alapressa for april 2010

8/9/2019 AlaPressa for April 2010

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AlaPressaT he N ewsleTTer of The A lAbAmA P ress A ssociATioN APril 2010

The future nowWill the newgeneration oftablet computersand netbooks

nally providethe portable

answers forelectronicmedianewspapershave beenwaiting for?PAGE 6

ALSO INSIDE

2010 SummerConventionhas a new look

APA announcesnew of cers

APA welcomes twonew members

Rainsville andFort Payne papersmerge

Libel suit against Anniston Stardismissed


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AlaPressa April 20102

Alabama Press AssociationAlabama Newspaper Advertising

Service Inc.3324 Independence Drive

Suite 200Birmingham, AL 35209

(205) 871-7737(205) 871-7740 (fax)

www.alabamapress.org

Board of DirectorsJoe Thomas, President,

The Tri-City Ledger,Alan Davis, First Vice President,

VP of Media GeneralLeada Gore, Second Vice President,

Hartselle EnquirerCy Wood, Chairman of the Board,

Valley Times-NewsMichele Gerlach, The Andalusia

Star-NewsStacy Graning, The MessengerAnn Laurence, News CourierMike Marshall, Press-Register

Bob Martin, Montgomery IndependentTommy McGraw, Sumter County

Record-JournalLaVale Mills, The Red Bay NewsDavid Moore, The Arab Tribune

David Proctor, Clay Times-JournalJim Rainey, The Opelika-Auburn News

Tom Scarritt, The Birmingham NewsJerome Wassman, Daily Mountain Eagle

APA Staff Felicia Mason, Executive DirectorBrad English, Advertising Manager

Leigh Leigh Tortorici, SeniorMarketing Representative

Michelle Touchton, APA Event andJournalism Foundation Coordinator

Tay Bailey, Member ServicesCoordinator

Chris McDaniel, Network Coordinator

D ennis R. Bailey, General CounselScott Goldsmith, APA Accountant

There will be a new venuefor the 2010 APA SummerConvention June 4-5: the CaribeCondominiums, located just acrossthe bridge from the Perdido BeachResort.

This will mark only the secondtime since 1987 that APA has helda summer meeting anywhere otherthan the PBR. In the summer of2001, APA ventured to the easternshore of Mobile Bay to the GrandHotel.

Convention registration packetswill be mailed in a few weeks, butyou can reserve your condo now bycalling Caribe at 1-888-607-7020.There is a two-night minimum forAPA members, however the costper night decreases the longer you

stay.APA also has a block of roomsavailable at the Perdido BeachResort.

Some of the programs willinclude a presentation from KevinSlimp on Digital Journalism andsimple ideas for generating Webrevenue. In addition to KevinSlimp, well have postal expertMax Heath with breaking news onpostal issues, including the recentdiscussion on eliminating Saturday

mail delivery. Heath will also beavailable to review your postalstatement, so bring a copy of yourmost recent statement.

The luncheon speaker will beformer Press-Register reporterEddie Curran, whose recentlyreleased book, The Governorof Goat Hill, covers the politicaldownfall of former Gov. DonSeigelman.

One thing that will not change

about this summer convention isthe recognition of the BNC andAdvertising Contest winners onSaturday evening.

The winning entries will be ondisplay during the afternoon, andthe reception and banquet willrecognize winners from both theadvertising and editorial contests.

Mark your calendars for June4-5, and look for registrationmaterials soon.

2010 Summer Conventionhas a new lookSig at v t s t f J 4-5


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Joe Thomas, publisher and editorof The Tri-City Ledger, has beenelected president of the AlabamaPress Association. Thomassucceeds Cy Wood, publisher andeditor of the Valley Times-News inLanett. Wood became chairman ofthe board for a year.

Thomas is a native of Tuscaloosaand a journalism graduate of theUniversity of

Alabama. He began his career asa staff writer at the Elk Valley Timesin Fayetteville, Tenn. He returned toAlabama as a staff writer and latersports editor at the Andalusia Star-

News. He worked as editor andpublisher of the Brewton Standardbefore becoming editor of the Tri-City Ledger in 1989. He was namedpublisher in 1996.

Thomas has previously servedtwo terms on the APA board ofdirectors and has chaired the BetterNewspaper Contest Committee.He is a member of the FlomatonArea Chamber of Commerce,the Escambia County IndustrialDevelopment Authority, and theFlomaton Public Library Board. His

Left to right: Cy Wood, Joe Thomas, Alan Davis, Leada Gore.

See OFFICERS , Page 4

AlaPressa April 2010 3

IMPORTANT DATESOnline Media

Campus Training:Social Media

Friday, April 21 2 p.m. CST

Intro toPhotoshopFriday, April 161- 2 p.m. CST

JournalismFoundation

Meeting April 22University of

West Alabama

Selling Against Your Competition

Friday, April 231 2 p.m. CST

APA Summer ConventionJune 4-5, 2010

Orange Beach, AL

Welcome new APA of cers

Pappas leaves Daily Homefor new adventure

Pappas

Former APA president CarolPappas has resigned from her postas publisher of The Daily Home inTalladega, a position she held since1997. Pappas rst joined The DailyHome as a reporter in 1981.

She also resigned her position asa member of the Board of Directorsof Consolidated Publishing. Pappasserved as APA president in 2006.She is a native of Birmingham and agraduate of Auburn University.

Pappas has formed a multimediamarketing rm, Partners by Design,which will be based in Pell City.

She is joined by Graham Hadley,who resigned as managing editor atThe Daily Home, to join the new rm.

Ed Fowler, vice presidentof operations for ConsolidatedPublishing, will serve as interimpublisher at The Daily Home.

Fowler was publisher of thenewspaper from 1992 to 1997.


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AlaPressa4 March 2010

wife, Debbie, is a reading coach inFlomaton. They have two children,Abbott, 17, and Maggie, 13.

Alan Davis, vice presidentand regional publisher for MediaGeneral in Alabama, became

rst vice president of APA. Daviscurrently serves as chairman of theAPA Advertising Committee. Hehas previously served two terms onthe APA board, and served on theExecutive Committee in 2007.

Leada Gore, publisher of TheHartselle Enquirer and The MadisonCounty Record, was elected secondvice president.

Gore is a graduate of theUniversity of Montevallo with adegree in history. She joined BooneNewspapers in 1992 as a staff writerat the Shelby County Reporter.

Currently she writes a columnthat appears in six Alabamanewspapers.

Gore is a past board memberof the Junior League of Huntsvilleand current secretary-treasurerof the University of MontevalloFoundation. She lives in Madisonwith her husband, Greg, and her

two-year old daughter, Sutton.Gregs son, Derek, is a sophomoreat Gardner-Webb University inNorth Carolina.

Board members elected fortheir rst two-year term were:Ann Laurence, publisher of TheNews-Courier in Athens; JeromeWassmann, publisher of The DailyMountain Eagle in Jasper; DavidProctor, publisher of the ClayTimes-Journal in Lineville; andMike Marshall, editor of the Press-Register in Mobile. Bob Martin,publisher of The MontgomeryIndependent, and Michele Gerlach,publisher of the Andalusia Star-News were elected to second two-year terms.

