressassociation.com / Vol. LXXXIII, No. 5
May 2012
fundraising effort
More LANDMARK HONOR to Give!
Silverton one of few sites in the nation to receive historic SPJ designation
Two prominent local women join the Indy’s fundraising campaign
Reprinted with permission from the Silverton Standard & the Miner
Reprinted with permission
S
By Chet Hardin
aturday, May 5, will be a festive day in Silverton. Not only is it first-train day, with the first Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad passenger train of the season scheduled to arrive at noon, but it is also Cinco de Mayo. And the Silverton Town Council on Monday night also declared that May 5 will be observed as “Silverton Standard Day throughout the realm.” The vote was unanimous. On Wednesday morning, April 11, the San Juan County commissioners unanimously passed a similar proclamation. This newspaper has been declared a National Historic Site in Journalism by the Society of Professional Journalists, and at 1 p.m. May 5 at the San Juan County Historical Society Museum, a dedication ceremony will take place. The public is invited. Standard editor and publisher Mark Esper told the Town Council that the Standard is the only newspaper in Colorado to receive such a designation, and one of only 93 such sites in the nation. Other sites include Ben Franklin’s print shop, the Chicago Tribune, the Baltimore Sun, The Wall Street Journal and the Tombstone (Ariz.) Epitaph. Esper also told the Town Council how the historical society’s project to save the oldest continually operated newspaper on the Western Slope of Colorado has gotten a lot of national attention. The NBC “Today Show” was in town taping a story on the newspaper a couple of weeks ago. The Standard is still awaiting word on when that story will air, but producer Ian Wenger indicated he is nearly done with final editing.
Laura Long, the “beerocrat” for Bristol Brewing Co., remembers the first time that she heard about the Independent Gives! campaign. It was probably late 2008, she says, and she was sitting with her boss, Mike Bristol, in the tasting room of the brewery, watching Indy publisher John Weiss madly tracing out his vision for a new fundraising effort. “There ws lots of red ink, and scribbles and circles and arrows, and tangents, and big, huge ideas,” she says. “It was so exciting.” Since its inception in 2009, Give! has been a volunteer-based effort of this paper. “Anybody on the staff that was involved in it was taking it on over and beyond their current duties,” says Carrie Simison-Bitz, Give! co-chair and now the Indy’s general manager. “Our time was volunteered to the Give! campaign on behalf of the GIVE on page 8
on the industry
Fun may be returning to journalism
joining forces
CPA and LMA form strategic partnership Colorado Press Association recently announced a new partnership with Local Media Association (LMA/ formerly Suburban Newspapers of America) to offer training and research services and products to CPA members at a reduced fee. “The need for quality training and education that is affordable and accessible for our members has never been more important. It is one of five areas of critical importance in our 2012 strategic plan,” CPA Executive Director Samantha Johnston said. “LMA recognizes the value of collaboration and we are thrilled that
they have extended their outstanding resources to our membership.” Beginning this month, members of CPA will be able to participate in the following LMA programs at rates reduced from the LMA non-member rates: • Sales certification program (a joint venture between LMA, Borrell Associates and Motivate America) – a true certification program that features webbased modules and a test that requires a 90% grade or higher; • Local Media Innovation Alliance – a monthly research club
that focuses on emerging trends, sustainable business models and digital revenue growth. The LMIA produces a monthly report in a case study format and includes a webinar with representatives from the featured companies. Topics include: Digital Agency, Daily Deals 2.0, Using Open Source Software, Social Strategies, Event Marketing & more; • Webinars – a diverse mix of training and educational webinars, including many with a revenue-growth focus;
• Conferences – access to LMA conferences and events. The partnership is a win-win for CPA member newspapers and LMA. CPA will market the LMA services and products each month and, in return, will receive a revenue-share for each product or service purchased by a CPA member. CPA members receive deep discounts they would not otherwise get without an LMA membership. Local Media Association is making this partnership opportunity available to all media associations in TEAM on page 8
It’s been an interesting few weeks. In five out of six cities, chairs had to be added to the rooms to accommodate attendees. In New York, I received sponkevin taneous applause simp when I told the audience to “quit running their newspapers as if all their business is coming from mobile” when most of their profits are coming from print. In Texas, I was introduced as “probably the most important voice in the newspaper industry today.” Geesh. The things people say. SIMP on page 8
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colorado editor
colorado editor ISSN #162-0010 USPS # 0122-940 Vol. LXXXIII, Issue 5 May 2012 Colorado Editor is the official publication of the Colorado Press Association and is published monthly at 1336 Glenarm Place. Denver, CO 80204-2115 p: 303-571-5117 f: 303-571-1803 coloradopressassociation.com
Subscription rate: $10 per year, $1 single copy Staff Samantha Johnston Publisher/Executive Director sjohnston@colopress.net Brian Clark Design Editor Board of Directors OFFICERS President Brenda Brandt The Holyoke Enterprise bbholent@chase3000.com Vice President Bryce Jacobson Craig Daily Press bjacobson@craigdailypress.com Treasurer Terri House The Pagosa Springs SUN terri@pagosasun.com Secretary Keith Cerny Alamosa Valley Courier krcemail@aol.com DIRECTORS Mark Drudge Cortez Journal mdrudge@cortezjournal.com Bart Smith The Greeley Tribune bsmith@greeleytribune.com Jane Rawlings The Pueblo Chieftain janer@chieftain.com Laurena Mayne Davis The Daily Sentinel laurena.davis@gjsentinel.com David McClain Sterling Journal-Advocate dmcclain@journal-advocate.com Paula Murphy Trinidad Times Independent paulamurphy@ratonrange.com Curtis Hubbard The Denver Post chubbard@denverpost.com Periodical postage paid at Denver, CO 80202. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Colorado Editor 1336 Glenarm Place Denver, CO 80204-2115
May 2012
