Page 19

More than 50 journalists participating in community journalism track at Radically Rural Sept. 27-28

More than 50 journalists from around the country have already registered to speak at or attend Radically Rural, the two-day national summit featuring community journalism sessions. It takes place Sept. 27-28 in Keene, NH.

With a theme of “How did they do that?” two of the journalism sessions focus on news organizations that have built sustainability through various means, including philanthropic support, custom publishing, digital readership, and membership, while a third looks at some of the best journalism being produced at rural news organizations in the country, including Emmy- and Pulitzer prize-winning work.

Tickets are still available and for the first time, journalists can select from several price points, based on their ability to afford to attend, for as little as no charge up to the full summit price of $175. There are a limited number of free tickets.

“We want to make this as affordable as possible for journalists to attend, particularly those stressed by the challenging revenue markets facing their organizations and the cost of travel,” said organizer Terrence L. Williams, senior advisor for audience and community development for The Keene Sentinel. The Sentinel partners with the Hannah Grimes Center for Entrepreneurship each year to stage Radically Rural, which features solutions-based sessions for small communities on seven tracks – community journalism, land use, downtowns, healthcare, entrepreneurship, arts and culture, and clean energy.

This year’s event is in-person, Williams said. To register to attend or learn more about the programming, including track sessions for arts and culture, downtowns, clean energy, entrepreneurship, land use, and healthcare, go to www.radicallyrural.org.

Here’s this year’s community journalism program:

Sept. 27 I 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
How’d they do that? Building sustainability: The demise of local journalism in rural America has received national attention, but in more places than you think, small news organizations are thriving. Our panel discussion will give you insights into how three news organizations have evolved their operations to secure a bright future.
Moderator – Williams
Panelists – Lindsey Young, co-owner, Kansas Publishing Ventures, publisher of Harvey County Now, The Clarion and The Hillsboro Free Press; Chris Baker, publisher, Taos News, Taos, N.M.; and Tristan Scott, managing editor, The Flathead Beacon, Kalispell, MT.

Sept. 27 I The Fourth Estate – 12:30 – 1:30 p.m.
Jeremiah Ariaz, professor of art at Louisiana State University, spent months in Kansas documenting in photography the state of more than 100 rural newspapers. In a moving, nostalgic presentation, he presents the fears and hopes for democracy in communities left without a newspaper or those clinging to what they have. Lunch provided. Attendance limited. Please register separately.

Sept. 27 I 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
How’d they do that? Generating audience revenue: Successful rural news organizations are building revenue through fundraising, membership and paid readership. Our panel discussion unveils best practices among for-profit organizations and non-profits alike.
Moderator – Shay Totten, newsroom success manager, American Press Institute
Panelists – Arik Ligeti, director of audience, The Narwhal, non-profit online publication, Victoria, B.C., Canada; Christiaan Mader, founder/editor, The Current, Lafayette, La.; Carolina Guerrero, co-founder Radio Ambulante

Sept. 28 I 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
How’d they do that? Groundbreaking journalism: A deep dive into how three organizations — from Mississippi to North Carolina to Maine — reported powerful stories that have deeply impacted the rural communities they cover.
Moderator – Jack Rooney, managing editor, audience development, The Keene Sentinel
Panelists: Victoria Bouloubasis, journalist, Emmy-award winning filmmaker, Durham, N.C.; Adam Ganucheau, editor-in-chief at the Pulitzer-prize winning Mississippi Today; Samantha Hogan, investigative reporter, The Maine Monitor, Augusta, ME.

Reporting in a Polarized Society on September 14

Join the New England Equity Reporting Community of Practice for Reporting in a Polarized Society, an upcoming free webinar on September 14 from 12:00 – 1:30 p.m.

Learn from Phillip Martin, Senior Investigative Reporter, GBH News Center for Investigative Reporting, how journalists can unpack and name the divisive forces hiding just below the surface, as well as the ones in plain sight.

How can journalists detect signs of polarization in the communities they cover and in the newsrooms where they work? Dividing forces are nothing new in American society, although recent years have seen an intensifying inflammatory narrative. Assumptions about both working-class populations and communities of color can be damaging.

Learn more and register

Phillip Martin is Senior Investigative Reporter for The GBH News Center for Investigative Reporting. He is a multi-award-winning journalist. In 2022, he was selected as a Shorenstein Fellow at Harvard University’s Shorenstein Center at the Kennedy School of Government. Other honors include a 2022 National Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the multi-part GBH News series Unseen. He also received National Edward R. Murrow awards in 2019 and 2014 for investigative reporting on human trafficking.

