The Washington Newspaper, May 2022

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THE WASHINGTON NEWSPAPER May 2022

Court rule draws opposition Page 3

Journal of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association

Online-only membership vote proposed

Better Newspaper contest deadline extended

Members to cast confidential ballots by email this summer Whether WNPA will accept online-only memberships from community news websites will be subject to a vote of the membership this summer.

The WNPA board of Directors at its April meeting approved a draft bylaws change that would allow a new kind of regular member to join WNPA. “I told the board we are receivng more inquiries about membership from people running community news websites, and the board agreed to put the matter before the members for a vote,” said WNPA Executive Director Fred Obee.

Amending the bylaws requires a vote by the membership. Each regular member newspaper gets one vote. A two-thirds majority of those voting is required for passage.

The WNPA staff is now putting together a voting process where: • Voting is by secret ballot.

• Regular member newspapers are limited to one vote.

• Members will have an opportunity to debate the measure

in an online special meeting, and in written comments to WNPA, which will be shared with the membership.

The voting process will be finalized and approved at the July meeting of the Board of Directors. A timeline will be released to the membership following board approval of the process.

The following is the proposed text of the bylaws amendment.

Regular membership is granted to online-only publications, not to individuals. To be granted regular membership, a news website: • Must have existed for at least a year. (Membership committee can waive this requirement.)

• Must be updated at least weekly.

• Must be principally devoted to the dissemination of original local news and editorial content (not less than 50 percent of overall content).

• Must adhere to the generally accepted principles of journalism and copyright law.

• Must have a telephone numSee ONLINE, Page 2

Two young sledders and their dog take a spill on the slopes on a snowy day last winter.

The photo is by Chris Johnson of the East County Journal and is one of many entries in this year’s Better Newspaper Contest. The deadline for entries has been extended to May 10. For rules and more information, go to wnpa.com and click on the home page tile for the contest.

Cascadia Daily News approved for regular WNPA membership A startup newspaper in Bellingham was approved for membership in WNPA by the Board of Directors at its April meeting.

The Cascadia Daily News is weekly in print and daily online.

Currently, about 7500 papers are printed each week. The bulk of the print distribution is free and the website is open without restriction.

The paper is starting to sell subscriptions and has plans to erect a paywall on its website at the end of this promotional period.

Cascadia Daily News debuted online on Jan. 24 this year and published its first weekly print edition on March 2.

The Executive Editor is Ron Judd, a former Seattle Times journalist. The compay is owned by fourth-generation Whatcom County resident David Syre.

Syre, 80, was a developer and businessman whose projects included Semiahmoo Resort and Bellis Fair Mall. He now spends his time primarily as an abstract painter and philanthropist.

ONLINE: Time to add FROM THE PRESIDENT news websites to rolls?

Continued from Page 1 ber and mailing address and be incorporated within the state.

• Must not serve primarily as a platform to promote the interests or opinions of a special interest group, individual or cause.

• WNPA online-only members shall have all the benefits of regular members.

• Online-only members will pay the same dues as other regular members.

Before approving a vote on the possible admission of online-only members, the WNPA staff polled other newspaper associations across the country to determine if they allowed online memberships, and if so, what they required for membership.

The draft bylaws proposal approved by the WNPA board took the those requirments into consideration. The

board also looked at what is required currently of regular members and fashioned the bylaws change so requirements for print newspapers were generally the same as for online-only members.

Many newspaper associations across the state have had onlineonly members for many years and no association reported any problems in allowing online-only members to join.

Some, however, did limit the voting rights of online-only members.

In some cases, less than full membership was offered.

The WNPA board, however, concluded that online-only members should be full members of the association and pay the same dues all regular rembers pay.

Only legitimate news websites that mirror WNPA values would be considered, the board said.

Officers: Steve Powell, President; Michelle Nedved, First Vice President; Donna Etchey, Second Vice President; Trustees: Roger Harnack, Heather Hernandez, Teresa Myers, Rudi Alcott, Sean Flaherty and Matt Winters and Bob Richardson.

THE WASHINGTON NEWSPAPER is the offical publication of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association. It is published monthly by WNPA, PO Box 389, Port Townsend, WA 98368.