Members remaining on the APAboard are: LaVale Mills, publisher ofThe Red Bay News; David Moore,editor of The Arab Tribune; TomScarritt, editor of The BirminghamNews; Tommy McGraw, publisher ofthe Sumter County Record-Journalin Livingston; Jim Rainey, publisherof the Opelika-Auburn News; andStacy Graning, publisher and editorof The Messenger in Troy.

The APA Journalism Foundationelected Tommy Campbell, publisherof The Choctaw Sun-Advocate in

Gilbertown, as its new president,and Tim Prince, publisher of theShelby County Reporter andThe Clanton Advertiser, as vicepresident. Campbell succeedsJerome Wassmann, publisher ofThe Daily Mountain Eagle in Jasper,who became chairman of the board.

Publishers Ricky Matthewsof the Press-Register in Mobile,Darrell Sandlin of The TimesDailyin Florence, and Jason Cannon ofThe Demopolis Times, were electedfor their rst two-year term on theFoundation board.

Journalism Foundation boardmembers elected for a second termare: Adam Prestridge, publisherof The Atmore Advance; RhondaGray, editor of The Call News(Citronelle); Kerry Whipple Bean,publisher of The Brewton Standard;and Tom Wright, executive editor ofThe Decatur Daily.

Members remaining on theFoundation board are: Ron Reaves,executive editor of The GadsdenTimes; Kevin Wendt, editor of TheHuntsville Times; Patrick Johnston,managing editor of The EufaulaTribune; and J.D. Davidson,publisher and editor of The FortPayne Times-Journal.

Of cersfrom Page 3

Circuit Judge Eugene Reeseruled last month that while theevidence presented in the caseagainst the Montgomery Board ofEducation clearly showed meetingsoccurred that were not noticed, andno minutes were kept, the meetingsdid not violate the Open MeetingsAct.

In December Clay Slagle, theoperations of cer for MontgomeryPublic Schools and a formercandidate for superintendent suedthe Montgomery County Boardof Education alleging the boardmet in secret during the selectionprocess and later in discussing thesuperintendents performance.

The case alleged that on Nov.

16, 2009, the seven-member boardmet in subgroups to avoid a quorumto discuss the performance andgoals of the superintendent as wellas other items concerning publicfunds and public education.

The board held a special meetingthe next day and voted 7-0 toapprove goals and objectives forthe superintendent.

The suit claimed the AlabamaOpen Meetings Act was intentionallyviolated with the use of serialmeetings to avoid a quorum.

A second part of the suit claimedfour members of the board mettogether in June to discuss theselection of a superintendent.

In his order, Judge Reese states

the evidence is without disputethat at no time during the meetingon Nov. 16 were there more thanthree board members present,which did not constitute a quorum.Therefore, there was no violation ofthe law.

As for the June meeting, the orderstates that when the board realizedfour members were present, onemember left so that a quorum wasno longer present. Again, JudgeReese did not nd a violation of theOpen Meetings Act.

An appeal has been led claimingthe meetings of three memberswere committee meetings, andtherefore must follow the notice andquorum provisions of the law.

Judge dismisses open meetings suitagainst Montgomery Board of Education


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AlaPressa 5March 2010

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Wright also writes about webstrategy for The Des MoinesBusiness Records IowaBiz.com.

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A LABAMA P RESS A SSOCIATION


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Libel suit against Anniston Star dismissedA Calhoun County judge ruled in favor of Consolidated Publishing, publisher of The Anniston Star, in

a libel case brought by an Anniston city councilman.

The councilman claimed that several articles and editorials published by the newspapers related toan alleged connection between the councilman and a consultant who received a city contract werelibelous.

See below an article written by Dennis Bailey of Rushton, Stakely, Johnston and Barton, whorepresented The Anniston Star in the case. Bailey is also APA General Counsel.

By Dennis R. Bailey

Public Of cial Libel Plaintiff: I dont like that they printed about me this inthe editorial: It is often a rude profession, one with a reputation of calling outthe incompetent buffoons and demagogues inhabiting public of ce.

Defense Attorney: Isnt that what editorials do?

Public Of cial Libel Plaintiff: What is a buffoon anyway?

Defense Attorneys Unspoken Answer: [An elected of cial who does not knowwhat a buffoon is.]

The above [except theunspoken part] comes frompage 228 of the Deposition of City Councilperson Ben Littleduring his deposition in a casehe led in an Alabama CircuitCourt claiming The AnnistonStar libeled him in an article andeditorial, questioning whetherhe had a personal relationshipwith an independent auditorhe recommended as well ashis general effectiveness as anelected representative. In thereal world, I bit my tongue andmoved on to the next question.Fortunately, after months of discovery and depositions of the reporter, editorial writerand publisher, taken after amotion for summary judgment

was led, Circuit JudgeMalcolm Street, Jr. entereda 10-page order grantingsummary judgment for TheAnniston Star and its reporterone week before the case wasto be tried before a jury.

To me, this decision helpedme appreciate more fully theimportance of a libel decisionthat arose back during theCivil Rights Movement in myhometown of Montgomery,Alabama.

Actually, it is a case whichyou probably can name off the top of your head. It justso happens that the biggestlibel decision in our lifetimesoriginated from what was, atthe time, the largest jury verdict

in Alabama entered in theCircuit Court of MontgomeryCounty, Alabama. It wasaf rmed unanimously by theAlabama Supreme Court, andthen reversed by a unanimousUnited States Supreme Court.Yes, I am speaking of THENew York Times v. Sullivancase. I know one of the lawyerswho tried the case and arguedit (on the losing side) beforethe U.S. Supreme Court: Itold the Court the only way wecould lose was if they changedthe law of libel. My fatherwas a friend of L.B. Sullivan,the plaintiff. I have the Timesadvertisement: Heed Their

The attorneys view of the case

See ATTORNEY , Page 8


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Rising Voices in my desk. Ihave actually read the reversedAlabama Supreme Courtopinion as part of teaching libellaw to my media law class atAuburn University because itis a textbook on libel law priorto the establishment of actualmalice as a defense.

The case of Ben Little v.The Anniston Star presented anironic twist of the facts of New

York Times v. Sullivan. Insteadof a Caucasian elected policecommissioner complainingto an all-white jury about aSouthern Christian LeadershipCouncil sponsored ad critical of police treatment of Dr. MartinLuther King and publishedin that anti-Southern TheNew York Times, Little wasan African-American electedcity counci lmember froma predominately African-American ward of Anniston,Alabama, who sought toin ame a racially mixed jurywith his perception that TheAnniston Star criticized himeither because it was racist orbecause the newspaper wishedto pro t from an opposing viewon the best way to developAnnistons old Ft. McClellanproperty because its of ceswere built on a portion of that

land.Speci cally, Little claimedthat a quote from a whitecouncil member at a publicmeeting that there was a buzzin the community that he had apersonal relationship with anunmarried female auditor hehad recommended the city hire(after renting a car to visit her

and taken her out to dinner twotimes) was false, defamatoryand malicious although thearticle went on to quote theauthor of the statement assaying: If this is true it needsto be disclosed and if not trueit is not fair to Mr. Little; anddespite the fact that Little, anunmarried man, was quoted assaying the allegation was falseand if true it would not involvecity business.

