The Washington Newspaper, July 2018

TWN

THE WASHINGTON NEWSPAPER July 2018

Security precautions are worth the time Page 3

Journal of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association

Proposed changes to bylaws allow freelance members Updates to the bylaws of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association will be up for a vote at the business meeting of the association Oct. 12 at the Red Lion Hotel in Yakima at the start of the annual convention.

“The changes made by the bylaws committee and approved by the board mainly reflect our current way of conducting business,” said WNPA Executive Director Fred Obee. “I think most members will find these to be mainly housekeeping changes, but we encourage anyone with comments to contact me at WNPA.” One of the more significant changes is allowing freelance writers, graphic artists, cartoonists, columnists, photographers and others who regularly contribute to the community press to join the association as Affiliate members.

WNPA currently has four levels of membership.

Regular membership, which

includes newspapers that publish at least every two weeks, Associate membership, which includes publications that come out monthly, and Affiliate membership, which includes businesses like printers, law firms, paper suppliers and others who are connected to the publishing industry.

Freelancers would be added to this membership category.

The fourth level of membership is Honorary Lifetime membership, awarded by the Board of Directors as a way of honoring people who over many years have contributed greatly to the organization.

Only Regular members have a vote in the affairs of the organization.

The proposed changes to the bylaws are available at wnpa.com. Use the drop down menu under For Members to access the Documents folder and click on Proposed Bylaws. Questions can be directed to Obee at WNPA.

WNPA adds podcast site

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.

To find the podcasts, go to wnpa.com and click on the podcast tile in the middle of the home page.

EYES ON THE PRIZE

Brianna Loper of the Mason County Journal took home the Photographer of the Year award in the 2017 WNPA Better Newspaper Contest. This shot was among her winning portfolio. Awards will be presented this year at the annual convention in Yakima, Oct. 11-13.

Turnbull, Bradley nominations sought Nominations are being sought for two of WNPA’s top awards, the Dixie Lee Bradley award and the Miles Turnbull Master Editor/Publisher award.

Bradley tirelessly served the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association and its members for 45 years and Turnbull was an active publisher and ultimately WNPA Executive Director.

The Bradley award recognizes newspaper staff members who work long and hard, often behind the scenes, to see that the best possible community newspaper is produced and distributed each week.

The selection criteria includes a demonstrated record over a considerable time period of consis-

tent quality work in any facet of the community newspaper industry including production, circulation, or front office support. Professional positions, such as photographer and advertising sales, are not included due to ample opportunities for these professionals to be recognized through WNPA’s annual Better Newspaper Contest.

There is no entry fee at the time of nomination.

However, should its nominee win, the sponsoring newspaper must agree to pay the winning employee a $250 bonus which will be matched by WNPA for a total cash prize of $500 for the winner. The winner also receives an engraved clock.

This award may be given to any person who

See AWARDS Page 3

FROM THE PRESIDENT

Our hearts are filled with grief for our colleagues

By Sandy Stokes The horror in Annapolis brought to life a nightmare shared by everyone in our industry, especially those who work on community newspapers.

Many of us have worked in a newsroom or bureau office with only one way in and out, and perhaps even a glass door.

Stokes Small papers and satellite offices of large papers seldom have much in the way of security.

Even so, we’ve all tried to calm angry readers, both over the phone and in person. Most of the time the enraged people aren’t completely insane, so we put up with their verbal attacks.

But killing journalists is nothing new. It happens regularly all over the world and, as we saw last week, even here.

Over the last couple of centuries, scores of American journalists have been murdered on the job. In the 19th century, abolitionist editor Elijah Parish Lovejoy was killed in 1837 by a mob angered by his anti-slavery editorials.

I’m old enough to remember the 20th century industry-wide shock when investigative reporter Don Bolles died in a 1976 car bombing Mafia hit.

And in 2015, journalists Alison Parker and Adam Ward were shot to death on live TV by a disgruntled

Officers: Sandy Stokes, President; Michael Wagar, First Vice President; Don Nelson, Past President.

Trustees: Tom Mullen, Patrick Grubb, Colette Weeks, Eric LaFontaine, Caralyn Bess, Roger Harnack and Scott Hunter.