Fred Obee: Executive Director: 360-344-2938 Email: fredobee@wnpa.com Janay Collins, Member Services Director: 360-344-2938. Email: ads@wnpa.com

2 The Washington Newspaper May 2022

It’s the old hen house game of ethics played out behind an opaque curtain

By Steve Powell If you’ve read any of these columns the past half year you know I’m all about open government, freedom of the press, freedom of speech and against most efforts to restrict the exchange of information.

Even holding back information because of “national security” concerns me. If it truly is for national security Powell and safety of people in this country, by all means withhold it. But who gets to decide if it truly is national security or just in the interest of certain politicians? They do. It’s like the fox guarding the hen house, as the old saying goes.

So my rant this month is about the ethics board on Bainbridge Island.

That board was created years ago because of problems with the City Council. It was before my time, but apparently accusations were flying around town about many ethical problems alleged against various councilmembers.

So, the council established an ethics board to accept complaints, basically to decide if they are valid or not, and make an advisory decision if it should go on to the hearing examiner.

The board looks at conduct and ethics complaints against council and city committee members, along

with city employees. They look at the 4Cs: conduct at meetings, confidentiality, conflict of interest, and compensation and gifts. Admonishment, reprimand, censure and other solutions are its options.

One of my issues with this is who are these people on the ethics board? Are foxes guarding the hen house? Who are they to judge?

How can we be sure they are fair?

What are their qualifications?

Certainly they could have bias for or against anyone a complaint is filed against. Certainly something I consider a conflict of interest, for example, may not be to someone else.

I have questioned some of their opinions the past two years. To me, it should be a duck is a duck, whether it swims left or right or down the middle. But complaints would be filed against some council members, while others would do the same thing and get off scot-free.

What makes the situation worse now is the City Council just decided to allow the complainant and the target of the complaint to remain anonymous, unless the ethics board decides it is valid and continue on to the hearing examiner.

The city attorney warned them against that months ago, reminding the council that it is a public agency with “broad requirements for transparency.” But a subcommittee of City Council and ethics board members decided on anonymity anyway. They were concerned about reputations being damaged by unsubstantiated complaints.

I already mentioned my concern about whether they are really “unsubstantiated” or not.

But I think having such information anonymous is unethical of the ethics board. The whole idea of an ethics board is to shed light on what is done in government. How can that be done in a closet?

One council member, who ended up on the subcommittee, said months ago that the council already reached consensus not to accept anonymous complaints without a legitimate safety issue. Well, she and the others obviously changed their minds.

Some on the subcommittee were concerned people wouldn’t run for council or a committee spot because of the threat of their reputations being hurt. But people who run for office, just like people in journalism, have to have a tough shell because they always will be criticized no matter what they do. Besides, if the goal of the ethics board is to educate rather than punish - which is says it is - that wouldn’t be much of a concern.

At least with things out in the open the public can decide if the information is valid or not or if the board, council and hearing examiner are doing their jobs correctly.

When the public doesn’t know what’s going on, we can only think there must be some kind of shenanigans behind it.

Steve Powell is the editor of the Bainbridge Island Review and this year’s WNPA president.

Check out WNPA podcasts & learn from the pros Reporters and editors who want to improve their reporting can now log on to WNPA’s podcast site and listen to experts in the field tell how they approach their stories.

Currently on the site are interviews with Les Zaitz, owner and Publisher of the Malheur Enterprise. Les and his staff are redefining how community papers approach reporting. Also,

Eli Sanders, Pulitzer Prize winning writer for the Stranger in Seattle, talks interviewing and narrative writing techniques.

Jacqui Banaszynski is also there, as is Amber

Dodd of the Spokesman Review. To find the podcasts, go to wnpa.com and click on the podcast tile in the middle of the home page or search for WNPA on Google podcasts.

Initials only for juveniles? WNPA joins repeal effort The Washington State Supreme Court recently drafted a new rule requiring juvenile names in court files to be listed by initials only.

The rule, which is set to go into effect in early May, has drawn protests from journalists, open government advocates, court clerks at the county level, prosecutors and law enforcement.

A coalition of those concerned with the rule change this month drafted a letter to the state Supreme Court justices asking for a review of the rule.

Objections run the gamut from constitu-

tional to practical.

“We write to you as a coalition of many justice system partners negatively affected by recently adopted amendments to GR 31 and CrR 2.1,” says the letter to the justices, signed by representatives of 10 organizations, including WNPA. “Our immediate request is that you delay implementation until representatives can speak with you regarding questions and concerns,” the letter reads.