An editorial the next daylisted a litany of Littles

failures and commented onthe Sweetheart Deal Littlehad proposed for the auditor.Star editorial writers suggestedLittle was a demagogue,buffoon, crank, and verydivisive to boot. It was bareknuckled criticism of a popularelected of cial about his jobperformance.

But the evidence alsoestablished that Little hadbeen offered and turned downthe opportunity to respond tothe editorial in the form of anop-ed piece. Instead, Littlechose to respond on a radioprogram he hosts and with alibel suit claiming unspeci edcompensatory and punitivedamages.

Fortunately, after discoverywas complete and the case wasa week away from trial, JudgeStreet found that the statement

that there was a buzz inthe community that Littlehad a personal relationshipwith the auditor was eithersubstantially true or neverasserted or proven to be false.He also held it was not capableof a defamatory meaning. Hefurther ruled the statementsin the editorial were pure

opinion and not statements of fact. Finally, based upon NewYork Times v. Sullivan, and itsprogeny, he ruled that Little hadfailed to come forth with clearand convincing evidenceof actual malice suf cient todefeat a motion for summary

judgment. Littles claim underthe Alabama Tort of Outragewas subsumed by the libelclaim and dismissed also.

Brandy Ayers, publisherof The Anniston Star (whichincidentally is referred to as the

Red Star by conservativeslocally because of its allegedhistory of liberal activism)had a characteristically colorfulquote about the decision:Anybody who has paidattention to city hall politicsover the past few years knowsthe suit against The Star wasvagrant, without any visiblemeans of support. Testimonyin the case revealed that Ayershad been at the top of theKKKs hit-list in the 1960sand claims that Ayers was aracist were laughable to anyonewho had followed his career tothe slightest degree.

The bottom line is that thecase turned out the right wayalthough getting there wasexpensive, contentious andunpleasant for the subjects of the suit and even their lawyers.But the case is a reminder of the

dangers a libel case with racialundertones would present todayin Alabama if L.B. Sullivans$500,000 verdict had not beenreversed by the U.S. SupremeCourt in 1964. Hopefully,the Little decision will chillthe buffoonery of a publicof cial libel case in Alabamafor at least a few years.

Attorneyfrom Page 7


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Kim B. Smith, CPA JamisonMoneyFarmer PC

During recent years, states, cities and countieshave experienced a loss of sales tax revenues.Much of this loss can be attributed to Internetsales and the general economic downturn of thecountry. Governments have placed an emphasison collection of sales tax revenue, and there isa general increase in the amount of sales taxaudits performed at both the state and local level.

The purpose of this article is to provide generalinformation about sales taxes applicable to thenewspaper industry.

The sale of a newspaper is a retail sale. As such,tax is collected and remitted on the gross salesprice of the newspaper. Newspapers are sold ina variety of ways racks, over-the-counter in thenewspaper of ce, through independent carriersand via U.S. mail. In each of these instances, thenewspaper should collect and remit sales tax onthe total gross proceeds of the sale.

Alabama law states that a consumer should beinformed of the amount of sales tax that is being

collected and remitted in a sales transaction.Alabama Regulation 810-6-4-.20 states,Whenever practical, each retailer shall add thesales tax as a separate line item to the sellingprice. The initial invoice, bill, charge ticket, salesslip, or receipt shall separately state the amount ofthe tax being charged.

If not separately stated, it will be presumedthat sales tax was not charged to the customeror collected. In such cases, the measure willbe the gross receipts. In those instances whereit is practically impossible to furnish a customerwith an invoice, bill, charge ticket, sales slip orreceipt, the retailer shall conspicuously post asign indicating that the charge for the item beingpurchased includes the price of the item and thetotal percentage of sales tax being collected.Technically, it is not enough to have a statementon the invoice that states sales tax included inpurchase price. The newspaper is required toindicate on the invoice or receipt the gross salesprice, tax and total amount due.

Alabama Regulation 810-6-1-.110 also statesthat Postage charges over and above the regularprice for the publication, separately billed, formailing to individual readers will not be required to

be included in the measure of the tax. Therefore,newspapers are not allowed a deduction fromgross proceeds for the cost of postage. Postagecosts are only excluded from sales tax if they areseparately billed to the customer.

Some newspapers will have rack sales inmultiple cities and counties. In these cases, thesale is completed when and where the customertakes possession of the newspaper. The salestax is based upon where the rack is located.Newspapers that are delivered to or sold via racksales in multiple counties will be required to remitsales tax based upon the county where the saletakes place. One exception to this rule is whensubscriptions are mailed out-of-state and out-of-county. Sales out-of-state or out-of-county areconsidered interstate commerce sales and are notsubject to Alabama sales tax requirements. If thenewspaper has a physical presence in the statewhere the newspaper is delivered, the newspapermay be required to follow the sales tax rules forthe state where the newspaper is delivered.

In addition to sales tax, it is possible thatthe newspaper will have requirements to le

Consumers Use Tax returns. Consumers Use Taxis imposed on tangible personal property broughtinto Alabama for storage, use or consumption inAlabama when the seller did not collect the sellersuse tax on the sale of the property. (AlabamaCode Section 40-23-60) Use tax applies to local,city, and county taxes as well. For example, ifa newspaper purchases supplies or a piece ofequipment over the Internet from a company thatdoes not have nexus in Alabama and sales taxis not paid at the point of sale, the newspaper isrequired to remit use tax to Alabama, and the cityand county where the equipment is delivered. Use

tax also applies to items previously purchased atwholesale that are withdrawn from inventory forthe withdrawers own use.

Advertising supplements or circulars aresometimes inserted into newspapers. AlabamaRegulation 810-6-1-.130 states that there areno sales tax consequences when the insertsand advertising supplements are inserted into anewspaper when the inserts and supplements areprinted by the publishers of the newspaper andsold as part of the newspaper published. Also,

Sales Tax Information forAlabama Newspapers

See TAX, Page 10


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when the supplements and inserts are printedby another printer for insertion into a newspapersold at retail, the publisher will purchase thesupplements and inserts at wholesale (no salestax paid). The inserts must actually be a part ofthe newspaper and not circulated separately tothe customers of the newspaper.

If the newspaper contracts to send thesupplements separately, sales tax will be due atthe time the inserts are purchased.

It would be wise to review sales tax practices in

your business to ensure that you are complyingwith the sales and use tax laws of Alabama. Keepin mind that the sales tax rules of the state alsoapply to the individual counties and cities. Werecommend that you review your sales and usetax procedures at least annually to ensure thatyou are collecting and remitting the proper amountdue. An internal review can provide you with thebest chance to receive a no-change audit report.

JamisonMoneyFarmer PC is available to assistyou with an internal review of your companyscompliance with sales and use tax requirements.205-345-8440. You will hear more on this topic atthe summer convention.

Taxfrom Page 9

Consolidated Publishing Corporation hasannounced that John Alred has been promotedto publisher of The Jacksonville News and ThePiedmont Journal. Alred had been managingeditor of both newspapers.

