The Washington Newspaper, November 2022

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THE WASHINGTON NEWSPAPER November 2022

North County Outlook closes Page 3

Journal of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association

Cheers & tears at gala awards show

Post-pandemic affair draws capacity crowd to Bellingham ballroom

A happy-to-get-together buzz was plainly evident as WNPA members convened last month in person for the first time in two years.

The event was the WNPA annual convention, held Oct. 7-9 at the Four Points by Sheraton Convention Center in Bellingham.

Attendance was at near prepandemic levels and members clapped, cheered and used noisemakers to celebrate winners in the Better Newspaper Contest.

Patrick Webb of the Chinook Observer took home a a number of awards, including News Writer and Feature Writer of the Year. Winning both awards briefly brought an appreciative Webb to tears as he made his way to the award table.

Other big winners included Sound Publishing’s South King County newspapers, which swept the General Excellence category in Group 4.

In addition to being the first meeting in two years, it also was the first in recent memory to be held on a Saturday. Past conventions typically have been on Friday.

The 2022 annual meetingkicked off with an opening night reception. The Saturday breakfast business meeting featured the election of new officers. Now serving on the board are: President, Michelle Nedved, publisher of the Newport Miner; 1st Vice

President, Donna Etchey, publisher of the Port Townsend Leader; and 2nd Vice President Sean Flaherty, publisher of the Wenatchee World.

Joining the board for the first time was Cascadia Daily News Executive Editor Ron Judd.

Continuing to serve on the board are Roger Harnack, publisher of Free Press Publishing; Rudi Alcott, publisher of the Everett Herald; Matt Winters, editor & publisher of the Chinook Observer; Teresa Myers, publisher of the OmakOkanogan County Chronicle; and Bob Richardson, publisher of the Columbia Basin Herald.

Steve Powell, editor of the Bainbridge Island Review, moves to the past president position. He received a plaque for his service as president this year.

Andy McNab, former owner of the Goldendale Sentinel and a past WNPA president, received the Miles Turnbull Master Editor Publisher Award.

Most recently, McNab stepped in to save the Sunnyside Sun from closure.

Tammy Armstrong of the East County Journal received the Dixie Lee Bradley award for her behind-the-scenes work at that paper.

George Erb, of the Washington Coalition for Open Government gave the keynote address at lunch. A familiar face to many in the crowd, Erb said: See WNPA, Page 4

Above: Sound Publishing Vice President Terry Ward (at left) celebrates with staff members of Sound’s South King County newspapers, who swept the General Excellence category for Group 4.

At right, new WNPA president Michelle Nedved of the Newport Miner presents the Feature Writer of the Year award to Patrick Webb of the Chinook Observer. Webb also took home the News Writer of the Year award.

Photos by Joshua Solorzano

Three paths lead to being a legal paper

If you want to publish legals in Washington State, most papers will need a periodical permit from the United State Post Office.

Qualifying for that permit is required under state law if you want to publish legals.

The most common path to qualfying is to follow the regulations in the Domestic Mail Manual Section 207 including the rule that says you must have “50% plus 1” of your total circulation be paid circulation.

If you meet that measure, you can apply for a general periodicals permit. During the period between filing and acceptance by the USPS, the paper pays USPS “third class rates” (now called standard mail).

When the periodicals permit is approved, the USPS gives a credit on your postal account, calculating the difference between what you paid in standard mail rates vs. periodical rates. That difference is

applied to your postal account.

Several years ago, USPS came up with a periodicals application process called “New Launch,” which lets you apply for a periodicals permit without the 50% plus 1 paid circulation.

Under this approach, you are able to submit a “business plan” telling the USPS how you plan to get to the 50% plus 1 paid circulation mark in the next 15 months. While this gets your foot in the door, ultimately, you will still need to meet the 50% plus 1 paid circulation standard.

However, this periodical permit requirement was added to state law in 1961.

Papers that were legal newspapers before June 8, 1961 can continue to qualify to publish legals without having a periodical permit, as long as they publish at least once a week in English and are printed either in whole or in part in an office in the city or town where the same is published.

Officers: Michelle Nedved, President; Donna Etchey, 1st Vice President; Sean Flaherty, 2nd Vice President; Steve Powell, Past President; Trustees: Roger Harnack, Teresa Myers, Rudi Alcott, Matt Winters, Ron Judd 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 November 2022

FROM THE PRESIDENT

WNPA’s annual convention once again inspires us to keep on going

By Michelle C. Nedved I celebrated my 20th year at The Miner Newspapers this past June.

It’s the only newspaper I’ve ever worked for and the second job I’ve ever had. (I spent eight years at Kinko’s for those of you who remember the quick copy shop.)