You have to invest to increase your numbers The Total of Forty or subsequent financial help Years – Last month I from the newspaper. Tens marked my 40th year in of thousands of carriers the publishing business, across America get up in the great majority workthe middle of the night, ing either for or with generally seven days a week, newspapers of all shapes tear up their vehicles wit no and sizes. Although I benefits or overtime. They have worked in virtuendure late papers, sloppy ally all the different bundles and poor weather. bob disciplines associated For all this, rarely do newsbobber with the industry, my papers make any attempt primary emphasis has to improve their earning been circulation and its power. On the contrary, role in the publishing there is more of a general system. feeling of “what can we get It is appropriate then that I celby with” when it comes to paying ebrate my 40th anniversary of sorts carriers. Rate increases are greeted with a simple but direct evaluation with little or not “split.” With this of circulation that I have surmised has come a reduction in quality in these 40 years of laboring in the carriers and frankly the only thing fields. that has saved home delivery in It really comes down to two recent years has been the recesbasic tenants. sion, which forced people to take Circulation success is diroutes as a last resort. When, and rectly correlated to the amount of I guess I should say if, the employexpense a newspaper is willing to ment picture brightens, the quality devote to its function. In simple of carriers will drop to an all-time terms, it costs money to increase low if something isn’t done. or even maintain your circulation. The tendency toward exaggerThere is no magic rock. Circula- ated frugality is also exhibited in tion is a nickel and dime business the area of subscription sales or and success is achieved by a wide marketing. It costs money to keep based effort. There is no one single and obtain new subscribers. The action, event, or accomplishment, most haunting words I ever heard which will guarantee your success. from a major newspaper executive Allow me to elaborate on both were, “This paper will sell itself.” points. Let’s hope that no one really First, there seems to have been believes that. If subscribers are a concerted effort by newspapers truly our greatest asset, why won’t to find cost savings in circulation we spend more money to acquire at the expense of quality delivery them and equal amounts to keep and growth. One of the primary them? Let’s do a little math for reasons that I left the day-today a second. Let’s say you have a circulation business was because 20,000-circulation daily newspaper there was a reluctance by the and you feel it’s worth $10 million. powers that be to pay carriers I am just pulling those numbers what they were worth. Carriers out of the air, but they are certainly in particular were the victims in the ballpark. That means each of increasing gas prices, higher subscriber is worth $500. How vehicle expenses and increased much are you spending to obtain workloads without any significant or retain that $500? One can argue
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that in today’s acquisi-
a few subscribers today and saving
Second, there is no magic rock. I have to give credit to my friend Dave Gossett for coining that phrase several years ago. What he means is everyone seems to be looking for that special offer, contest, promotion, newspaper design, special section, website or whatever that will miraculously increase readership and correct all that is wrong with a newspaper’s growth.” tion market, newspapers are not worth what they used to be, but you would have to get to a really low figure before you would get in the $20 to $30 per subscriber range where most newspapers operate. Second, there is no magic rock. I have to give credit to my friend Dave Gossett for coining that phrase several years ago. What he means is everyone seems to be looking for that special offer, contest, promotion, newspaper design, special section, website or whatever that will miraculously increase readership and correct all that is wrong with a newspaper’s growth. There is a belief that there are hundreds or thousands of readers out there that are just waiting for you to find that magic rock and do the right thing and they will flock to your newspaper in droves and save the kingdom. All you have to do is turn over that magic rock. There is no magic rock. Just like there is no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Newspaper growth is not just the circulation department’s job. It is a team effort and a grind. It’s adding
a few tomorrow. Great service is imperative. It takes all types of marketing including telemarketing, kiosk, crewing, special events, Internet, direct mail and NIE. It takes a quality product that engages the readers and makes them want to come back for more. The product has to be produced in an attractive, readable and navigable fashion. It has to be both timely in delivery and news. It has to have ads that the reader can use and relate to. There is no one thing you can do to increase your newspapers. It is all these things working in concert. I have always found it amusing (if not insulting) that when the newspaper was growing, it was because we had a great product, but when circulation was down it was because the circulation department wasn’t doing its job. Bob Bobber is a newspaper consultant specializing in circulation sales, training and public speaking. You can contact him at rjbobber@ bellsouth.net. Reprinted with permission.
The Holyoke
Enterprise Community Newspaper covering Phillips County in NE Colorado
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May 2012
Second retirement’s a charm for Dixon Mountain Mail copy editor Dick Dixon retired – again – Thursday after 12 years at the paper. A lifelong journalist and educator, he retired in 1999 after 31 years teaching journalism, American history, Colorado and western history in Summit and Chaffee counties. He moved to Salida with his family in 1970 and became advisor for the school newspaper, Tenderfoot Times, and yearbook, “Le Resumé.” His journalism students won “literally hundreds” of awards. Five times Tenderfoot Times was judged best in the nation among schools of all sizes. He’s been writing since he was 15 and enrolled in journalism at Wheat Ridge High School. Throughout college he edited school newspapers and yearbooks and “I’ve been writing and editing ever since.” He attended college intending to become a veterinarian, but was stopped cold by chemistry and math and subsequently switched to journalism and history. “I found writing and history were a natural match,” Dixon said. He edited a couple of history books while in Summit County and later wrote “The Story of the Salida Smokestack,” and “Off the Beaten Path,” a Chaffee County area travel and history guidebook. Dixon spent 20 years researching the Ute Trail area and eight years writing “Denver and Rio Grande Railroad Calumet Branch and Turret Mining Area,” which was the last in the Sundance Publishing Co. Trails Among the Columbine series. As a photographer he recorded historical sites and began accumulating a collection of old photos that have illustrated history articles published in The Mountain Mail and elsewhere. He was a correspondent for The Pueblo Chieftain 12 years while he taught. When Merle Baranczyk, Arkansas Valley Publishing Co. owner, decided to produce “Sal-
ida, The Early Years” in 2001, he asked Dixon to edit. Material for the book came from copies of “almost extinct” special newspaper editions researched and written during the 1950s by Mountain Mail news editor Eleanor Fry. Years later, Fry became Dixon’s editor when he worked for the Chieftain. “She was pretty salty as an editor and hammered in practical lessons I never learned in journalism school. Her method was blunt and direct. “I told Eleanor I’d get even with her when I edited her stuff for the book,” Dixon joked. “I never regretted her hard-hitting lessons.” In 2000, The Mountain Mail needed a copy editor and the rest, as they say, is history. Dixon started editing at night while retaining his day job as a truck driver, maintaining the dual employment about five years. “My intent now is to clean my office, garage and workbench, work my way through a big list of home projects and then work on the book about Whitehorn and other areas of Ute Trail that were cut from what I called my Turret book,” Dixon said. “I don’t intend to quit writing.”