In additon to WNPA, the coalition objecting to the new court rule includes: Washington State

Association of County Clerks, the District and Municipal Judges Association, Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, Allied Daily Newspapers, the Washington Association of Broadcasters, the Superior Court Judges Association, Washington Association of Juvenile Court Administrators, Washington State Patrol, and the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs.

Specific concerns include: • Entities across the justice system have unique software programs that do not func-

tion without entry of a name.

• The rule makes it impossible to transfer files to law enforcement, and makes required criminal background checks almost impossible.

• Legal actions and licenses that require background checks would be hobbled, including sex offender registrations, revocation or approval of firearm or drivers’ licenses, restitution orders and orders of protection, all of which require use of an individual’s full name.

The coalition also points out using only

intitials in court files creates confusion in the administration of justice that is far reaching in scope.

“Without names of alleged offenders identified in the charging documents, the records become a generic, unidentifiable pile of cases not associated with any person,” the letter says.

This could cause problems for people with duplicate intials and dates of birth.

Using only initials, it would be possible for someone undergoing a background check to be confused with someone with the same intials and

birthdate. If real names are unavailable in the file, the wrongly accused person would have no way to unravel the error.

Using intitials only for juveniles will come at the expense of the public, efficient functioning of the criminal justice system, multiple public safety requirements enacted by the Legislature and the constitutional guarantee of public access to the justice system, the letter concludes.

The Supreme Court has agreed to review the concerns of the coalition at an administrative hearing May 3.

WITH OVER 60 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE, WE KNOW JOURNALISM. From public records to protecting journalists, from defamation claims to business needs, large and small Washington publishers turn to us.

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The Washington Newspaper May 2022 3

Northwest Asian Weekly marks 40 years

By Assunta Ng When you wake up after a dream, the dream fades away because it wasn’t real.I dreamt of starting the first Chinese newspaper in the Pacific Northwest in October 1981. I woke up after 40 years, and it still exists because it wasn’t a fantasy. Our 40th anniversary was Jan. 20, 2022.

Some say the newspaper is able to continue due to hard work, grit and a great team. We all know that, don’t we? We are still here because I have always listened to the needs of our readers and community.

And I put those concerns into reality.

When too many American-born Chinese moaned about their inability to read Chinese, I started an English edition, which later turned into the Northwest Asian Weekly. It was challenging for a small company to publish two newspapers at the beginning, and it still is.

There wasn’t that much going on in the community four decades ago to fill the pages. The easy way was to print every other week. But my team members insisted and persevered to keep two newspapers publishing week after week without fail.

The community has grown not only in

have poured our heart and soul to make it not just a good issue, but a meaningful one for our community.

Assunta Ng size, it has evolved politically, socially, and economically, and sometimes, there is so much happening, we don’t have enough manpower to cover it all.

Over the years, we have learned how to balance our issues every week, ask for help from different sources, and fill it with timely news and photos. Behind every issue, we

THE NEED TO GIVE BACK After a few years, we noticed there was a need to fundraise for many community projects.

When the Chinese community organized to raise money for the Kin On Nursing Home, we decided to help. We raised over $40,000 through two dinners in celebration of our 10th anniversary. There was another proud moment when we raised $8,700 for the United Way of King County through a musical show, “The Westside Story,” produced by the Northwest Asian American Theater. And we also paid for the whole performance. I loved the fact that we were supporting both a charity and the arts. These ideas are similar to what we did in 2021 when we organized a virtual event to honor health care workers and reward all the honorees with grocery store and restaurant gift certificates. We always try to kill two birds with one stone.

Soon, we launched the nonprofit arm of the newspapers, Northwest Asian Weekly

Foundation. Since then, we have supported countless organizations and causes. One of those causes is in education. The Foundation has raised money for many high school and college scholarships in addition to five scholarship endowments, including four for the University of Washington: The Business School, College of Education, Department of Communication, and School of Public Affairs.

THE NEED TO EMPOWER Years ago, a Jewish friend was surprised that his Asian American friend running for office got his photo and story on the Asian Weekly’s front page.

“It’s not that easy to get our photo and story on the front page of our community paper simply by running for office,” he said.

To us, it’s painless and straightforward.

Our mission is to empower the community. Running for office takes courage, sacrifice, and commitment. People who place themselves in vulnerable positions deserve a lot of credit.