Heading into this year’s convention to become president of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Nedved Association and marking two decades at the paper, I thought about the WNPA conventions I’ve attended over the years, starting in my early 20s. The workshops are informative. The networking opportunities are solid. But most importantly, I believe, is being surrounded by like-minded people who are also fighting the good fight.

Working at a community newspaper can be a lonely lot. Our staffs are small. There’s usually not another community newspaper for miles around, and our relationship with our communities is like no other. We have an intimate knowledge of the way things work, who the players are, and where the skeletons are buried.

Often, our communities have a love/hate relationship with us.

They love us enough to tell us when their papers don’t show up in the mail on time. They depend on us to keep them informed about their government, to celebrate their children’s accomplishments, to print the obituaries. They also have no problem telling us when we’ve messed up, whether it’s a typo, an opinion they don’t agree with, or an unsavory crime story they think is inappropriate.

I’ve been in plenty of social situations, when work is the furthest thing from my mind, and a friend prefaces what they’re about to say with, “This is off the record.”

It’s a lonely place living on that fine line.

But that’s what makes the WNPA convention so satisfying. My staff and I agree that the comaraderie found in meeting other newspaper people makes the hundreds of miles we drive totally worth it. It’s refreshing and revitalizing to know we’re not actually alone. The colleagues we meet at the convention are also frustrated by illegal executive sessions, fighting to keep printed legal notices and nervous about skyrocketing newsprint and postage rates … all issues that make our friends’ and family members’ eyes glaze over and our blood boil.

This appreciation of WNPA and the convention was echoed

by Patrick Webb of The Chinook Observer, this year’s Sports Writer of the Year, Feature Writer of the Year and recipient of a pile of other awards. He approached me after the awards ceremony Saturday night and shared with me how the WNPA and the convention saved his journalism career.

In his 20s, Webb came to Washington state from Great Britain.

He told me he flailed in those first few months. He spelled things wrong. He was in a strange place: small-town America compared to big city England. He was a fish out of water. Then his boss submitted one of his stories to the WNPA Better Newspaper Contest. And he won. Attending the convention and receiving an award reminded Webb why he does what he does. Why we do what we do. It gave him the confidence to continue, to write the stories and take the photos vital to his community.

If you haven’t been to the WNPA convention in a while, or not at all, I highly recommend you attend, and bring as many of your colleagues with you as possible.

It’s a time to celebrate ourselves and the work we do. It gives us affirmation that we’re doing important work and we’re not doing it alone.

Michelle C. Nedved is publisher of the Newport Miner and this year’s WNPA President.

New podcast features freelancer Sottile 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.

The latest podcast is an interview with Leah Sottile, a freelance journalist specializing in covering extreme far right groups. Sottile got her start working at small newspa-

pers in Washington. Listen to how she built a freelance career despite challenges and hurdles.

Also on the site are interviews with Les Zaitz, owner and Publisher of the Malheur Enterprise. Les and his staff redefined how community papers approach reporting. Also, Eli Sanders, Pulitzer Prize winning writer for the Stranger in Seattle, talks interviewing

and narrative writing techniques.

Other interviews include Pulitzer Prize winner Jacqui Banaszynski who talks about tough interviews, winning trust and getting to the truth.

To find the podcasts, go to wnpa. com and click on the podcast tile in the middle of the home page or search for Washington Newspaper Publishers on Google podcasts.

North County Outlook closes

By Sue Stevenson Owner/Publisher It is with great sadness that we must announce that after more than 15 years of serving the communities of North Snohomish County, the Oct 26 issue be the final edition of the North County Outlook.

Since our first issue published on Sept. 14, 2007, we have worked hard to provide a free community newspaper that informed and entertained our readers. Our staff (both current and former) worked diligently to meet the needs and expectations of our readers and advertisers.

We are very proud

so many more.

Community newspapers, like so many other small businesses, were severely impacted by the pandemic. Despite our best efforts, the economic impact proved too much for us to overcome.

We want to thank all of our readers. It was Stevenson for you that we worked of work we have done so hard to bring you the over the years, not only information you wanted in the weekly newspafrom your community per but also in the many newspaper. special sections we And we want to produced including the sincerely thank all of our Marysville Strawberry advertisers, both large Festival programs, the and small. Without their Arlington Festival prosupport we wouldn’t grams, our healthy living have been able to make magazines, our Let’s Get it through these past 15 Acquainted sections, and years.

Walsh hired as new managing editor at Cheney Free Press CHENEY -- The Cheney Free Press has hired a new managing editor to lead coverage of the West Plains.