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.

Staff 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 July 2018

former employee of their news station.

Lucky for us, most of the time when we encounter rage at work, it’s just loud and obnoxious, not deadly.

In the early 1990s I was alone in an unlocked, glass-doored newspaper satellite outpost located in a Southern California strip mall when an angry man stormed in and shoved me up against a wall to scream in my face, spittle raining down on me and all. The attacker was a buddy of an embattled city council member who was eventually removed from office for malfeasance.

As newsmen and newswomen, our very existence sparks anger in people who don’t want the truth told. It’s impossible to last long in this business without a tough hide. Insults and angry shouts can bounce off us all day long. But bullets don’t.

At the Capital Gazette in Annapolis a deranged man with a grudge against the paper shot four journalists and an ad person to death. Our hearts are filled with grief for our colleagues, but also with fear.

When you get right down to it, we all live with the knowledge it could happen to us. It pays to be wary, and to have a plan in place in case violence erupts in your office.

FOUNDATION NEEDS YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS Your WNPA Foundation, which funds our capital news operation entirely through donations, will be passing the hat soon.

It’s time to start rounding up donations for our auction to be held at the convention in October.

Last year several people managed to come up with high value vacations and other big packages for our live auction. Our silent auction also needs lots of quality, moderately priced items to coax dollars out of the bargain shoppers among us.

This year we’ll be hitting up people for cash donations at the convention, as well.

The Foundation board decided to fund three young reporting interns again for the upcoming state legislative session that begins in January. The Foundation will also pay extra to provide coverage for the whole 105-day session.

During the 2018 short 60-day session, our bureau churned out 92 stories. At a value of $50 for each freelance piece, our Olympia bureau gave each member paper $4,600 worth of stories to choose from. And that’s not counting the dozens of photos our reporters provided.

While the Olympia coverage is one of our best member perks, the program relies on donations to keep going. Your tax-deductible gift not only helps pay for expanded Capital coverage for your own publication, but also helps to groom a new generation of journalists.

Sandy Stokes is the Bureau Chief of the Olympia News Bureau, former owner of the La Conner Weekly News and this year’s WNPA president.

Security precautions worth the time Because people can typically walk right in to most small newsrooms and newspaper offices, it pays to look around and figure out what you might do in the event of an attack similar to the one at the Capital Gazette in Annapolis, Md. Here are some security tips from Poynter. org: • Have a secure door that locks.

• Update policies about visitors, vendors and other tenants. Newsrooms should revisit the conditions under which other people can visit the office.

• Install cameras at each entrance to your newsroom.

This is a way to see visitors before they’re in the building, and could reveal a potential shooter before an attack.

• Have multi-purpose, accessible emergency exits.

These could be your typical fire exits, but make sure they’re ready for an active shooter situation.

• Consider launching a GoFundMe. No one likes asking for money, but if your newsroom is really behind on security or doesn’t have the manpower to make changes by itself, it’s worth a call-toaction.

During an active-shooter event: • Run and escape, if possible. Getting away from the shooter or shooters is the top priority.

• Leave your belongings behind and get away.

• Hide, if escape is not possible. Get out of the shooter’s view, stay quiet.

Silence all electronic devices and make sure they won’t vibrate.

• Lock and block doors, close blinds, and turn off lights.

• Don’t hide in groups – spread out along walls.

• Try to communicate with police silently. Use text message or social media to tag your location, or put a sign in a window.

• Stay in place until law enforcement gives you the all clear.

As a last resort, you can confront the shooter. If you choose this path, commit to your actions and act as aggressively as possible against the shooter.

• Recruit others to ambush the shooter with makeshift weapons like chairs, fire ex-

tinguishers, scissors, books, etc.

• Be prepared to cause severe or lethal injury to the shooter.

• Throw items and improvise weapons to distract and disarm the shooter.

Thankfully, most newsrooms will not face an active shooter in their offices, but it doesn’t hurt to have emergency plans in place. They can work in all kinds of emergencies and plans should be shared frequently with staff.

As some noted on Twitter after the Capital Gazette attack, journalists regularly receive threats online. It’s important for your newsroom to have a policy in place outlining when journalists should report threatening messages to leadership.