Learn more about Northwest Asian Weekly at https://nwasianweekly.com.

Cindy Vest, the smiling face of La Conner newspapers, passes away Newspaperwoman Cindy Vest, who was integral to a half century of news publishing in La Conner, died on Sunday, April 10 with her family at her bedside. She had been battling leukemia.

Until she retired last year, Cindy had been the behind-the-scenes engine keeping the town’s weekly newspaper running since the 1970s.

Cynthia Louise Graff was born in Everett, Washington to MaryLou and Robert Graff on May 19, 1950. Her father was a printer and from the time she was a schoolgirl, she worked with her dad at Graff Printing in Everett, a business founded by her grandfather in 1928.

In the 1970s Cindy went

Cindy Vest to work for La Conner’s original newspaper, Puget Sound Mail, as a typesetter and presswoman. That same decade, the startup Channel Town Press, recruited her. Until the Puget Sound Mail folded in the 1980s, Cindy worked for both competing newspapers, keeping secrets for

4 The Washington Newspaper May 2022

both employers.

Cindy stayed on at the Channel Town Press until the newspaper closed in 2006. But the town didn’t miss a single issue of its weekly paper. The week after the Channel Town Press published its swan song, Cindy teamed with Sandy Stokes to establish and publish what is now La Conner Weekly News.

The business partners sold their interest in La Conner Weekly News to Ken Stern in 2017, but Cindy didn’t retire. She stayed on for four more years to help keep the paper strong.

In 2019, Cindy was awarded the Dixie Lee Bradley award, one the most prestigious honors presented by the Washington

Newspaper Publishers Association to those who work behind the scenes keeping the newspaper humming.

Cindy used to get teased that her favorite fragrance was newsprint and ink. She could run a web press, do old-time typesetting and pasteup with hot wax, make camera plates and address newspapers with an 1880s museum-quality Wing Mailer.

As technology evolved, Cindy taught herself to design and layout the newspaper and handle all the bookkeeping online.

Cindy was the eldest of four siblings and her brother Brad recalls she was the one who taught him many things, including how to water ski and snow ski. At one time or

another, “we all worked in the family print shop,” he said. When the first electric typesetting machine was introduced five decades ago, “Cindy could type 120 words per minute,” Brad recalls.

During much of her life, Cindy was a working mom, raising two sons, Brian Ruiz and Eric Ruiz.

In more recent years, she and her husband Ken Vest cared for her mother Mary Lou and enjoyed their granddaughter.

Cindy was an outdoorsy woman, who loved to go crabbing in the summer and camping with her husband anytime the weather permitted.

Cindy leaves her husband Ken Vest, her sons, Brian Ruiz and Eric Ruiz, her

five-year-old granddaughter Selena, her stepsons Cameron Vest and Danen Vest and his wife Lila, her brother Alan Graff, her sister and brother-in-law Robyn and Harold Sweeney, her brother and sisterin-law Brad and Lisa Graff, her dear friend and former spouse Roy Ruiz and numerous nieces and nephews and their families.

In keeping with Cindy’s wishes, there will be no public memorial other than a private family gathering.

Relatives have established a trust account to benefit Cindy’s granddaughter when she comes of age. Donations can be sent for Selena R. Ruiz, P.O. Box 178, Freeland WA 98249-9911.

Statewide ad network has been updated!

New ad prices, & state regions

Take note! Your WNPA co-op ad network has just two regions, Western and Eastern Washington, and ad pricing has been adjusted accordingly. Now it is simpler than ever to use the network to bring in new revenue!

Now that the pandemic is receding and public health directives are relaxing, people will be itching to get out and mingle and community events will once again take to the streets.

But after two years of relative inactivity, how will people know your town is open for business and welcoming tourists?

Online advertising is an option, but with ad blocking software and distrust growing over social media, it isn’t the solution it used to be. In this changing environment, trusted community newspapers across the state serving a highly educated, affluent and involved readership are a perfect place to get a message out.

Every ad salesperson knows it is wise to identify the entities in your community with fat ad budgets. At this moment in time, don’t overlook the folks with hundreds of thousands of dollars to spend – your local governments!

Every city and county in the state has a pool of money generated by local lodging taxes, and that money is supposed to reach beyond local markets and bring people to town.