Alred replaces Phil Sanguinetti as publisher inJacksonville and Robert Jackson as publisher inPiedmont. Sanguinetti and Jackson will remain asconsultants.

This is a great honor for me, Alred said. Ibelieve community newspapers are the backbonesto smaller communities like Jacksonville andPiedmont, and I am proud to be the publisher ofthese newspapers.

I have some big shoes to ll. Phil has been thepublisher in Jacksonville for many, many years. InPiedmont, Im following not only Robert Jackson,but Austin Johnson and Lane Weatherbee.

Let me say this. The readers of these twoweekly newspapers will continue to get the verybest of local coverage they have come to expect.We have good people at both newspapers whoare dedicated to bringing our readers the newsthat means the most to them.

Alred joined The Jacksonville News in 2006 after32 years at The Gadsden Times. During his tenure

Alred named

publisher atJacksonville andPiedmont

at The Times, Alred worked as a reporter, newseditor, sports writer and assistant sports editor,copy editor and in the advertising department ascreative manager.

When he retired from The Times, he came toThe Jacksonville News, and after less than a year,he was named managing editor of The News andThe Journal.

He is a native of Gadsden and is a graduateof Jacksonville State University. He lives betweenJacksonville and Piedmont with his wife, Karen.

Alred


11/25


Intro to PhotoshopLearn Photoshop from the ground upin this one-hour webinar!

Friday, April 162:00-3:00 p.m. EST | 1:00-2:00 p.m. CST

Registration deadline: Tuesday, April 13(Registrations submitted after this date are subject to a $10 late fee)



The presenter...

In this webinar, you will learn...

Photoshop, a powerful software application, is a big program thatcan be a little daunting for beginning users. If you nd reading helpscreens frustrating and are struggling to get going, this webinargives you the nitty gritty foundation you need. Well concentrate onwhat features to focus on rst for newspaper production; show youhow to best use them and give you practical, real-life examples.

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Graphic Arts Training & Consulting Group webinars are watchand learn experiences. GATC will share their screens with you soyou can easily see whats being talked about as well as how to use

it. Theyll be glad to take your questions and will answer all of them,either during or after the webinar. GATC staff are also available tohelp you with individual concerns.

GATC Associ-ate Director TinaBerg-Boldt hasused Photoshopsince its rst re-lease. She helpsusers take apractical, results-orientedapproach to working in Pho-toshop and producing qual-ity images by utilizing thecapabilities of their presses.

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12/25


PeopleThe Medical Association of the

State of Alabama has awardedChoctaw Sun-Advocate editorDee Ann Campbell with the2010 William H. McDonald PrintJournalism Award for excellencein medical reporting.

The award is given annually toone community journalist in thestate whom the association feelshas best presented medicalissues in a manner that is factualand relevant to the community.

Campbell received the award

for her article on Alzheimersdisease that appeared in the July8, 2009, issue of The ChoctawSun-Advocate. This year marksthe third consecutive year thatCampbell has been selected forthe award. Campbell will receiveher award during MASAs annualsession and awards banquet tobe held on April 9 in Huntsville.

Tallapoosa Publishers recentlyannounced several staff changesat The Outlook in Alexander Cityand The Dadeville Record. DaleLiesch was named print editorfor The Outlook and The Record.He was formerly news editorfor The Outlook and overallresponsible for The Record.

Brent Maze will focus on TPIsprint products, and continue to

work as a reporter and editor forboth papers. Maze was formerlymanaging editor for both papers.

Katie Cole was named editorof Lake magazine. She wasformerly a reporter for bothpapers and will continue in thatrole in addition to her work onthe magazine.

Natalie Nettles also joinedthe TPI group as a generalassignment reporter. She is agraduate of Auburn Universityand worked at The Plainsman,

the schools student newspaper.Erin Sellers has joined the

staff of The Piedmont Journalas advertising director. She is agraduate of Troy University andhas a degree is journalism.

Geni Certain has returnedto Consolidated Publishing asmanaging editor at the DailyHome in Talladega. She waspreviously managing editor at TheAnniston Star before becomingdirector of ConsolidatedPublishings Online Departmentin 2000. She retired three yearsago and completed her mastersdegree from Jacksonville StateUniversity in history.

Certain replaces GrahamHadley, who along with former

Daily Home Publisher CarolPappas, began a new businessventure, Partners by Design.

Rob Rice has been namededitor of the Blount Countianin Oneonta. Rice has beenmanaging editor since 2004, andreplaces Molly Howard, whowill remain as publisher.

Wesley Sinor has returnedto Price Publications as asports writer for The Tallassee

Tribune. He previously workedat The Wetumpka Herald andas an intern and later a full-timeemployee. Sinor is a graduate ofAuburn University with a degreein journalism.

Austin Nelson has joinedthe staff of The GreenvilleAdvocate. He is a native ofHouston, Texas, and a graduateof Auburn University. Nelsonwill be working has a communityreporter.

Melanie Patterson wilbecome the new managingeditor of The North JeffersonNews in Gardendale. She isreplacing Adam Smith who ismoving to Georgia with anothernewspaper position.

BriefsThe Auburn Plainsman ,Auburn Universitys studentnewspaper, was recently namedthe top newspaper in the regionat the 2010 Southeast JournalismConference at SoutheasternLouisiana University inHammond, La.

Also honored were PlainsmanPhotographer Rod Guajardo

(second place, photographer ofthe year), Reporter Elli Langford(ninth place, journalist of theyear), and The Plainsmans Website (eighth place).

The University of Alabamareceived recognition fromPRWeek as one of the top twoPublic Relations educational

programs in the country. NewYork University took the topranking overall for the secondyear in a row. The award wasannounced earlier this month atthe PRWeek Awards Ceremonyin NYC.

PRWeek is a weekly trade

See BRIEFS , Page 14


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Publishing to the web, mobile devices, print orwhatever is next, MediaSpan has your solution.

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magazine based in New YorkCity for the public relationsindustry.

The staff at the News Courierin Athens was honored recentlyby Athens State University withits Deweese and Jim BeasleyAppreciation Award for their workto ensure The News Courierinforms its readers of what ishappening in the community.Publisher Ann Laurence andManaging Editor Kelly Kazek

received the award for the staff.Since 2002, the staff haswon more than 200 state andnational press awards. Thestaff and Laurence are involvedin numerous communityorganizations.

The Red Bay News recentlylaunched a new monthlypublication called Heritage

Re ections of our Lives andTimes.

The Heritage will be insertedthe last week of each monthinto The Red Bay News as wellas being sold as a stand alonepublication.

The new publication will coverthree counties in NorthwestAlabama Franklin, Marionand Lamar, and also threeMississippi counties Itawamba,Tishomingo and Monroe.

The content will be provided

mostly from readers and will beprinted in a newspaper format.

Publishers are invited tonominate new advisers of highschool publications to entera mentoring program offeredthrough the Alabama ScholasticPress Association to help themthrough the crucial rst two years.The national effort is supported

by a grant from the AlabamaPress Association. JournalismEducation Associationadministers the program.