Photog Campbell joins Mountain Mail By Cailey McDermott
Born and raised in Stillwater, Okla., Campbell worked partMail Staff Writer time as a newspaper photographer After breaking his back playing for a decade. high school football, Mike CampCampbell covered high school bell decided the next best thing to sports, car wrecks, news and wildplaying would be standing on the fires. He wrote a regular article field documenting every down. about photography for an OklaAs sports reporter, Campbell homa magazine for seven years. joined The Mountain Mail edito- Campbell Simultaneously he and his rial staff March 7. wife, Karen, started their business, He has more than 30 years of MK’s Photography and Video, 12 years ago. photography experience, including shootCampbell said he plans to reduce his ing college sports at Oklahoma State Uni- studio work to part-time because his new versity 10 years. job is full-time. “I’ve had a camera in my hand since I His family owned a house in Salida was 10,” Campbell said. when he was growing up and they visited He said he likes all sports, but football regularly. He has family in Poncha Springs is his favorite. and Colorado Springs. Campbell’s football expertise won him “Salida feels more like my hometown a football scholarship to Oklahoma State than my real hometown,” he said. University, but after injuring his back durThe Campbells returned to the area for a ing the fourth game of his senior high time in the 1980s and again last year when school season, he received a disability he moved to Nathrop. scholarship instead. They will move to Salida Wednesday to “Because I didn’t get to go to college be closer to the community they love. (for football, photography) got me on the “I’m looking forward to getting acfield. I don’t want to watch from the stands, quainted with the community again. It’s I want to be in the action – it’s where I’m going to be fun getting to know everyone comfortable,” Campbell said. In addition to football, Campbell let- – and I’m excited to be covering sports again,” Campbell said. tered in basketball, baseball and track.
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cpa marketplace SMALL WEEKLY PAPER FOR SALE Small weekly in Colorado mountain community. Grosses about $120,000. Good opportunity for young couple starting out, or older “downsized” journalists. All buildings and equipment included in sale price; you can walk in on Monday and put out a paper on Tuesday. Current owner will stick around to help with transition. Most news sources within blocks of the office. Beautiful location. Price includes office building and residence. April price reduced to $240,000 from $270,000. Call 970-873-8850.
employment must pass a drug screen and background check. This position requires proof of insurance and a valid driver’s license. PHOTO/VIDEO INTERN The Durango Herald, a family-owned daily newspaper in spectacular Southwest Colorado, seeks a paid summer photo/ video intern. Daily duties include producing local news, sports and feature photos and videos. Photo/video interns must provide their own digital SLR equipment, including a telephoto lens to cover sports. Knowledge of Photoshop and the ability to shoot and edit video are plusses. Hours include nights and weekends.
SPORTS COPY EDITOR/DESIGNER The Grand Junction (Colo.) Daily Sentinel has an immediate opening for a sports copy editor/designer. Candidates must have outstanding editing skills, command of the English language, be an innovative designer and able to work under deadline pressure. A journalism or related degree is required. The position includes some writing, compiling and writing local roundups and occasional story assignments. Experience with InDesign, especially DT’s Cloud pagination system, is a plus. The Daily Sentinel covers four local and several surrounding high schools, one Division II university, a new minor league baseball team, plus the NJCAA Division I baseball World Series. We’re also heavily involved in recreational sports, from hunting and fishing to mountain biking, skiing, running, community and youth sports. We offer competitive salaries and benefits packages. Send a cover letter, resume, references and four design samples to: Patti Arnold Sports Editor PO Box 668, Grand Junction, Colo., 81502 email: Patti.Arnold@gjsentinel.com The Daily Sentinel is a drug-free workplace and all applicants considered for
To apply, please send a cover letter, resume and photo and video samples to David Bergeland, Photo/Video Manager, at dbergeland@durangoherald.com or c/o The Durango Herald, 1275 Main Ave., Durango CO 81301. NEWS EDITOR Are you ready to step up in your career? News Editor needed for Kansas daily, about 4 hours east of Denver, near wildlife areas, fishing, hunting, outdoor sports. College town on I-70. This professional will be responsible for news content, supervision of two full-time and several part-time writers and correspondents, pagination, design and new coverage, reporting to publisher. Involved in awardwinning series of joint news sections produced by regional group. This is a prime opening for a reporter or editor with some experience who feels they can step up and produce an award-winning newspaper. Salary based on experience. Immediate opening. Send letter and resume to s.haynes@nwkansas.com and sfriedlander@nwkanas.com.
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Power of the Pin Newspapers among those trying to make most of popular new social networking site By Joanne Phillips Pinterest: Crazy growth lands it as top 10 social site (CNET, December 2011) Pinterest hits 10 million U.S. monthly unique faster than any standalone site ever (TechCrunch, February 2012) Pinterest drove more referral traffic than Twitter in February (PC Magazine, March 2012) The headlines are certainly eyecatching. With numbers like these it’s understandable why bloggers, businesses and brands from all industries are looking to stake out some ground on the network. More than 100 newspapers around the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and other regions of the world have opened accounts on the platform and are trying to figure out how to take home a piece of the Pinterest pie.
What are newspapers pinning? The Wall Street Journal has seen quite a bit of attention in the blogosphere over the last few months for its use of Pinterest. The newspaper used the platform, in conjunction with Instagram, to cover New York’s Fashion Week. Also of note is a “Quotes” board where editors have found a way to turn a text heavy article into something visual for its Pinterest followers. Think pull-quotes and soundbites. After a MediaBistro piece about the Quotes board, at least seven other newspapers started giving the strategy a spin. Pins from the Chicago Tribune have a historic and local focus: “Historic Front Pages,” “Notable Chicagoans,” “Chicago Sports.” Social media editor Amy Guth reports that the Tribune’s historic pins have done well. A board devoted to newspaper crafts has also been well received by Pinterest users. “For news organizations, the focus on purely visual aspects rather than exclusively on news is a hard concept,” Guth said in a recent email
interview. “I see news orgs trying to pin train wrecks and car crashes because they are breaking news, but that sort of thing just doesn’t go anywhere on Pinterest. Put your values on display, and speak to the values of your readers, and you’ll do fine.” Values are visible on the boards of The Pottstown (Pa.) Mercury: “We use Pinterest as a way of showcasing things we are doing in the community, such as our recent community food drive,” said Diane Hoffman, community engagement editor. The Mercury’s food drive was on display on a board called “Fill the Media Lab” where they posted photos of donations submitted by readers. A local focus is also evident on the boards of the York Daily Record. As a public service, Buffy Andrews, social media coordinator and assistant managing editor of features and niche publications, created boards with images that link to the websites of local parks and libraries. Andrews strives to drive traffic back to her own newspaper’s website by commenting on others’ pins and adding links to relevant stories that may be of interest. “I hope to connect and engage with our readers. I also hope to drive traffic to our websites and promote all of the cool things we do,” Andrews said. “Some of the things I’ve promoted are contests (such as our Peeps and Sharpdressed shoes contests) and feature series by my staff (such as our oral history series and the new series we just started, Exit Interviews).” Some newspapers use Pinterest to add depth to stories. When news came that the penny would be eliminated from Canadian currency, the Calgary Herald created a board called, “What to do with your old pennies.” The Edmonton Journal has boards for “Chalkboard Paint Inspiration” and “Mint Green Fashion,” both were created to accompany and promote stories reporters were developing.