Lucas Walsh, 33, of Geiger Heights, joined the newspaper staff in September.

His goal? “To help contribute balanced and fair journalism to this great community,” Walsh said.

“We’re excited to have a journalist on staff committed to providing readers ‘just the facts’ coverage,” Publisher Roger Harnack said.

A working editor, Walsh will personally cover local news while leading

reporters in the Free Press coverage area.

The son of a pastor and theologian, Walsh said he developed a respect for literature and history, as well as a deep loyalty to the pursuit of truth for the benefit of his greater community.

Walsh was born in Spokane and migrated to Winston Salem, N.C., with his family, where he spent most of his childhood.

At age 13, he returned to Spokane with his mother and sister.

In his 20s, Walsh worked with several mental health advocacy groups, and met his future wife,

then a colleague. He also established himself as a freelance writer, editor and essayist.

In 2018, Walsh and his wife (then fiance) moved to the West Plains and began focusing more on the future of their family as well as their community.

Walsh said it became clear he needed to vest interest in the cities of Cheney and Spokane through his writing.

“We are all citizens of this community, and we have a common interest in preserving and enriching it, not only for ourselves, but for all those who come after us,” he said.

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The Washington Newspaper November 2022 3

CONVENTION 2022 WNPA: Workshops went from the law, to crime to advertising Continued from Page 1 “I feel like I’ve found my people.”

A range of workshops rounded out the conference. Attorney Michele Earl-Hubbard presented an update on media law, Nancy Treder of the Bainbridge Island Review gave a high-energy presentation on photography, Don Nelson of the Methow Valley News and Patrick Grubb from The Nothern Light led an illuminating session on special sections, and an advertising round table featured Etchey, Nedved, Alcott and Carol Greiling, advertising director in South King County for Sound Publishing.

WNPA Executive Director Fred Obee delivered a primer on reporting on crime, and WNPA Publishers Nedved, Etchey, Myers and John Lester of the Shelton Mason County Journal led a discussion on growing circulation.

An auction for the

WNPA Foundation raised about $3,000 for internship stipends for the Foundation’s Olympia reporting internship.

New President Michelle Nedved presents the President’s Award to outgoing President Steve Powell.

Above, Andy McNab of the Sunnyside Sun addresses the crowd after being presented with the Miles Turnbull Master Editor Publisher Award. Below, Michele Earl-Hubbard leads a media law workshop.

4 The Washington Newspaper November 2022

George Erb talks about challenges to open government at lunch.

Tammy Armstrong receives the Dixie Lee Bradley Award from WNPA Executive Director Fred Obee.

CONVENTION 2022

Andy McNab of the Sunnyside Sun listens as as the dinner crowd cheers and uses noisemakers to celebrate winners in the Better Newspaper Contest presentation.

Sound Publishing President Josh O’Connor and Western Washington University professor Peggy Watt show off their newspaper shirts during the pre-dinner reception in Bellingham.

Connor Benintendi placed third in the Sports Writer of the Year category for work done at the Lynden Tribune.

Participants mix and mingle during the predinner reception.

The Washington Newspaper November 2022 5

Statewide ad network great for events Governments have the cash

When you are looking for ways to bring in new revenue, spend a few minutes learning how your WNPA co-op ad network can help your bottom line.

Now that the pandemic is mainly behind us, people are itching to get out and mingle and community events are once again filling the streets.

But after two years of relative inactivity, extra effort is necessary to let 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 be used 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 7 6 The Washington Newspaper November 2022

Ad network: Continued from Page 6 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.

The Washington Newspaper November 2022 7

JOB BOARD MANAGING EDITOR The Omak Okanogan County Chronicle is seeking a managing editor.

The candidate should possess strong timemanagement skills; excellent communication and research skills; knowledge of AP style guides, computer proficiency (Microsoft Office, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign); and a degree in journalism/communication or relevant field work experience.

This opportunity affords a full-time position with generous benefits after a 60-day new hire period. EOE. Send resume to: tmyers@omakchronicle.com . No phone calls please.

per design experience, is preferred.

You’ll work closely with local editors and a small team of off-site designers to create visually appealing and smartreading pages and special sections. Deadlines are strictly adhered to and efficient page production is a must. Ability to produce charts, graphs, maps for digital and print production a plus.

This is a full-time position, generally working Monday through Friday, with the flexibility to work a weekend or evening shift greatly desired. Designers have the option to work from home, but must be based in the Northwest (Oregon, Washington or Idaho).

EO Media Group is PAGE DESIGNER a family-owned Oregon EO Media Group is company. Our full-time seeking an experienced page designer, full time, to staff work 37.5 hours per week. join our team.