Alabama mentors are NoraStephens of Huntsville, Jo AnnHagood of Jackson and MarieParsons of Tuscaloosa. Theretired teachers have morethan 75 years experience andhave been trained speci callyfor journalism mentoring. Theprogram is designed to supportand encourage new journalism

teachers so they will becomehighly effective advisers tostudent staffs in newspaper,yearbook, literary magazine andbroadcast.

To learn more about theprogram or to recommend anadviser, please contact MeredithCummings, Director, AlabamaScholastic Press Association,[email protected].

Briefs from Page 12

Industry Watch ABC offers service forsmall newspapers

The Audit Bureau of Circulationhas launched a new ABCCommunity Newspaper Auditservice that will signi cantlylower publisher costs and simplifyaudit requirements. The service

became available to all U.S. andCanadian newspapers with paidcirculation under 25,000 on Jan.1, 2010.

The new service will feature: All-inclusive fees that

begin at a at annual rate of$2,000 per year

Streamlined, off-siteaudits that occur every otheryear and require less publisherpreparation and involvement

Simpli ed rules and

reporting requirements Inclusion in FAS-FAX

and ABCs searchable onlinedatabase

Flexible billing optionsThis is a signi cant new

service offering that directlyaddresses the challenges manycommunity newspapers facetoday, said Kirk Davis, presidentand COO of GateHouse MediaInc. Many publishers in thiscategory will likely see savings of25 to 50 percent, with the qualityand brand draw of an ABC auditto help them attract local, regionaland national advertisers. I think itwill have widespread appeal formany newspapers.

Merle Davidson, director ofmedia services at J.C. PenneyCo. and chairman of the ABC

board, added, In todaysmarketplace, many regionaland national companies areadvertising in communitynewspapers to improve reachand coverage in local marketsno longer being served bymetropolitan newspapers.Having important, ZIP-code-level information from thesenewspapers included in ABCsintegrated database is essentialfor advertisers that want to buildthe most effective media plans.

ABCs new CommunityNewspaper Audit service is justone of several steps the nonpro torganization has taken recentlyto help its publisher membersaddress the realities of todays

See INDUSTRY , Page 15


15/25


market. The ABC board has alsoagreed to freeze audit fees for2010, the third year in a row feeshave been held in place.

In-county newspapersentered at delivery of cesavoid 78% piece priceincrease for FLIMSYnewspapers

National NewspaperAssociation received news thisweek that its campaign to help

community newspapers avoida postage up-charge intendedfor lightweight publicationswas successful, and a 78% in-county piece rate increase thatwould have taken effect in Junehas been averted. The PostalService announced that it wouldnot assess a charge on carrier-routed newspapers entered atdelivery of ces. The chargemay still apply to outside-countycarrier-routed newspapers thatfail a droop test.The test applies to at mailthat droops more than 4 incheswhen extended 5 inches off a atsurface.

NNA President CherylKaechele, publisher of theAllegan County (MI) News,said the charge was proposedlast fall, and that NNAs PostalCommittee Chairman MaxHeath had immediately swunginto action to prevent it. Thedroop test is imposed to charge

ats that are too lightweightto be handled by automatedsorting machinery, but in thelatest iteration, USPS had saidit thought that even publicationsnot sorted by machine should beassessed the charge.

We were greatly concerned,Kaechele said, The PostalService had announced thatthere would be no postage

increases during this verychallenging economy. Thento suddenly nd this dauntingcharge looming because of amere rules change was very badnews indeed. We congratulatethe Postal Committee and MaxHeath for effective advocacyto turn back this threat to ourindustry.

Heath said: NNA won adecisive victory in its effort toensure that so-called imsy

ats entered at DDU post

of ces retain the Basic carrier-route price for 6-124 Periodicalpieces or 10-124 Standard MailEnhanced Carrier route pieceson a route if they fail a so-calledde ection test.

NNA was the only associationpublicly cited during a presentationon the nal rule at the MailersTechnical Advisory Committee inWashington February 17 for thereasonableness and quality ofarguments to a Federal Register

ling. NNA, several members,and some state associationsled comments showing

that newspapers would bediscriminated against with a 78%increase to 5-digit Periodicalrates should a newspaper faila new, more restrictive drooptest.

This revised test applies to at mail that droops more than4 vertical inches when extended5 inches off a at surface.

The nal rule, effective June7, indicates that the test will beapplied to periodicals, such asmagazines, that dont enter atDestination Delivery Units.

Heath said, I encouragepublishers to maximize their DDUdrops if at all possible to avoidthis nasty penalty if they havea concern that their newspapercould fail the droop test.

This decision once again

shows the value of mailersdropping their own subscribercopies via Exceptional Dispatchto DDU post of ces, both in-county and across county lines,anywhere substantial carrier-route mail exists, Heath said.Likewise, those with StandardMail shoppers get the sameprice discount on Basic pricecarrier route sorted mail enteredat the DDU. High-density andSaturation mail is alreadyexempt from this penalty in both

classes.Each NNA membernewspaper without high pagecounts will enjoy a savings of 4.6cents per piece when sorted tothe Basic carrier-route price In-county (line A13 of Form 3541),and 12.3 cents on every Basiccarrier-route price piece OutsideCounty (line C25 of 3541). DDU-entered shopper copies wouldhave a savings of 11.4 cents perpiece from Basic-price piecesstaying on line I12 rather thangoing to line E9 for 5-digit rateson a 3602-R.

Members can annualizetheir savings by multiplying$0.046 times in-county Basiccarrier route copies times thenumber of issues in a year, then$0.123 times outside-countyBasic carrier route copies timesannual issues. For newspaperswith shoppers, or free StandardMail newspapers, paying Basiccarrier-route rate, multiply$0.114 times line I12 copiestimes the number of issues in ayear. That should more than payfor annual dues for any memberand multiple years membershipfor some.

Details of the de ection test,which is still being argued bymajor mailers, will appear in MaxHeaths Pub Aux Postal Tipscolumn prior to implementation.

Industry Watch from Page 14


16/25


By Debra Gersh Hernandez

(Editors Note: The following storyis from the National NewspaperAssociations Government AffairsConference held recently inWashington, D.C.)

WASHINGTONThe most sacredrole for journalists is nding out thetruth, said Huf ngton Post co-founder Arianna Huf ngton.To wit, she dreams of a non-partisan, fact-checking toolthat automatically ags political misstatements or half-truths.

At the National Newspaper Associations 49th annualGovernment Affairs Conference, Huf ngton also cautionedagainst the media tendency to focus obsessively on one

sentimental story at the expense of providing more newsin a bigger context.Calling it lazy journalism, Huf ngton decried the

tendency in political reporting to write simply about rightversus left rather than looking at what is in between.Fading, too, are the journalists who ag issues beforethey become problems: Far too many autopsies and far

too few biopsies, she said.Community and local newspapers, she told the NNA

audience, are uniquely poised to tell stories of amazing

empathy and people giving back to their fellow citizens.These stories, Huf ngton said, are essential to rebuildingour communities.

When we report on people giving back, it encouragesothers to do it, Huf ngton added. Our problems are sobig we cant rely on government alone. We need peopleto get involved.

Solidly on the side of linked content online, withoutpaywalls, Huf ngton said that unless content is extremelyspeci c, theres no going back to the past with paidcontent.