If you have not already, you should ask your city and county governments (each has separate Continued on Page 6 5 The Washington Newspaper May 2022

Ad network: Continued from Page 5 funds) for a report on where the lodging tax money is going (usually chambers of commerce and local non-profits) and then propose a marketing plan that reaches out across the region.

WNPA ads are a perfect match for boosting community events because you can choose to advertise regionally or statewide.

Here’s how the WNPA program works: • You sell the ad to a local organization.

• You charge your client for the full cost of the ad and send an insertion order to WNPA. WNPA then invoices you for half the cost of the ad, splitting the revenue on the ad sale. The advertising salesperson gets their regular commission on the sale and $50 direct from WNPA. • WNPA uses our share of the money to provide your legal hotline, professional services, Legislative Day, the Better Newspaper Contest and the annual convention.

• We keep the price to the client affordable by asking all member newspapers to publish the ads sold by other newspapers for free. The ads are small – just two columns wide by either two or four inches tall. One column by four or eight inches is also OK. They need to be produced in two different widths, to accommodate different column widths.

Potential customers include festivals, fairs, resorts, real estate offices, state agencies, statewide or regional political candidates – anyone who desires a cost effective regional or statewide campaign.

Because member newspapers publish these ads for free, we can only promise that they will run as black and white ads.

If you include a color version, many papers will use it instead, but there is no guarantee of this.

Need more information? Contact Janay at WNPA by emailing ads@wnpa.com or by calling 360-344-2938.

6 The Washington Newspaper May 2022

JOB BOARD

COPY EDITOR/ WEB PRODUCER Cascadia Daily News, a locally owned daily online/weekly print newspaper in Bellingham, Washington, seeks a copy editor/web producer for a full-time, temporary position from mid-to late April through July; possible extension.

Breaking storyediting experience and knowledge of AP Style required. Experience assigning stories and managing news staff preferred.

The job is based in the newspaper’s downtown Bellingham newsroom; hybrid scheduling will be considered. Salary DOE. Send resume, relevant work experience details and letter of interest to Executive Editor Ron Judd, ronjudd@cascadiadaily.com.

Sound Publishing, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE) and strongly supports diversity in the workplace.

OFFICE MANAGER Are you ready for an exciting career with your community newspaper?

Sound Publishing Inc. is looking for someone to oversee the Kitsap News Group’s Bainbridge Island office.

The office manager will answer incoming phone calls and walk-in inquiries, order office supplies, process classified advertising, assist and support the leadership team, advertising sales consultants and editorial staff, handle petty cash for the office, make deposits and assist with local circulation issues. This position is 40 hours per week, Monday through Friday.

Requirements: prior MULTIPLE PRESS JOBS office or administration Come work with one experience, proficient in of the largest cold-set database and spreadsheet web printers in the five-state region! Sound software programs Publishing is expanding and excellent customer service and communicaprint operations and is hiring at our Lakewood, tion skills.

We offer a comWA facility. petitive hourly wage and We have open positions in commercial print benefits package including paid time off (vacasales, non-CDL truck tion, sick, and holidays), driver, pre-press lead and 401k with employer technician, press maintenance technician, press match.

If you’re interested in operator, post press general worker and adminis- joining our team, please email your cover letter trative coordinator.

See a complete list of and resume, including our current openings, job salary requirements to: careers@soundpublishdescriptions and how to ing.com and be sure to apply at www.soundpublishing.com/current- include ATTN: BIRADMIN in the subject line. openings.

Join our team! We MULTI-MEDIA SALES offer paid holidays, Sound Publishing, sick and vacation leave; Inc. is looking for selfhealth insurance; and motivated, results-driven 401K with Employer people interested in a match.

multi-media sales career in multiple locations acorss Western Washington who can share the many benefits of newspaper, online, and niche product advertising with new accounts and current clients.

The position is responsible for print and digital advertising sales to an eclectic and exciting group of clients in the Kitsap County area.

Successful candidates will be engaging and goal-oriented, with good organizational skills, and will have the ability to grow and maintain strong business relationships through consultative sales and excellent customer service. Professional sales experience necessary; media experience is a definite asset but not mandatory.

A valid driver’s license, clean driving record, and adequate liability insurance on the vehicle you use for company business is also required.

We offer a benefits package including health insurance, paid sick and vacation, and 401k with employer match.

If you meet the above-noted qualifications and are seeking an opportunity to be part of an award-winning media company, we’d love to meet you! Please email your cover letter including salary requirements and resume to careers@ soundpublishing.com and be sure to include: ATTN:KITSAPMMSC in the subject line.

part of a team?