Collaborating Some newspapers are inviting their community to pin with them. The Des Moines Register was one of the first newspapers to encour-
Pinning by the numbers How does it work? Each pin placed on a user’s virtual corkboard links back to its original source (hello, traffic!). When Pinterest users pin something to their board they are also sharing it — and the link — with their followers, increasing the chances for any particular pin to catch on in the community and potentially create a flood of traffic back to your website. Who’s behind the pins? In early February, comScore reported that Pinterest had hit 11.7 million unique monthly visitors in the United States alone — and it hit that mark faster than any other standalone site in history. Most of the site’s users are
age their readers to collaborate on a board called “Community Favorites.” If you decide to try this idea, make sure to give Pinterest users clear instructions for participation. As an incentive to follow the Arizona Republic on Pinterest the newspaper has created a collaborative board where anyone can pin anything so long as they follow all of the newspaper’s boards. In Texas the Dallas Morning News and Austin American Statesman are two of over 40 contributors to a board called, “Texans are pinning it big.” The board instructs pinners to add anything and everything “Texas.” Linda Negro, managing editor of the Evansville (Ind.) Courier & Press, curates a board where
women, and they’re more likely to be from Midwestern states. What are they pinning According to an RJMetrics report from mid-March,
newspapers from around the U.S. are invited to pin images of their features section fronts. Keep in mind that most newspapers are still feeling it out and experimenting with different pinning strategies. What works for one publication might not be a hit in another market. That being said… if you’re inspired by the newspapers mentioned here or have ideas of your own, get online and start pinning! Reprinted with permission from the May Inlander. Joanne Phillips is newsroom development coordinator at Lee Enterprises and the creator of the “Newspapers on Pinterest” pinboard. She can be reached at phillipsjoanne@hotmail.com.
the all-time most popular pinboard categories are home (17.2 percent), arts and crafts (12.4 percent), style/fashion (11.7 percent) and food (10.5 percent).
Follow Joanne’s blog, newspapersonpinterest.com, to stay up to date with what newspapers are pinning and for an alphabetical list of publications already on the social network. The Inland Press Association was founded in 1885 by a group of U.S. newspapers seeking solutions to common problems. The association is a not-for-profit corporation owned and controlled by its members, nearly 1,200 newspapers in the United States, Canada and Bermuda. The daily and weekly newspapers in the association reach nearly 20 million U.S. homes. Inland has an affiliated foundation, which provides educational programs. For more information, visit inlandpress.org.
colorado editor
May 2012
What Pinterest can do for your paper
Pinterest is hot. half-billion users claimed The photo-sharing by Facebook, it does indisocial network grew by cated a growing awareness leaps and bounds through and adoption. Most notathe end of 2011 and gained bly, adoption has been by a even more momentum preponderance of women. during the first quarter of Pinterest has become the 2012. As you might expect, “in” place to showcase the explosive growth has wish lists and everything prompted newsroom designed to inspire. Many henry m. personnel to start asking, boards are about our lopez “How can we use this in material culture: fine food, our reporting?” Before we and wine, clothes, fashion santa fe, get to that, let’s back up and shopping. new mexico just a bit and talk about Pinterest isn’t charging what Pinterest is and how for the service, but there’s people are using it. Pinterest is definitely potential to do so in the the digital version of corkboards future – not only for them, but for you might see at a supermarket or newspaper companies looking to community center. They provide an better affect ROI for their advertisempty slate for people to post (or ing customers by directly harness“pin”) images or messages – and ing the power of personal recomothers to see and interact with. Pin? mendations. That’s right, Pinterest has another term to file away with the rest of News Usage the social-media vocabulary – like Unlike Facebook and Twittweet, check in and Like – you’ve ter, Pinterest doesn’t seem to offer acquired in the past few years. Pinenough focus for breaking-news ning is the act of creating or curatand beat reporters, though it’s ing content on Pinterest. During not out of the question. However, sign up, users are prompted to load it could be a gold mine for arts, a “bookmarklet” (a small button culture and consumer reporters ) on to their browser. When users looking to identify emerging trends visit a site with a picture they want for story ideas. Newsrooms might to pin to one of their boards, they also find the platform a natural for click that little button, write their curating content, preserving stories won caption and add it. Publishand giving them a longer shelf life. ers can also add “Pin It” buttons to their sites to encourage Pinterest us- Of course, also, being active on Pinterest might serve to bring in visiers to interact with their content. tors to your site who are interested in niche content. Big Pinnin’ Here are a few ideas you might Just how explosive has growth try in your newsroom: been on Pinterest? ComScore – a web traffic tracker – shows usage • Fair Play: Take the unpubin January increased more than 50 lished photos from your county’s percent from just under 10 million fair and publish them on Pinterest, userst to nearly 15 million. And that include links to stories on the fair number was expected to increase and where folks might buy a print to nearly 20 million by the end of of the photo from your company. March. While that figure is just a Invite the pubic to visit your board fraction of Twitter’s more than 300 and let them know it’s home for this million users, or the more than kind of local content.