Save the date for the 2023 New England Newspaper Conference virtual event on October 19

Join us for an unparalleled experience, where ideas flourish, planning becomes action, strategic insights abound, and successes are celebrated!

The NENPA Fall Newspaper Conference is an annual gathering that brings together executives from New England’s leading news organizations. It is a dynamic platform for fostering collaboration, exchanging innovative ideas, and addressing pertinent challenges within the evolving media landscape.

Stay tuned for more details to come in September!

Are you interested in sponsoring the 2023 New England Newspaper Conference on October 19?

The newspaper industry is evolving and news publishers of all sizes and types are seeking new programs, solutions, and technologies to help grow their business.

Our sponsorships packages connect you with senior-level attendees during the virtual event, but also give you months of premium exposure to NENPA members through website banners, emails, social media, logo placements, and our online member community.

To reserve your sponsorship today, contact Tara Cleary, NENPA Social Media Marketing Manager at t.cleary@nenpa.com or call (617) 520-4585.

July Obituaries 2023

CONNECTICUT
David Carlson
Raymond Hoye
Jim Needham
William Radzunas
Henry Rau
Donald Snyder
MASSACHUSETTS
Frank Amato
Elizabeth Connelly
Edward Gunderson
Rae Hall
Marian Murphy
Cheryl O’Brien
Norman Phillips
Kenneth Powers
William Sullivan
Greg Torres
MAINE
Dawn Gagnon
Patricia Perro
Brenda Seekins
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Jeffrey Brodsky
Meghan Pierce
RHODE ISLAND
Doris Hannon
Stephen Palazzo
William Reynolds
Peter Wells
VERMONT
None Reported

Take steps now to report on 2024 local government budgets

Jim Pumarlo is a former editor of the Red Wing (Minn.) Republican Eagle. He writes, speaks, and provides training on community newsroom success strategies. He is the author of “Journalism Primer: A Guide to Community News Coverage,” “Votes and Quotes: A Guide to Outstanding Election Coverage” and “Bad News and Good Judgment: A Guide to Reporting on Sensitive Issues in Small-Town Newspapers.” He can be reached at www.pumarlo.com and welcomes comments and questions at jim@pumarlo.com.

We’re more than halfway into 2023, and many local governments are well involved in exploring 2024 budgets. Are your newsrooms aware of the process? Are you keeping readers abreast of the dynamics?

It’s not too early to brainstorm ideas for timely and meaningful coverage. Shaping and adopting budgets often takes months encompassing hours of meetings and hundreds of pages of documents. Yet most newsrooms likely observe and report only a snapshot of the process.

Taking steps now will help prevent the pitfalls when reporters first view the budget days in advance – or maybe even at the meeting itself – of its adoption. Those circumstances are a recipe for disaster from the perspective of the governing body, the newspaper, and the readers. 

Reporters naturally seize on the statistics in budgets, but numbers will make minimal sense without benchmarks and interpretation.

Step one, get inside the numbers.

Prepare a calendar – Familiarize yourself with the steps of formulating budgets and share appropriate dates with readers. Some benchmarks are “internal” such as workshops, public hearings, and preliminary and final adoption of budgets. Some dates are “external” such as state certification of local levies. Even if you do not report on all meetings, consider attending specific ones for background.

Dissect the puzzle – It’s misleading and incomplete to simply treat the budget as a single dollar figure assessed against – funded by – taxpayers. Be aware of the pieces. For example, examine differences among the general fund, enterprise funds, and capital funds. Budgets also include projects funded by grants. All these expenses may show up on the bottom line, but it’s important to note whether they are ongoing or one-time expenses along with accompanying funding sources.

Identify variables – Budgets are best guesses. Note that projected expenses and revenues are moving targets. For example, contracts with healthcare providers may not be finalized until year-end. Also, government bodies may negotiate contracts with several units of union and nonunion employees. Contracts likely vary by length and date of ratification.

Step two, provide meaningful interpretation. Readers and local government bodies alike benefit from providing the broadest picture, which also can promote thoughtful community discussion.

What is the overall tax picture? – Budgets of cities, counties and schools, plus other local taxing authorities, all contribute to tax statements sent to individuals and businesses. Reference the tax impact of other local government units when one body adopts its budget. When all budgets are final, write a story presenting the cumulative impact.