I dont claim to have all the answers, Huf ngtonsaid, but I think linked content [versus paid] is like [whatWinston Churchill said about] democracyits the best ofall the other systems out there.

To make money in such a system, we need to ndways to monetize our content no matter where it appears,Huf ngton explained. This can be done, for example,within embedded video players or through monetizedlinks.

Debra Gersh Hernandez is a freelance writer. She can be reached at [email protected].

The future online is linked, not paid

ObituariesFormer APA

President M. Hollis

Curl, editor andpublisher of theWilcox ProgressiveEra in Camden,died Tuesday, Feb.2 at his home inCamden. He was74.

Curl was born in Red Bay, Ala.,and was raised in Oak Ridge, Tenn.

Curl and his wife, Glenda, haveowned the Wilcox ProgressiveEra since 1969. He began hisnewspaper career with a paperroute for the Knoxville NewsSentinel. He also put out his ownversion of a neighborhood paper asa youngster. When the Oak Ridgerbegan publication in the late 1940s,Curl was the rst one to get a paperroute.

While in college, Curl workedat the student newspaper at theUniversity of Mississippi as well asworking in a print shop in Oxford.

He returned to Oak Ridge in 1956and married Glenda, his high schoolsweetheart. He soon returned tothe Oak Ridger as an advertising

representative. In 1959, he movedto the Clinton (Tenn.) Courier News

as advertising manager. In 1960,he went to work in advertisingat The Dothan Eagle, and laterbecame publisher and owner of TheChoctaw Advocate in Butler. Overthe years, Curl owned newspapersin Demopolis, Montevallo andMarion before settling in Camden.

Curl is survived by his wife,Glenda, son Mark, daughter Julieand seven grandchildren.

Valerie Harvey, wife of TheAdvertiser-Gleam editor SamHarvey, died Feb. 1, 2010, at herhome in Guntersville. She was 79.

Harvey, a native of Marguerite,Pa., was married to Sam Harvey for57 years.

They moved to Guntersville in1967 when Sam became editor ofthe family paper, The Advertiser-Gleam. Valerie later joined the staffof the paper as circulation directorand receptionist. She eventually cutback to part-time and wrote featurestories for the paper before retiringin 1986.

Harvey was an accomplished

vocalist and a member of the choirat St. William Catholic Church.

While living in Washington, D.C.,she was a soloist with the PentagonChoral Club.

She is survived by her husbandSam Harvey, two sons, twodaughters and eight grandchildren.

Ralph Higginbotham, formerpublisher of The Jacksonville News,died Dec. 22, 2009. He was 93.

Higginbotham worked for TheAnniston Star for 16 years. Heformed Higginbotham PrintingCompany as well as CalhounPublishing, publishers of TheJacksonville News.

Higginbotham was active inmany civic organizations, hi churchand in the eld of education.

Mary Kennedy, of ce managerof the Clay Times-Journal and theearlier Ashland Progress, died onJan. 24. She was 87.

Kennedy served the newspapersfor 34 years, working until she was85 years old. She handled billingand receipts, subscriptions andassisting with mailing each week.


17/25


Columns

Kevin Slimp

Institute ofNewspaper [email protected]

From Becky in Iowa:Hi Kevin,

I have an SD card that was taken out of a camera and placed in another without first downloading the photos. We tried using PhotoRescue (3 years old) to retrieve thephotos. We were able to get some but most seem corrupt. Do you have any ideas how else to retrieve these photos? It is an 8GBcard with approximately 1,000 photos.

Dear Becky:

It sounds like you did what you could do to get them. There are services that normally charge $700+ to retrieve info from drives, but thats

probably more than you want to spend to get your photos back. My favorite program to dothis is Klix, from JoeSoft.com. It might be worth $30 to give it a try. Good luck! (Becky wrote back: Thanks Kevin! I tried Klix and it retrieved almost all of the photos undam-aged. I downloaded it for $30, but its worthit. Thanks!)

From Victor in Tennessee:Hi Kevin.

How can I open an InDesign CS3 file inCS2?

Not a problem, Victor.

Simply export the file in InDesign CS3 as anInDesign Interchange (INX) file. You will be able to open the file in InDesign CS2,CS3 or CS4. Now for an interesting side note. During a trip to Minnesota recently,someone told me they had been successful in opening an INX file in a text editor and changing a few numbers, which allowed them to open the file in earlier versions of InDesign than usual. Normally, an INX file can only be opened in versions of InDesign

one number lower than the version it was exported from. This morning, I opened a

file in InDesign CS4, exported it as an INX file, then changed three numbers in the INX file by opening it in Apple Text Editor and changing three settings. Sure enough, I sent the file to someone using InDesign CS and they were able to open the file successfully.The settings I changed were DOMVersion, readerVersion and product.

From Curt in Illinois:Kevin,

We are getting more and more ads fromoutside of our company in which black ismade up of all four CMYK colors. I re-member reading one of your articles a

while back about either a plug-in or a pro-gram used to fix these PDF files. Can you suggest a good one?

Kevin answers questions concerningphotos, InDesign and PDF problems

Yes, Curt. I can think of a couple of options.

Your most affordable option, other than to opethe file in Photoshop and go through what cabe a grueling process of converting the platesblack, is available in Acrobat 9 Pro. There is color conversion tool that sometimes does a v

good job of finding all the black text on mutiple plates and converting them to the blac

plate only. While this doesnt always work, works often enough to give it a try. Another otion, though a bit expensive for many newsp

per budgets these days, is Enfocus Pitstop PThis plug-in for Acrobat does a great job correcting color problems, including convertitext on all four plates.

From Beckham in Iowa:Im having trouble that no one can seemto help with. My company is still using InDesign CS2. I tried calling Adobe for help, but theyre no longer supporting

this version of Creative Suite. We just got two new 27 iMacs, with OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard). On the new computers, InDe-sign keeps crashing, wont export PDFs,and randomly has items disappear fromthe page. Is this a problem with using CS2 on the new machines? I also thought it may be a problem with our ancient font package; a lot of them conflict with thesystem fonts in the new OS. Ive disabled all of the fonts that do, but am still hav-ing problems. I am assuming that its ei-ther the fonts, or CS2 or both, but no onecan tell me for sure. This only happens inInDesign.

Dear Beckham:

If it were the fonts, I would think yousee similar problems in other applicationHave you tried throwing away your InDesign preferences? Thats the first thingalways try. Youll find them in your Use

folder>Library>Preferences>com.adobe.indesign.plist. (Beckham wrote back the folowing: I just exported a PDF. You mademy day! Thanks.)

By changing a few numbers in theINX le, InDesign documents can be

opened in earlier versions

l version=1.0 encodingUTF-8 standalone=yes?>typedocument DOMVersion=5.0 readerVersion=4.0 product=5.0


18/25


By Al Benn(The following is reprinted from

The Montgomery Advertiser Sunday,February 7, 2010)

If you called Hollis Curl a journalisticdinosaur, hed probably laugh rst andthen agree because hed consider it acompliment.

He loved newspapers, but mostof all he loved journalism because ofwhat it enabled him to do to help thosewho needed it the most.

