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Around the Web links about Community Journalism
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Shared by Tommy Thomason 40 weeks 4 days ago
So now the readers of NNA’s latest survey know what any community journalists have always known: Our readers think we’re doing a good job and almost three-quarters of them read us regularly.
What other industry can make such claims? Three-quarters of the people who live in towns served by community papers don’t shop regularly at Wal Mart or watch the same TV show or listen to the same music. But the latest Community Newspaper Readership Study by the National Newspaper Association and The Reynolds Journalism Institute indicates that a whopping 73 percent of residents in small towns and cities read local newspapers from one day to seven days a week. And more than two-thirds (78 percent) read most to all of the contents.
And there was even more good news in the survey: 80 percent consider local newspapers their primary news source; they prefer their community paper because it focuses on local news; and three-quarters say they look forward to reading their local newspaper.What about other media? Eat your heart out, television – 50 percent chose newspapers for local news as opposed to 16.3 percent for TV and 6.7 percent for radio.
You can read a digest of the survey at the website of the Reynolds Journalism Institute (first link), or, if you’re a member of the National Newspaper Association, you can access the complete report that the NNA website (second link).
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Shared by Tommy Thomason 1 year 3 weeks ago
A “Community Watchdog” award will be given to a Texas community newspaper this year. The new prize is part of the Fort Worth Society of Professional Journalists’ First Amendment Awards, and is open to community newspapers throughout the state. The watchdog award is one of 10 different categories in the SPJ contest. All are open to media throughout Texas, but the Community Watchdog award is open only to publications under 10,000 circulation. The call for entries says the award will be given to “exemplary work – news, feature, investigative, opinion – involving public records.”
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Shared by Tommy Thomason 1 year 6 weeks ago
Here’s some good news to help you face the new year with optimism: The National Newspaper Association has released results of a new study that shows (insert drum roll here) – 73 percent of people in smaller communities say they read their local newspaper at least once a week. And they’re not just skimming; 78 percent claim that they read all or most of their newspaper. What else? Readers share their paper with 3.34 persons (let us know if you find that .34 of a person), 41 percent keep their paper for six or more days, and they spend 37.5 minutes reading their papers. The study surveyed readers of papers with circulations of 8,000 or fewer.
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Shared by Tommy Thomason 1 year 7 weeks ago
If you want to see the potential of your web product to draw in readers (and therefore advertisers), check out this project from a rural newspaper in Washington State, the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin. It’s basically stories and slideshows profiling Walla Walla residents. When you go to the site, click on the “About the Project” link to get the background on what they’re doing. Katrina Barlow of the Union-Bulletin explains it in this way: "Last year, I fell in love with a New York Times multimedia series called 'One in 8 Million.' Each weekly episode featured an everyday New Yorker, who shared something about his or her occupation or lifestyle. I realized that characters like those New Yorkers, who were so full of charisma and verve, lived in rural areas. The Walla Walla Valley is full of people who have remarkable stories. This is our attempt to highlight these untold stories."
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Shared by Tommy Thomason 1 year 34 weeks ago
Our friends at the Motley County Tribune in Matador are sponsoring a writing contest that may interest Texas journalists. It's the Douglas Meador Writing Contest, named for the long-time, celebrated editor and publisher of the Tribune, who died in 1974. Publishers Laverne Zabielski and Larry Vogt tell what they are looking for: "We are interested in stories of those who came to the American West after 1850 and those who were here when the pioneers arrived. We want stories with authenticity, lively details, and a sense of place that capture the spirit of the land and highlight and celebrate rich traditions, struggles and accomplishments." The website above gives all the information you'll need for entering.
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Shared by Tommy Thomason 1 year 41 weeks ago
Kennebunkport, Maine, is a long way from Texas. But Bridget Burns in Kennebunkport, who writes for a community newspaper, uses this blog to write about one of the major strengths of community journalism -- the fact that we run lots of names and reflect the real lives of real people. You'll enjoy Bridget's short blogpost on the value of running names in the paper and why she loves community journalism.