• Gastro-sourcing: Create a board for finding the best lunches in your town for under $10 (or another theme like best Mexican food or taco truck). Invite readers to share their food-related pins with you – you can review and add them to yours, curating a comprehensive resource for local lunching. • Our town: Can you tell the history of your area in images? Here’s your chance to find out. Audiences love easy-to-understand information on themselves and their hometowns. Create a board of local landmarks and their significance to your town’s history. • Go crazy: As journalists, it’s important to evaluate your tools to determine their best application for your goals. Look, nobody knows whether Pinterest will be the next Twitter. It could flame out or take off. So for now, just experiment. Takeaways Pinterest is growing like wasitlines during the holidays. Its popularity stems from widespread adoption among women, many of whom are using it to highlight the material goods they most wish to acquire. News organizations are in their infancy when using the service and are using it to highlights arts and culture content along with find photography. Though there has been some controversy about whether the site encourages violations of intellectual property rights, more and more people are joining the site. This article first appeared in The Inlander. Reprinted with permission from Henry M. Lopez, founder of Lopez Webworks, a Santa Fe, N.M.-based provider of web services, training and consultation is a former Inland Press Minority Leadership Fellow and digital manager for the Santa Fe New Mexican. henry@ lopezwebworks.com
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Why would you run a headline on a curve? In this feature package, it helps to add interest and it works naturally with the photo illustration. The lower curved headline echoes the design at the top.
Why we need to ask why
When we were kids, many of measuring tools, remembering us drove our parents to distrac- to “measure twice...cut once.” It’s tion with “why” questions. The that same cabinet maker using his classic, of course, is “why is the plane to smooth the surface of a sky blue?” dresser. You can be sure there And it’s that same were others: cabinet maker running Why does it get dark his fingers along the at night? grain of the wood, using Why is the water wet? his years of experience to Why is up? feel for those places that We were full of “the are still a bit rough, still a whys” back then. bit unfinished. As designers, we can When he finds those take a good lesson from spots, he’ll work to reed that. We can remember move them. Because henninger they don’t belong. to ask “why.” As in: One of our tasks as Why am I putting this designers is to use our in a box? experience to find those Why am I jumping this story? elements that don’t belong—and Why am I using this color? remove them. Sound design demands that We do that every time we ask every element on the page needs a ourselves “why.” reason to be there. If its existence cannot be explained, then it’s extraneous—and therefore bad deED HENNINGER is an insign. dependent newspaper consultant There are basics to good de- and the Director of Henninger sign, such as contrast, unity, focus Consulting. Offering comprehenand the like. Every element on the sive newspaper design services inpage needs to contribute to sound cluding redesigns, workshops, staff design approach. training and evaluations. E-mail: You see, design isn’t “playing edh@henningerconsulting.com. with the page.” It isn’t “Let’s see On the web: henningerconsulting. how this looks.” It isn’t “Throw a com. Phone: 803-327-3322. tint behind that story and see if it works.” WANT A FREE evaluation Good design is a discipline. of your newspaper’s design? Just It’s a cabinet maker using his contact Ed.
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colorado editor
May 2012
What do customers want? We all know that sales people should sell benefits. We know that advertising should emphasize benefits. And we know that people buy benefits. What kinds of benefits do customers want? According to Don, who has been in the advertising business for many years, “It all comes down to: more, better, faster or cheaper. You can talk about other things, but if you don’t show them how your product or service offers at least one of these four, they’re not going to buy.”
you’re gathering information, look beyond pricing. Find out if your advertiser has additional services. Or new locations. Or expanded business hours.
2. Better: Every business claims to be better than the competition. The challenge is to be specific. Two questions: (1) Exactly what is it that john makes your widget better? (2) Can foust you communicate that without using the word “quality?” In my opinion, “quality” is the most overused word in advertising. Usually, it doesn’t mean anything. Let’s take a look: Do you know what distinguishes “quality construction” from other types? Do you 1. More: When you’re preparing for a know the characteristics of “top quality sersales presentation, ask yourself if your pub- vice?” Do you have a good understanding of lication has more coverage than in previous what “better quality” means? Neither do I. years. Can you offer advertisers more ads for And neither do your customers. the same dollars? Do you offer extra marketNow, this is not to say that “quality” should ing or analytical services that may appeal to never be used in selling or advertising. Just certain businesses? don’t use it in general terms. “When you’re thinking of ad ideas in this category,” Don said, “the most obvious ex3. Faster: We live in a get-it-done-now ample is a two-for-the-price-of-one offer – or age. E-mail, texting, speed dating, overnight buy-one-get one free. This tactic has been delivery, drive-in windows – it’s all a reflecaround for a long time, because it works so tion of our demand to get things in a hurry. well.” While writing this paragraph, I did a There are plenty of other choices. As Google search on “consumer demand for
speed.” The search generated over 4 million results in .14 seconds. That’s point-one-four seconds. What took so long? Healthcare has its own version of speed dating. A medical organization in Texas has a program to help people choose primary care physicians in five-minute interviews. When it’s time for an oil change, I usually go to a place that offers fast service. Why should I wait an hour somewhere else, when it can be done in 20 minutes? Same oil, faster service. On the highway, “speed kills.” But in the marketplace, “speed sells.” 4. Cheaper: “Price can be a huge motivator,” Don said. “Even with luxury items – or premium advertising space – people like to get bargains.” The key is to provide specifics. How much can your customers save? How deep is the discount? How long will the sale last? © Copyright 2012 by John Foust. All rights reserved.
John Foust has conducted training programs for thousands of newspaper advertising professionals. Many ad departments are using his training videos to save time and get quick results from in-house training. E-mail for information: jfoust@mindspring.com
Focus on letters to invigorate your editorial page Newspapers frequently ask the generally should be limited to one question: How can we promote a letter per month, except in the case lively exchange of ideas in our comof rebuttals (see next item). munity? There’s no silver bullet, but one Restrict rebuttals: Exchanges premise is fundamental: Letters are among writers should be limited the lifeblood of an editorial page. to two letters from each individual Translated, take steps to ensure subon a particular subject – in other stantive letters, and you’re well on words, a letter and a rebuttal, plus a your way to making your editorial counter-rebuttal from each writer. jim page a “must read.” My apologies pumarlo After that, the readers can carry in advance to anyone who takes ofon their conversations privately. fense, but “thank you” letters should Writers will complain that the other be at the bottom of the pile – if they person “had the last word,” but that ever are published. will always be the case. Consider this string of “thank you” letters during a two-week span at one Avoid orchestrated campaigns: Letters newspaper. distributed in mass distribution should be The retiring director of a youth camp held to a higher standard. If you publish one, thanks the community for its unwavering you likely open the floodgates to a variety support. Teachers thank school board memof special interests that may not necessarbers for their service in observance of School ily have a presence in your community. At Board Recognition Week. Two organizers minimum, editors should require that these of fund-raisers thank the community for its letters are authored by a local resident. support, one specifically thanking a local hotel for hosting the event. A mayor thanks Give priority to local opinions: In genthe community for the opportunity to serve eral, letters should be accepted from local them, then expresses his appreciation to all readers only. An exception might be a letter appointed and elective officials. Another on a local topic from a recognized expert public official thanks his constituents for the who lives outside the area. opportunity to serve them as he announces his decision not to seek re-election. Verify letters: All letters should be Sorry, these letters may be great for scrap- verified prior to publication, preferably by books. But they do little to boost the editorial a phone call. Editors should require name, page as the place for substantive exchange on full address and telephone number on all important community issues. submissions – especially if letters are submitFollowing are additional dos and don’ts to ted via e-mail. keep the letters column relevant: Limit length: Readers have limited at-
Letters are no substitute for news stories: Only in special circumstances should
Limit frequency of authors: Individuals
Be conscious of display: Be sensitive to the prominence letters receive – especially
tention span for lengthy stories. The same is true for letters. Editors are doing the writers a favor by imposing limits; 300 words is a good starting point.