Todays newspapers are a far cryfrom his days as a shoeshine boy inthe tiny northwest Alabama town ofRed Bay, where hed sell a few copiesof the local weekly paper while waitingfor his next customer at the local hotel.

If he had trouble getting polish offhis ngers at times, imagine what itmust have been like when printers inkbegan seeping into his system.

His death last week at the age of74 may have ended his love affair withthe printed word and the people whoread his For What Its Worth columnsfor 40 years, but its unlikely to erasefond memories of a man who has leftan indelible mark on his profession.

Clarke County Democrat publisherJim Cox said it best when hearing ofHollis death after a long battle withcancer, calling him the last of a breedof community newspapermen that isfast disappearing.

It is a cliche to say They dont makeem like him anymore, but they dont,Cox said. And that is the newspaperindustrys and societys loss.

The Thursday memorial servicefor Hollis drew many mourners to theferry terminal on the Camden side ofthe Alabama River an appropriatesite.

The ferry and the Alabama Riverwould become important parts ofHollis life when he and his wife,Glenda, arrived in Wilcox County in1969 as a turbulent decade lled witha bloody war, assassinations, a raceto the moon and civil rights protestsfaded into history.

By that time, ferry service hadstopped between the predominantlyblack community of Gees Bend andthe mostly white town of Camden.

Whites in political control of Wilcox

County felt the best way to stay inpower was to keep new black votersas far away from the courthouse aspossible.

It also distanced black residentsfrom the countys only hospital. SomeGees Benders who had a car nevermade it there in time. They died duringthe hour-long drive to a bridge leadingto Camden.

Hollis never denied hissegregationist beliefs, but then hewasnt any different from most whitesin the Deep South during that period.

Change was, indeed, blowing inthe wind during the 1960s, and itswept into Hollis heart as he beganprinting the Wilcox Progressive Era ina county where progress often was inthe eye of the beholder.

His was basically a one-manoperation. He took care of just abouteverything writing, editing andphotographing everything in sight.Glenda was by his side every day ofthe week when she wasnt overseeinghousehold and motherly obligations.

They tried to nd time to get awayfor a few days whenever possibleand one of their joys was attendingAlabama Press Association eventsas well as journalism conferencesaround the country.

Awards quickly began to ll everyinch of walls inside the ProgressiveEra. He won Troy Universitys covetedHector Award four times and becamethe rst weekly newspaper editor inthe country to receive an Ethics inJournalism Award from Sigma DeltaChi, the Society of ProfessionalJournalists. It was presented tohim at the National Press Club inWashington.

Restoration of ferry service fouryears ago came about primarilybecause of Hollis persistence. It tookyears of editorializing, gentle arm-twisting of those in high places andwhatever else he could do to bring itabout. The best part? He lived longenough to see it happen.

Hollis efforts werent overlooked byblack residents, including some whoonce looked at him with disdain.

I believe time changes all of us,said Wilcox County Circuit ClerkRalph Ervin, a black leader whoattended the memorial service. A lot

of segregationist views were basedblindly on the times.

The service was held withoutcomments from anyone, just a slow,quiet passing of friends who stoppedat the casket and took one nal lookat a man they admired.

Slides of Hollis and relatives wereshown on a large screen along witha musical backdrop that includedHome by Michael Buble andYesterday by Ray Charles.

Hollis editorials were often hard-hitting examinations of importantcounty issues, but he was also a bitof a curmudgeon who liked to spicethem up with his own special brand oflevity.

That humor never left him, even ashe knew his days were numbered andhe wouldnt allow maudlin thoughts tocloud good conversation.

Cox recalled the day he and severalother publishers drove to Camden tohave lunch with Hollis when he wasstill able to get around.

He looked around the table andsaid he wondered why we had allcome to see him, said Cox, whoadded: Then he exclaimed: Damnpallbearer candidates.

Mark Curl, a member of the WilcoxCounty Commission, said discussionson how his father should be laid to restbrought a couple of suggestions andlaughter. He once told me he shouldbe cremated with his ashes spread innext weeks ink in the paper or put intoshotgun shells and for us to go duckhunting, he said.

In the end, Mark drove the hearseonto the Gees Bend Ferry and, as itdrifted slowly across the AlabamaRiver Thursday morning, rememberedhis dad with love in his heart and tearsin his eyes. Then, it was on to the ferryterminal for the memorial service.Hollis name is on a plaque inside theentrance, but it should be stretchedacross the top of the building.

Lets hope that oversight iscorrected soon. No one deserves itmore.

Alvin Benn writes about people and places in central and south

Alabama.If you have suggestions for a story,

contact him at 875-3249 or e-mail him at [email protected].

ColumnsCurl remembered for passion for journalism, Wilcox County


19/25


How to use theInternet wiselyBy Jim Pumarlo

A small-town editor lamented anapproaching press conference by astatewide candidate. The issues tobe addressed were at the forefront ofher community, but unfortunately herreaders would receive the word rstfrom the nearby daily.

Many community newspapers likely

face similar circumstances, yet thepredicament need not be so dauntingif newspapers utilize their Websites. The Web places communitynewspapers on a level playing eldwith their larger counterparts and thebroadcast media. The Web should beat the forefront of all newsrooms ineveryday operations and especiallyso during the election season.

The Web affords dailies andnondailies alike an avenue to expandcoverage. At the front end, its the rststop for breaking news. On the otherhand, the Web affords unlimited spacefor in-depth coverage.Here is one checklist for utilizing theWeb to complement and supplementcoverage. Newsrooms shouldtake time to brainstorm additionalopportunities for embracing the Webin all aspects of election coverage.

Expand the coverage. Postcandidate position papers, completepress releases and other materialthat editors deem newsworthy butare unable to accommodate in theprint edition. List appropriate links tocandidate Web sites. Make certainhowever, that unlimited space doesnot translate into a free-for-all forcandidates and their public relationsmachines. Releases and positionpapers must be scrutinized for newsvalue. Candidates who attempt toportray advertorial as news should bedirected to the advertising department.

Think beyond words. Dont limitthe expanded coverage to words.Focus on video and audio as well;the opportunities are many. Presentslide shows of campaign events.Bring a camera to a press conferenceand present immediate coverage,

promoting a more detailed story in theprint edition. Post full-length candidateinterviews for those readers who wantto hear candidates think on their feetand respond to questions in theiractual words. Live video streamingfrom iPhones or other handheldsvia ustream.tv or qik.com are alsoavailable.

Letters to the editor.Newspapers generally experience anoverabundance of letters to the editorand other commentary during electionseason. One option is to reservespace in the newspaper for the moresubstantive letters that addressissues.

The strictly endorsement letters those that express general support forcandidates but dont really focus onissues can be posted on the Web.Create a letters section on the Web foreasy reference.

Compare and contrast candidateendorsements. Many organizationsand newspapers weigh in on whichindividuals they believe will bestrepresent various constituencies.Package these endorsements in onesection so readers can evaluate thearguments and then respond withtheir own comments.