Awards: Nominations sought from membership Continued from Page 1

is actively engaged in editing, managing and/or publishing a newspaper which is a member in good standing of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association.

The recipient must have worked hard and unselfishly and made a significant contribution to his/her newspaper, community, state, as well as the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association.

To nominate someone for either award, send a short essay describing why your nominee should win to Fred Obee at fredobee@wnpa.com.

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.

DWT.COM Anchorage | Bellevue | Los Angeles | New York | Portland San Francisco | Seattle | Shanghai | Washington, D.C.

The Washington Newspaper July 2018 3

WNPA JOB BOARD REPORTER The Daily Record in Ellensburg, Wash., has an opening for a fulltime reporter.

The general assignment slot will involve all aspects of community journalism.

Experience with photography, video, the Web and social media would be a plus, but we ultimately need someone with solid reporting skills and a strong writing background. The job likely will involve covering city government, courts and feature stories.

A bachelor’s degree in journalism or equivalent reporting experience is preferred.

The Daily Record is an award-winning, a sixday-a-week newspaper that offers the sort of coverage typically found at much larger papers.

Ellensburg, population 18,000, is a lively community on the edge of the Cascade Mountains with lots of outdoor opportunities. It’s about two hours from Seattle.

Send resume, cover letter and 5 work samples to: Mike Gallagher, mgallagher@ kvnews.com.

that includes excellent benefits: medical, dental, life insurance, 401k, paid vacation, sick and holidays. No calls please.

Send resume with cover letter, three or more nonreturnable clips in PDF or Text format and references to careers@soundpublishing.com. EOE .

Sound Publishing is the largest community news organization in Western Washington State. Learn more about about us at www.soundpublishing. com.

SPORTS REPORTER The East Oregonian, a five-day daily newspaper in Pendleton, Ore., is looking for a full-time sports writer, based in nearby Hermiston, Ore. Job duties will include print and online coverage of high school, college and community sports and outdoor activities.

We’re looking for a creative, energetic writer to produce compelling sports and outdoor features and to write game stories quickly on deadline. We want someone with strong writing skills who avoids cliches. The person hired will also edit on a limited basis and REPORTER work with the Web. We are seeking an enThe position offers a ergetic, detailed-oriented general assignment report- competitive salary, a solid benefits package and the er for our Kitsap County publications in Silverdale opportunity to live in Eastern Oregon near the and Port Orchard, WA. Blue Mountains, ColumExperience in photograbia River and abundant phy and Adobe InDesign preferred. Applicants must outdoor recreation. It is be able to work in a team- also home to the famous Pendleton Round-Up oriented, deadline-driven rodeo and perennial high environment, possess school state champion excellent writing skills, have a knowledge of com- contenders. Good driving record and reliable munity news and be able transportation required. to write about multiple Benefits include Paid topics. Must be a Kitsap Time Off (PTO), 401(k)/ County, WA resident.

Roth 401(k) retirement This is a full-time, 40 plan and insurances. Send hours per week, position 4 The Washington Newspaper July 2018

resume, clips and letter of interest to EO Media Group, PO Box 2048, Salem, OR 97308-2048, by fax to 503-371-2935 or e-mail hr@eomediagroup. com.

MAILROOM MANAGER Seeking a Mailroom Manager. Job duties include but are not limited to: build-

ing, grounds, equipment maintenance and repair.

Hiring and managing mailroom employees. Ordering and stocking all supplies for mailroom. Working with other internal departments to meet deadlines.

A working knowledge of equipment repairs is a must.

On the job training. This opportunity affords a mini-

mum of 32 hours a week with generous benefits after a 60-day new hire period.

Benefits include health care, dental, life insurance, paid holidays, sick, vacation and personal days, as well as 401(k) and Flexible Spending (FSA).

EOE. Must have a valid driver’s license, proof of insurance and

pass a pre-employment drug screening and motor vehicle driving record check. Please send resume to tmyers@ omakchronicle.com or mail to The Omak Chronicle, PO Box 553, Omak, WA 98841.

No phone calls please.

Job open until filled.

EOE.