Where does local cost-of-government rank? – How does my city, school district, or county budget rank with its counterparts across the state? Providing the answers in advance of hearings can lay the foundation for great dialogue. It’s most instructive to focus on expenditures per capita versus tax levy per capita to reflect the varied sources of funds. For example, a government unit in a similar-sized community may have a relatively low tax levy because it receives a significantly larger amount of state aid. 

Give numbers context – The best interpretation of budgets uses a combination of reporting dollar and percentage increases and decreases.

Revisit budgets – Track budgets a couple of times throughout the year to see how the performance aligns with the stated objectives. Even if there’s no story, the review can help prepare for when work starts on the next budget.

Finally, don’t be afraid to ask the question. Your goal is to ensure a thoughtful and educated discussion. There is a good chance that the elected officials themselves don’t have a full grasp of all the numbers. Furthermore, if you don’t understand the statistics, the resulting story will be confusing to readers. 

The strongest coverage of all public affairs reporting, and especially reporting on budgets, is two-pronged: solid advances to lay the groundwork for an informed discussion, and follow-up reports that provide meaningful interpretation of actions.

Review these two stories as you consider your approaches to reporting budgets.

Here’s a great report from the Rochester (Minn.) Post-Bulletin that appeared in mid-April: “Rochester council discussing budget impacts Monday.” The story previewed a study session that outlined economic factors affecting future spending as the council considered priorities. The follow-up report outlined seven things to know about the impacts on the next two-year city budget.

Contrast that account with what is an unfortunate practice at too many newspapers.

Here is the lead from a budget hearing last December in another newspaper: “During the city’s truth-in-taxation meeting the City Council held a public hearing and approved 2023 budgets.” The story explained the hearings are intended to improve accountability by focusing taxpayers on the relationship between budget decisions and property taxes, yet there was no advance to the hearing. One paragraph summarized dollar changes in the general and capital improvement funds with no detail or context. The proposed tax levy was zero percent, but residents still commented on the city’s history of higher property taxes.

Developing relationships is at the foundation of delivering solid budget stories, and it requires efforts from both sides.

Here’s a starter. Imagine the reaction if you invite the city administrator to explore how city hall and the newspaper can cooperate to enhance the understanding of city budgets. You might be surprised at where the conversation leads, and – most important – your readers stand to be the ultimate beneficiary.

Get more mileage out of testimonials

John Foust
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. Email john@johnfoust.com for information.

Back in my ad agency days, I worked with a real estate client on a series of customer testimonials. We started with one, then added another and another. The final count was more than a dozen, which kept the campaign fresh and gave us a lot of flexibility. 

The plan was to run smaller ads with one testimonial and then to place three small testimonials at the top of weekly, full-page ads which featured descriptions of houses for sale. The ads attracted the attention of prospective buyers and sellers (many of whom recognized their neighbors) and the company’s agents (who were proud when their clients were featured). One testimonial photo and quote featured a South Korean couple who had relocated to the area when one spouse’s high-tech employer moved a number of executives to North Carolina from that country. The quote appeared in Korean, which appealed to others who were relocating with the same company, in addition to attracting a lot of attention on the page. 

This strategy gave us more mileage than a campaign with two or three testimonials because there were so many different combinations. If you’d like to try something similar, here are the steps to take: 

  1. Select the right testimonial subjects. Your advertiser can make the choices. Go for variety: some individuals, some couples, and some international customers, if possible. In the case of real estate, balance testimonials between home buyers and sellers. 
  2. Get the right testimonial quotes. You can coach your advertiser on how to do this. Keep the quotes brief, with a target of 10 to 20 words. The quotes can be obtained by phone or email, or even in person. Make sure the subjects understand that their comments may be edited slightly for brevity. 
  3. Be specific. A testimonial ad is a way to convey selling points about the advertiser. As a result, it’s important to ask questions to direct answers in the right direction – and to create a variety of statements. “XYZ’s service team responds quickly to calls. I can always count on them” is more informative than “The XYZ Company is great. I really like them.” The next quote can focus on something other than service – product selection, for example. 
  4. Photos are a must. Taking photographs has gotten simpler with each year. It’s okay to use your phone. Headshots are best. Clean, uncluttered backgrounds provide better ad reproduction. 
  5. Get signed releases. Depending on the laws in your area, make sure you have the proper permission to use each testimonial. Release forms can be found online. 
  6. Establish a rotation. Be flexible. The more testimonials you have, the greater the possibilities – some ads with one testimonial, some with multiple testimonials. 
  7. Thank (but do not pay) your testimonial subjects. Unpaid testimonials from real customers have the ring of authenticity. Your advertiser should send a nice letter, along with their photo (preferably 5×7) and a copy of an ad in which they appeared. It’s another chance for your advertiser to strengthen their relationships with clients. 