Let’s meet!

The Port Townsend Leader is looking for a Marketing Specialist to develop new advertising, as well as retain and grow existing key accounts. We provide the culture, tools and environment for you to succeed by offering creative advertising solutions for local businesses.

We offer a competitive compensation and benefits package including health insurance, paid time off (vacation, sick, and holidays), and 401k (with an employer match).

Interested? Contact Donna Etchey at (360)385-2900, email admin@ptleader.com, or by mail to 226 Adams St., Port Townsend, WA 98368

minimum of three years newspaper experience including writing, editing, pagination, photography, InDesign skills, editing and monitoring social media including Twitter, FaceBook, etc.

The successful candidate will have a demonstrated interest in local political and cultural affairs, possess excellent writing and verbal skills, and can provide representative clips from one or more professional publications.

The editor will edit reporters’ copy and submitted materials for content and style, manage an opinion page, manage social media, will lead, motivate, and mentor a small news staff and be visible in the community.

The editor must possess a reliable, insured, EDITOR motor vehicle and a Sound Publishing has valid Washington State an immediate opening driver’s license. for Editor of the Port We offer a competiOrchard Independent and tive compensation and Central Kitsap Reporter. benefits package includThis is not an entrying health insurance, level position. It requires paid time off (vacation, a hands-on leader with a sick, and holidays), and

401K with an employer match.

If you are interested in joining the team at the Port Orchard Independent and Central Kitsap Reporter, email us your cover letter, resume, and up to 5 samples of your work to: careers@ soundpublishing.com.

Please be sure to note: ATTN: EDPOI in the subject line.

EDITOR The award-winning Omak-Okanogan County Chronicle is seeking a top-notch managing editor to lead the newsroom in the largest community newspaper in beautiful North-Central Washington. Our newspaper covers a vast area featuring several small towns, picturesque mountain ranges, beautiful lakes and fertile valleys not far from the Canadian border.

The successful candidate will lead a team of journalists dedicated to providing the best coverage of people, Continued on Page 8

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The Washington Newspaper May 2022 7

What happens to your archives when newspapers consolidate?

Sometimes the selling publisher will retain ownership, sometimes the archives are passed on to the new owners. In either case, it is important that all parties agree and understand what is going to happen with the bound, loose or microfilm archives.

Historical stakeholders will continue your stewardship!

There’s no downside to scanning your newspaper's archive but there is a singular hurdle so daunting that most publishers simply cannot foresee any way to overcome it – cost. Luckily, there are organizations determined to help. ArchiveInABox works with historical societies and museums who can provide funding to digitize and index small-town newspapers, while publisher retains all ownership and rights.

ArchiveInABox can help you: Carry on Stewardship Mission Maintain Ownership of Copyrights Digitize Archives for Community Access

ArchiveInABox.com 8 The Washington Newspaper May 2022

Continued from Page 7 places and events in Okanogan and Ferry counties, from the Cascade Mountains to the Columbia River. This opportunity affords a fulltime position with generous benefits after a 60-day new hire period. Benefits include health care, paid holidays, sick, vacation and personal days, as well as 401(k) and Flexible Spending (FSA).

Send resume, cover letter, and writing samples and professional references to: tmyers@omakchronicle.com with “Managing Editor” in the subject line. If you prefer to mail the information, do so to The Chronicle - Attn: Teresa Myers, PO Box 553, Omak, WA 98841. No phone calls please.

SPORTS REPORTER The Columbia Basin Herald seeks a full-time Sports Reporter. We publish five days a week, plus a monthly tab and annual magazines.

Our offices are in Moses Lake, in the center of Washington. Here in the Columbia Basin, the weather is mild and dry and outdoor recreation is in every direction.

The successful applicant will be a talented writer and photographer dedicated to excelling at daily local coverage of sports in the Columbia Basin. The sports reporter will be able to cover a wide variety of sports at the high school and college level. Football, basketball, baseball, wrestling and more are popular among our readers.

Qualifications include: a bachelor’s degree in journalism or equivalent experience, proficiency with grammar and AP style, strong photography skills, able to work nights and weekends and must have reliable transportation and a valid driver’s license To apply, send your cover letter, resume and work samples to brichardson@ columbiabasinherald.com.