Telegram, community share partnership

Back on track: Temple Daily Telegram

Telegram, community share partnership

STAFF REPORT

The Temple Daily Telegram is a committed partner to its readers, its advertisers and its community.

“We have a strong commitment to the communities we serve,” Sue Mayborn, the Telegram’s editor and publisher, said. “We work daily to bring you the news that is important to your daily lives. It is our job to present the information to you fairly and accurately.”

Local officials and civic leaders appreciate the role the newspaper plays as it strives to cover the news in Temple, Belton and the surrounding area with a comprehensive report in print and online.

“I am proud of the strong partnership that exists between Temple ISD and the Temple Daily Telegram,” Bobby Ott, Temple ISD superintendent, said. “This partnership is very beneficial to our community and families because we both share a common goal of informing our public. Communities are highly interested in their local school systems and the more they are engaged, informed and involved, the better a school system can meet their expectations.”

That sentiment was echoed by Randy Pittenger, the president of the Belton Chamber of Commerce.

“The Temple Daily Telegram serves a critical role in helping connect our community with needed information,” Pittenger said. “We depend on our local daily newspaper to share timely information with the community about events, business activity, and a variety of issues relevant to economic development and quality of life. The Telegram is an important partner in making this such a great area in which to live, work, shop and play.”

More often than not, the Telegram is the only news media present for city council meetings, school board meetings, Temple College trustee meetings, county commissioners meetings, high school games and other events.

The Telegram has expanded regional coverage through FME News Service — a joint initiative with the Killeen Daily Herald. Combined, the two newspapers have the region’s largest news gathering operation.

The newspapers also collaborate to publish Tex Appeal Magazine. The quarterly publication is distributed in each newspaper and also is available at dozens of Bell County locations.

The Telegram print edition reaches a large audience that includes an estimated readership of 23,000 daily and 26,000 on Sunday.

The Telegram’s website, tdtnews.com, which averages nearly 130,000 users a month, features local news, sports and entertainment along with an electronic version of the print edition and more than 240,000 archived articles and photos available to subscribers. The site was recognized as the “Online Newspaper of the Year” by the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors Association — one of 21 awards the Telegram won for journalistic excellence in 2020.

The Telegram’s news app gives users instant access to the website as well as breaking news alerts from their phone, tablet or mobile device. The app can be downloaded for free at the Apple App Store or Google Play.

In 2020, the Telegram and Herald launched JobsCentralTexas. com, a locally based employment site designed to connect job seekers and employers.

The Telegram also operates CentralTexasTickets.com, which helps local organizations promote and sell tickets to their events. The site has generated nearly 14,000 ticket sales and more than $200,000 for local entities since its launch in 2019.

The Telegram has produced the Fort Hood Sentinel via a contract with the U.S. Army for more than 70 years. The weekly newspaper is distributed to all on-post housing and hundreds of newsstands across the region.

“We feel strongly as a locally owned newspaper that we are in a position to better serve our communities and take an active role in supporting projects and programs that make Central Texas a great place to live,” Mrs. Mayborn said.

Telegram file The Temple Daily Telegram won 21 awards for journalistic excellence in 2020, including being recognized as “Online Newspaper of the Year” by the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors Association.