When uploading your Great skills in Adobe application materials, be InDesign and PhotoShop sure to include 3-5 page are required, knowledge of BLOX Total CMS or a design samples.

Go here to apply: https:// similar system is desired. www.applicantpro.com/ A bachelor’s degree openings/eomediagroup/ in journalism or a related jobs/2629930-429357 field, plus daily newspa-

GRAPHIC DESIGNER The Methow Valley News in Twisp, Washington, is seeking a graphic designer for its publications (a weekly newspaper and several annual magazines).

Substantial experience with designing editorial and advertising content for print publications including newspapers and magazines is required, as is fluency in Adobe’s print production suite and experience with social media platforms.

It’s possible that some work can be done remotely although residency in the Methow Valley is preferred. Competitive salary, health benefits. The position is open immediately; hiring bonus may be part of agreement. Send a resume, cover letter and/or portfolio examples to editor@methowvalleynews. com. No calls, please.

REPORTER The Vashon Beachcomber, a division of Sound Publishing Inc., is seeking a general assignment reporter with a minimum of 1-2 years of

GOING PRINTING COSTS, POSTAGE & DELIVERY UP!

writing experience and photography skills. This position is based out of the Vashon Island office. The primary coverage will be city government, business, sports, arts and general assignment stories. The schedule includes evening and/or weekend work.

This is a full-time position. We offer a competitive hourly wage and benefits package including health insurance, paid time off (vacation, sick, and holidays), and 401K (currently with an employer match.)

Email us your cover letter, resume, and include five examples of your best work showcasing your reporting skills and writing chops to: careers@ soundpublishing.com ATTN: VMB Reporter.

CDN’s team of 10 fulltime journalists, several interns and small crew of contributors works in a rare, competitive news environment in Bellingham, a growing city of 90,000 and one of the northernmost cities in the contiguous United States.

We’re looking for an M.E. who’s a smart, still-enthused team player/ manager with 5 years or more daily experience managing journalists — someone perhaps seeking a step up, step down or fresh start in a newsroom creating high-impact local journalism with a distinct absence of internal bureaucracy.

As a team with a mix of young and experienced journalists, we work hard, have fun, and relish the opportunity to continually MANAGING EDITOR refine a publication we Cascadia Daily News, a launched from scratch in growing, privately owned January 2022 and continue news organization in a to recreate on the fly. If competitive media market you feel like you’d fit into in one of America’s great this unique environment, places to live, is on the give us a shout. We hope hunt for a Managing Edi- to fill this job quickly. tor to serve as a key cog Location: Remote in an innovative, year-old work is not an option. F/T, news operation. primarily M-F.

3.5” x 2.5” | Maximum Font Size: 30 pt

Supervises: Reporters, desk editors, visual journalists, interns and stringers.

Compensation: Salary range is $75K-$85K, depending on experience.

Benefits include medical, dental, vision, paid time off and a 401k savings plan.

Core responsibilities: Manage daily operation of a newsroom working in a competitive news market.

Required skills and qualifications: Five years of experience in daily newsroom management, Prior reporting/writing experience at a daily news publication, demonstrated ability to manage, assign, edit and collaborate across the newsroom to cover both breaking news and enterprise projects and a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism or related field.

Apply: Submit a resume and cover letter to Executive Editor Ron Judd, ronjudd@cascadiadaily.com.

MANAGING EDITOR The Wenatchee World is seeking a Managing Editor to lead a dynamic Continued on Page 9

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8 The Washington Newspaper November 2022

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Member SIPC

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

Continued from Page 8 local newsroom with a rich journalism history in beautiful Wenatchee, Washington.

We’re looking for a talented editor and coach to bring their solid news judgment and editing expertise to develop journalists’ skills as we tell our community’s stories through several digital and print channels.

This is an active, hands-on editor and manager position overseeing a 14-person newsroom.

The Wenatchee World has a daily newspaper, two weekly and two monthly publications serving a four-county region in central Washington State.

We produce several email newsletters every week, maintain all the usual social media channels and a few other innovative digital platforms.

Duties: - Manage a daily newsroom operation publishing to multiple web platforms and print publications.

- Working with other editors, manage story workflow from coverage assignments to editing to publishing on print and digital pages.

- Supervise page design, website presentation, newsletters and social media.

- Represent The Wenatchee World as an ambassador in the community.

This is a full-time position with a package of pay and benefits, including medical, vision, dental, and a 401(k).

Please email your resume with subject line “Managing Editor” to Publisher Sean Flaherty at flaherty@wenatcheeworld.com. Include a letter of interest and links to up to five examples of work you had a hand in elevating.

The Washington Newspaper November 2022 9