editors accept letters promoting an event or program. Once you say “yes” to one, it’s difficult to say “no” to another.
those that present opposing views on the same issue. Edit aggressively: Make readers aware that letters are edited aggressively, especially those that repeat themes. Stick to public issues: Letters should address public issues or issues that come before public bodies. Compliments and/or criticism of private organizations and businesses are not regular subjects for letters. Identify authors where appropriate:
Letters should carry a note identifying the writer if it’s germane to the subject. For example, a writer might be identified as a nuclear engineer if the letter addresses nuclear energy. Possibly most important, newspapers should resist the temptation to add a postscript to letters. Editors’ notes might be appropriate to correct an error in fact or a statement that grossly mischaracterizes a position. But they should not be tacked on to defend or restate the newspaper’s position. Editors should keep in mind that every action prompts a reaction. The obsession of many newspapers to have the “last word” sends a clear message to readers and is a sure-fire way to squelch the exchange of opinions. Jim Pumarlo writes, speaks and provides training on Community Newsroom Success Strategies. His newest book is “Journalism Primer: A Guide to Community News Coverage for Beginning and Veteran Journalists.” He also is author of “Votes and Quotes: A Guide to Outstanding Election Coverage” and “Bad News and Good Judgment: A Guide to Reporting on Sensitive Issues in a Small-Town Newspaper.” He can be contacted at www.pumarlo. com and welcomes comments and questions at jim@pumarlo.com.
Advertising Manager Informational Webinar CPA member advertising managers and publishers are encouraged to attend an informational webinar co-sponsored by CPA and LMA to provide information about the LMA partnership and the benefits extended to CPA members. Cost: Free Who should attend: All advertising managers, sales managers, publishers and those making training decisions for advertising sales staffs When: Thursday, May 17 – 1 p.m. MST Log on at: https://www2.gotomeeting. com/register/352677506.
-------Advertising-------Your bound volume archives are unique and priceless. As the steward of your community’s published history, you know the value of your printed newspaper archive – chronicled stories of the people, places and events recorded in real time over decades or even centuries! Assure their survival by making digital copies now. With ArchiveInABox from SmallTownPapers, you simply pack your bound volume and historic archive materials into our shipping box and we do all the rest. For one low price, you own the scans and control how your archive is accessed. Best of all, there is no additional cost to host your online archive. Hundreds of satisfied publishers in North America. “We made a conscious decision that it was time to begin digitization, due to the accessibility and condition of our bound archives. The best course of action is the scanning program offered by SmallTownPapers. It works. It is low cost, and the digitization is accomplished over time, so we spread out, what little expense there is, over a long period.” --Tom Mullen, newspaperman See Tom's archive website here: http://smc.stparchive.com. For more information, please visit www.ArchiveInABox.com.
colorado editor
May 2012
7
legal q & a Editor’s note: Colorado Press Association’s legal counsel Tom Kelley, Steve Zansberg, and Chris Beall, with the Denver law firm of Levine Sullivan Koch & Schulz, field questions from CPA members on First Amendment and freedom of information issues. Some of those recent questions and answers, in revised form, are listed below. If you have any questions you would like them to address, please submit them to CPA Executive Director Samantha Johnston at sjohnston@ colopress.net. Question: The executive committee of our county’s Republican Party is going to be having a meeting, and I would like to attend it. I have been told that I will likely be barred, despite the fact that there will undoubtedly be elected officials at the meeting. Can they keep me from attending?
Answer: Probably. The fact that elected officials may be in attendance at the executive committee meeting for the El Paso County GOP does not control whether the meeting must be open to the public. Rather, in order to
be subject to the Colorado Open Meetings Law, there must be a quorum of a “public body” in attendance at the meeting and there must be a discussion of public business over which that public body has jurisdiction. Thus, if the elected officials who attend this meeting constitute a quorum of one or more government boards – such as the county commission or a city council – then there may be an argument in favor of requiring public access if the discussion during the executive committee meeting pertains to issues that are related to the work of that public body. Otherwise though, the COML would not generally apply to a political party’s executive committee meeting. Question: Our county-owned hospital has recently signed a contract with a private consulting firm to do a variety of things, from temporary management/ oversight, to a possible CEO search, as well as an overall analysis of the operation. Is that contract a public record? Answer: Yes. The contract is a “writing” that is “made, main-
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tained, or kept” by the county hospital, “for use in the exercise of functions required or authorized by law or administrative rule,” and therefore it constitutes a “public record” under the Colorado Open Records Act. In addition, any contractual provision that requires the hospital to treat the contract as “confidential” is unenforceable as contrary to the public policy stated in the CORA. That is why several courts have required public agencies – including Memorial Hospital in Colorado Springs -- to release to the public contracts it enters into with staff physicians and settlement agreements with claimants who asserted medical malpractice claims. Question: I cover a state public body, and I recently had an exchange with the spokesman for that board who claimed that the board does not announce the particular topics that will be discussed in an executive session. After the conclusion of a particularly lengthy executive session, I asked the spokesman what would be the topic of the next day’s executive session topics. He replied that it was a
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The FoLLowing Courses wiLL be AvAiLAbLe nexT MonTh: Advanced online Certification is designed for media sales reps who have been actively selling online advertising for some time and are looking to advance their skills. Media sales Manager Certification is for those who are competent in the topics covered in the basic and advanced courses and are ready to lead other sales representatives.