(c) Copyright 2023 by John Foust. All rights reserved.

Applications for 13th annual New England First Amendment Institute close on August 18

The New England First Amendment Coalition will host its 13th annual New England First Amendment Institute from Oct. 29 to Oct. 31 at Northeastern University in Boston.

NEFAC provides a tuition-free investigative journalism institute each year for 25 working journalists within New England. It includes workshops and presentations featuring some of the country’s most elite investigative reporters, editors, and media attorneys. More than 300 journalists from 100 local news organizations have benefited from the New England First Amendment Institute since it began in 2011.

The deadline to apply is August 18, 2023. Application materials can be obtained here.

Speakers and faculty for this year’s institute will be announced in the coming months.

Learn more at nefac.org

NENPA and other news organizations condemn newsroom search of Marion County Record

Update: On Aug. 16, 2023, the prosecutor in Marion County withdrew the search warrant and asked law enforcement to return the seized material to the Marion County Record, saying in a statement that “insufficient evidence” existed to establish a “legally sufficient nexus between this alleged crime and the places searched and the items seized.”

The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, NENPA, and over 30 other news media and press freedom organizations have written a letter to the police chief in Marion, KS, condemning the raid of the Marion County Record on August 11 by law enforcement officers with the Marion Police Department.

The officers executed a search warrant at the Marion County Record’s newsroom and at its publisher’s home and seized the Record’s electronic newsgathering equipment, work product, and documentary material.

Based on public reporting, the search warrant that has been published online, and public statements to the press, there appears to be no justification for the breadth and intrusiveness of the search—particularly when other investigative steps may have been available.

The letter brings up our concerns that the search may have violated federal law strictly limiting federal, state, and local law enforcement’s ability to conduct newsroom searches and urges the immediate return of the seized material to the Record, to purge any records that may already have been accessed, and to initiate a fully independent and transparent review of the department’s actions.

Newsroom searches and seizures are among the most intrusive actions law enforcement can take with respect to the free press, and the most potentially suppressive of free speech by the press and the public.

Read the letter

Read more at Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press

Read more at Marion County Record

Read more at The New York Times

Read more at The Washington Post

Read more at The Boston Globe

Read more at Media Nation

Read the News Leaders Association statement

API accepting grant applications for 2023 Civic Discourse and Community Voices Fund

People talking, thinking concept.

The American Press Institute is now accepting applications from local and community-based news organizations throughout the United States to kickstart initiatives to strengthen civic discourse in their community.

Both nonprofit and for-profit news organizations may apply here by August 21 by 8 p.m. ET for grants of up to $10,000 from the 2023 Civic Discourse and Community Voices Fund to be used over four months starting in September. The grant period will include virtual opportunities to share insights with other fund participants, learn from other civic discourse practitioners, and develop new skills.

API anticipates the cohort will include up to 20 news organizations. Projects will be prioritized that pay special attention to a diversity of voices and people. Projects can also be new or built upon existing work.

Experiments enabled by the grants should help news organizations learn and build toward sustainable civic discourse initiatives, ones that are in place for the 2024 election year and beyond. 

API is especially interested in civic discourse projects that deeply involve communities of color. We are also interested in projects that give voice and build bridges among other differences, such as religion, class, immigration status, language barriers, politics, and more.

Read more at americanpressinstitute.org

You can find participation details and the eligibility requirements, and apply here.

September 22 Symposium at BU – Black Media: Reflecting on the Past and Reimagining the Future

Black Media: Reflecting on the Past and Reimagining the Future is a day-long symposium on September 22 at Boston University. It was created to highlight Black media professionals and their innovative and important work in the journalism, PR, marketing, advertising, and film industries.

The symposium speakers have broken barriers in their fields, amplified Black voices and stories, and navigated the challenges that still exist for Black storytellers and communications professionals. Their experiences and perspectives will be shared on panels ranging in topics from the future of antiracist journalism to cultivating diverse talent in the media industry.

Attendees will network with other media professionals, gain insight into their careers and ambitions, and celebrate the important work–past, present, and future–of Black media.

Registration is open to members of the BU community and others interested in Black media. Attendees will receive free admission with registration.

Learn more and register

1...181920...163Page 19 of 163
© 2025 New England Newspaper & Press Association. All rights reserved.