personnel matter and reiterated, “As I mentioned previously, we do not announce the specific details of executive session discussions.” He added that the regents planned to discuss “personnel, legal and property matters” in the additional scheduled executive sessions. I am wondering if there is a problem that the regents are not saying more than “legal advice” or “it’s a personnel matter”? Answer: Yes. There is a problem. The Colorado Open Meetings Law requires an advance announcement of the “particular matter to be discussed in as much detail as possible without undermining the purpose for which the executive session is held.” This requirement has been enforced in a number of court cases in precisely the situation you’ve described – where the public body announced only the category of the executive session (i.e., “legal matters” or “personnel matters”) without announcing the specific topics to be discussed under those categories. So, yes, in merely stating the statutory category for an executive session, without announcing the “particular matter to be discussed,” this board has not “strictly complied” with the COML, and this failure to comply renders the subsequent closed-door meetings unlawful under the statute. Question: I am trying to track down job performance evaluations for our local high school football coach and the school district superintendent. Are those records exempt from disclosure under state law? Answer: No. With respect to the football coach, if he is not a licensed teacher or other licensed school profession, then his job performance evaluations fall under the standard provisions of the Colorado Open Records Act. Under that statute, Colorado’s Court of Appeals has narrowly construed the exemption for “personnel files” to limit that exemption solely to information maintained by the employer that is unrelated to a public employee’s discharge of his official duties: “Personal demographic information” that is of the same highly personal and private nature as the itemized list of “home address, home phone number, personal financial information.” As a result, only this type of personal demographic information may properly be withheld under the “personnel files” exception. As for the superintendent, because she is a licensed professional, her final evaluation report is subject to public disclosure pursuant to § 22-9-109, C.R.S., the statute dealing with access to records of licensed educational professionals. Unfortunately, all
documents that were “used” in preparing the evaluation report on the superintendent are not subject to release under this statute. Of course, any records pertaining to the superintendent performing her public functions which were not used in preparing the evaluation report fall under the CORA and are subject to release. Question: We received an agenda for a “special” meeting of our local school board today, and in it, the board indicates that this meeting will “take place via email.” Is that legal? Can they notice an email meeting? And how does the public participate? Answer: Yes. Meetings can be conducted by e-mail. The Colorado Open Meetings Law says so expressly. To do so, the school board must give proper advance written notice, as they appear to have done. And, you should be given access to the “meeting” conducted via e-mail by some reasonable means – either being allowed to observe at the computer of one of the participants, or, alternatively, you could ask to be copied (“cc:”ed) on the exchanges between the meeting participants. Question: I attended the meeting of our local city planning and zoning commission last night. They are in the process of getting requests for proposals from three consultants to help them update the city’s Master Plan. The completed the RFP last night. For their next meeting, they want to go into executive session to discuss and prepare the interview questions for the consultants. The city attorney at the meeting said they could do an executive session for that since they are purchasing a product, the master plan. Their reasoning is that they do not want the candidates to know the questions ahead of the interview. Is that legal? Answer: Probably not. The Colorado Open Meetings Law does not provide any exemption for discussions related to “purchasing a product.” The only potentially applicable exemptions is the one for discussions concerning “the purchase, acquisition, lease, transfer, or sale of any real, personal, or other property interest.” However, a contract to hire a consultant to develop the city’s master plan is most certainly not a contract to purchase a property interest. It is a contract for personal services. And, because the consultant is not going to be hired as an “employee,” the discussion also does not fall within the “personnel matters” exemption, which applies only to “employees” of local public bodies.
coloradopressassociation.com
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colorado editor
May 2012
Focusing on community seems to aid newspapers
‘Monumental Majesty’ finalist for award “Monumental Majesty: 100 Years of Colorado National Monument” is a 2012 Colorado Book Award finalist in the anthology/ collection category. The 136-page, photo-intensive book was written, photographed and designed largely by Grand Junction Daily Sentinel staff. A truly collaborative effort, nearly 50 people contributed, including invited artists, photographers and writers in the community. Legendary documentary filmmaker Ken Burns wrote the foreword, calling it, «a stunning book, full of exquisite imagery of one of the most beautiful places on the planet.» Sentinel Publisher Jay Seaton said the book is a natural extension of the newspaper›s work in covering the community. In the book›s introduction, Seaton wrote: «The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, situated within view of the monument, has chronicled in pictures and words the monument›s
birth and close relationship to its community. Indeed, Sentinel Publisher Walter Walker›s support of Otto›s efforts gave a foothold to what may otherwise have been interpreted as the tinkerings of a madman on a mountain.» The other finalists in the anthology/collection category are “Denver Inside and Out” from History Colorado and “Climb: Tales of Man Versus Boulder, Crag, Wall and Peak,”
edited by Kerry L. Burns and Cameron M. Burns. Finalists in all categories are listed at www. coloradohumanities.org. They will be recognized at the Colorado Book Award Celebration during the Aspen Summer Words Literary Festival on June 22 in Aspen. Copies of “Monumental Majesty” can be purchased ($32.95 plus tax) at Tattered Cover, Barnes & Noble Booksellers and at GJSentinel.com.
Members will benefit from collaboration TEAM from Page 1 the U.S. and Canada. Colorado Press will join the California Newspaper Publishers Association in being the first to join the LMA Association Partnership Program. “There are many great industry trade associations in North America and we all have certain niches or areas of expertise”, said Nancy Lane, president, LMA, “it just makes sense to collaborate and share with our fellow associations. Our sales certification program took over two years to develop and included a serious investment from our partnership group. Sharing this fabulous tool with the industry is the right thing to do.” At a time when newspapers are struggling to adequately train sales teams to sell both print and digital in an ever-changing environment, LMA offers certification programs geared toward sales personnel and management that will help shift the resource burden off of in-house advertising teams.
“LMA offers a resource that many community newspapers simply don’t have the time or money to develop independently,” Johnston said. “This nine-module course prepares a sales person to hit the street with confidence, industry knowledge, marketing savvy and sales know-how. The programs are designed to be used as an initial training course for new sales consultants or on-going education for current consultants. And the beauty of the program is that it can be done from anywhere, anytime with Internet access.” In addition to the sales certification programs, LMA hosts a variety of monthly webinars. Recent topics include: Social Media and your Advertisers: What You Need to Know; Major Account Outlook; Developing an In-House Agency; Reputation Management – A New Revenue Stream; and Daily Deals Best Practices. Upcoming webinars include: Using Free Open Source Software;
Digital Pricing Optimization; Assessing Local Digital Sales Forces; Mobile Strategies; Political Advertising Opportunities and many more. For a complete list of upcoming training, visit www.localmedia.org/Webinars/ UpcomingWebinars.aspx or visit the CPA website at coloradopressassociation.com/News-Events. Another unique resource available to LMA partners is access to monthly research focused on Emerging Business Model, Digital Revenue Opportunities and New and Exciting Trends packaged in a How-To Information/ Case Study Format. Subscriptions to the “Research Club” findings include a monthly report and webinar with featured company executives. For more information about the Local Media Association Partnership program, contact Nancy Lane at nancy.lane@localmedia.org or (843) 390-1531 or Samantha Johnston at sjohnstonn@colopress.net or (303) 571-5117.
Give! aims to inspire young philanthropists GIVE from Page 1 paper. But now it’s gotten so big that we finally need to staff it with paid people. Which is where Long comes back in. She has been involved with the campaign from the start, working to partner Bristol in providing rewards to contributors, like in-home beer tasting. She has also served on the advisory board and executive committee. And starting May 16, she will come on as part-time Give! coordinator. She will be joining Mary Lou Makepeace, the former Colorado Springs mayor, activities and executive director of the Gay & Lesbian Fund for Colorado, who accepted a community outreach position and
has been working part-time since March. Give! aims to promote and support Pikes Peak region nonprofits. It is set up as an end-of-year fundraising campaign, but Simison-Bitz says that considering everything else it does – from helping nonprofits craft their message for media to holding community events – “it is so much more than that.” The campaign aims to inspire people, mostly young adults in their 20s and 30s, to begin seeing themselves as philanthropists. And businesses like Bristol help to make this idea attractive, by offering rewards for donations. “While giving is and should be its own reward, we want to break you in
easily. We want you to know that you don’t have to be rich,”Simison-Bitz says. “We’re trying to entice people, by saying, ‘This is fun. Get to know these nonprofits. We want to offer you a reward.’ And thankfully we have a fantastic local community of business folks and individuals who ware willing to donate their products or their time.” A couple weeks ago, Mayor Steve Bach hosted a hike with the mayor thorugh Red Rock Canyon Open Space, Simison-Bitz points out. Fifty donors participated, then went to The Broadmoor for drinks and snacks. Last year, Give! raised almost $700,000 cumulatively for 49 Pikes Peak are nonprofits.
SIMP from Page 1 In Pennsylvania, the woman who introduced me instructed the audience to stand so I could tell everyone I had another “standing room only” group in Harrisburg. Here’s what I’m noticing. People are having fun again in our business. For a few years, conventions were overshadowed with a feeling of gloom and doom. It seems to me that 2012 may be the year that the vale of gloom is lifted and we start enjoying our work again as an industry. Convention registrations have been up. Audiences have been larger. More people have been out on the dance floor. These are all good signs. In South Carolina last week, an editor told me his paper had sent more than 20 attendees to their annual state convention. “It’s the first time we’ve done that in recent history,” he said. Obviously it’s not fun for everyone. I had an enlightening lunch with two executives with a chain of metro papers a few days ago. I told them about the larger crowds this year and profits that seem to be on the way up, instead of down. “I hear the community papers are doing well,” one of them said. “They really know how to meet the needs of their readers and it’s paying off.” We discussed the “mistaken idea” - their words, not mine - that consolidation leads to profits. I mentioned that I had recently worked for a client who used to be a big dog with one of the major newspaper groups. She told me she was part of the inner circle that originally made the decision to send their production and customer service to other countries. When I asked how that went, she was very blunt. “It was a disaster.” Apparently it didn’t take long to move everything back. I’ve heard the same story from publishers with other groups that had similar experiences. My two lunch friends told me their company had come “perilously close” to moving production overseas. “Thank goodness we didn’t,” said one of them. He went on to add that he felt it was “a mistake to assume that consolidation increases profits.” Speaking of their efforts to consolidate properties, using central locations for producing multiple newspapers, he said that he would bet that it ended up “costing more money in the long run” than keeping everything in separate locations. I certainly don’t know everything, but I will share a little of what I’ve noticed in my travels of late. It seems that papers I’ve visited that are produced locally, rather than at centralized facilities, seem to be having fewer problems with ad sales, reduced circulation and other problems that have made so much news over the past three years. I could venture my own guesses as to why that seems to be the case, but I’m sure there are locally owned
and produced papers that
It probably wouldn’t surprise too many people in the business to know that community papers seem to be doing better than larger papers. It also wouldn’t surprise most industry professionals to hear that locally owned papers seem to be fairing better than newspapers owned by large groups.” are having plenty of struggles of their own. They just don’t happen to be locations I’ve visited. Having said that, I’ve probably visited more newspapers that are being produced in centralized locations over the past year than the other way around. And most of them seem to be doing well. If I were drawing a chart of the entire newspaper industry, I’d probably divide the page into two halves. One one half would be “Profitable newspapers.” On the other, would be “Struggling newspapers.” It probably wouldn’t surprise too many people in the business to know that community papers seem to be doing better than larger papers. It also wouldn’t surprise most industry professionals to hear that locally owned papers seem to be fairing better than newspapers owned by large groups. If I might paraphrase my lunch mate, I believe this has a lot to do with understanding your community. Reporters, editors, publishers, ad staffs and others at our papers understand their communities better than someone looking in from the outside. And it seems to me that this results in stronger sales and increased circulation. Time will tell, I suppose. The dean of a major school of journalism told me four years ago that he believed there wouldn’t be a single printed newspaper left in the United States by the year 2018. I told him I believed that might be the dumbest idea I’d ever heard. When he asked why I felt that way, I told him that I knew my community. And if all the other papers closed down, I’d start one and make a fortune. It looks like I won’t have to do that. It’s been four years and none of the papers in my area have closed. I’m glad 2012 seems to be a better year for our industry. Even some of my metro clients are telling me things are looking up. I hope the journalism dean and I cross paths in 2018. I’d love to compare notes.