Provide links to other Web sitesand blogs. Many individuals andorganizations offer their perspectiveson candidates and issues. Candidatesalso might forward links to Websites that promote their campaigns.Establish criteria for publicizingthese links. No. 1, Web sites shouldbe veri ed as credible sources ofinformation. No. 2, editors must siftthrough the maze of blogs to see whichones are pertinent and worthwhile tothe election dialogue

Enlist a citizens panel. Manynewspapers, no matter the sizeof their newsrooms, are strappedfor resources to present thoroughcampaign coverage. Select a citizenspanel representing a cross-sectionof your communitys demographics

and have them weigh in at variousstages of the campaigns. Who do theysupport, and why? Are their opinionsswayed by a particular event or pressconference at a critical juncture of thecampaign, and why? What do theyidentify as candidate strengths and

weaknesses? Their observations andreactions throughout the campaign and on election night can be postedon the Web immediately with minimalor no editing.

Breaking news. Distribute e-mailblasts for important breaking news.

Campaigns from beginning toend. Editors would like to believe thatall readers are attentive to the blow-by-blow developments in campaigns.The reality is that people are busyand stories get missed. The Webpresents an opportunity to chroniclecampaigns from candidate pro les todebates to Q&As on issues centralto the race. Readers have a one-stop shop to a comprehensive andchronological overview of campaigns.Most important, however, is that thecoverage is organized and easy tonavigate.

Election-night coverage. Postrunning vote totals on election night,especially for those local races wherethe information might not be readilyavailable in other media outlets.

A couple of nal points to consideras newsrooms weave the Web intotheir everyday election coverage.

No. 1, personal blogs for editorsand political reporters should bemandatory. The observations andinsights can be valuable elements inelection dialogue.

No. 2, explain what coverage willbe found in the newspaper and whatwill be posted on the Web. Readersand candidates can become confusedif coverage is fragmented anddisjointed.

Newspapers should continuallycross-promote their tandem coveragebetween the print edition and theWeb. The best coverage in eithervenue will be missed if readers are notkept abreast of the hows and whys ofcoverage.

Jim Pumarlo writes, speaks and provides training on Community

Newsroom Success Strategies. He is author of Votes and Quotes: A Guide

to Outstanding Election Coverage and Bad News and Good Judgment:

A Guide to Reporting on Sensitive Issues in a Small-Town Newspaper.

He can be contacted at www.pumarlo.com.

ColumnsWeb sites an integral part of election coverage


20/25


Columns

Recently, I ran across two interestingads in the same paper. Each ad madeuse of one of the most effective tactics inthe marketing toolbox a free offer. The

rst ad was for an insurance company,and promised a free key ring with built-in ashlight to anyone who called for anestimate on car insurance. The second adoffered a free Mini Cooper automobile withthe purchase of a high-end condo.

Obviously, there is a huge difference in signi cance and cost between a newcar and a key ring. However, even thoughthese offers are worlds apart, they havea lot going for them. Heres what we canlearn from these two examples:

1. Make it relevant. The insurance adtargeted an older audience, a fact whichwas clearly stated in the ad. The real estate ad was aimed at hip,young professionals the audience that also ts the pro le of Minibuyers. That was no coincidence.

An offer has to be relevant to the target audience. The condobuyers would not pay attention to a key ring offer. And a Mini wouldhave zero importance to senior readers.

Even though the ashlight feature may seem cumbersome andunnecessary to some readers, that feature makes the key ringparticularly desirable for seniors. Many older people have dif culty

nding keyholes at night.The condo developer probably considered a variety of models,

once he or she decided to give cars away.But I have a hunch that the choice was quickly narrowed by the

fact that the Minis coolness factor would make a statement aboutthe personality of the development. If youre cool or if you want tobe cool this is the place for you. Its clearly an offer that appealsto their Yuppie audience.

2. Be a matchmaker. The value of the giveaway should matchthe action you want readers to take. A freebie that accompaniesa purchase should be more expensive than a gift that rewards aninquiry. And of course, the bigger the purchase, the bigger thegiveaway.

A car is an eye-popping gift big enough to stop readers in theirtracks. A key ring is small. But thats okay, because each offer is agood match.

3. Keep it fresh. I f an advertiser offers freebies all the time, thetactic will eventually lose its appeal. To produce results, a free offer

should seem special and create a sense of urgency. (Respondnow, before we run out of these handy widgets.)Each offer should seem new and different, not the same old

thing. For years, a business magazine to which I subscribe madethe same renewal offer a free pen. Ho hum. They nally changedtheir tune, and their most recent subscription notice offeredadditional issues at no extra cost. That offer is much better.

Although free offers have been around for years, they continue tomotivate consumers to take action. The secret is to think it through

and make the right offer to the right audience.

(c) Copyright 2010 by John Foust. All rights reserved.

E-mail John Foust for information about his training videos for ad departments: [email protected]

The power of a freebie

AD-LIBSby J h F st

Lets start this monthby looking at a small storywith a big problem (somedetails have been changedto protect the guilty):

Headline: Womandies in early morningshooting

Wherever County sheriffs deputies areinvestigating the shooting of a woman earlySunday. She was shot in the upper body at 1234Rounder Drive, sheriffs of cials said. She was withfour other women involved in an attempted robbery,the of cials said.

Anyone with information can call Crime Stoppersat 765-4321.

The headline says the woman died, but nothing inthe story says she did. In fact, she lived, promptinga later correction. (Theres also the ambiguity ofwhether she was part of the robbery or somehow

just with the other women.)I call these missing in plain sight cases. Theres

just enough information to make you think its allthere, but a vital piece is missing. In this case,shooting sounds vaguely complete, but of coursea person shot can be dead or injured.

Readers needed the womans condition, and toget that the reporter probably needed her name, too.So one query from an editor could have producedtwo solid pieces of information and prevented thatvery wrong headline.

And if the information isnt available, say so. Ifits likely to be an obvious question for readers, youwont hurt your credibility by saying you at leasttried.

There was a time when such things seemedrelatively rare I could go weeks between addingto my collection. Now, my le seems to be regularlygetting new entries.

There was the recent full-color, spread in anewspapers local lifestyle magazine touting how acounty tennis center would be the center of a majornational tournament. But if the readers wantedto go, they might have had to turn to Google nowhere in the story did it say where that tenniscenter was.

One story was full of details about a bankrobbery, down to the street and block except it left

Beware ofinformationmissing inplain sight

CommonSenSe

JournALISmby D g Fish

See SENSE , Page 21


21/25


readers to guess the name of the bank. Another reported how a car had

run off a local interstate highwayinterchange and hit a tree, killing thedriver. But what interchange, exactly?

In each case, it seemed on the

surface there was enough information,but when you dug deeper, there was ahole.

In the case of the tennis center story,its a dangerous hole, too. Start sendingyour readers to something like Googleto get the necessary information andthey might just nd they can get whatthey need without you.

Its not enough to have just the who,what, when, where, why and how; youhave to make sure you have enoughof each. But doing so is tough workand requires discipline and the time toenforce it.

You may have seen those brain-teasing examples where parts of wordsare left out or the letters scrambled,but we can still read and understandthe text as long as the rst and lastletters are there. The brain is powerfulin its ability to ll in the blanks, to pressforward. It is born of the need to makequick, often life-preserving decisionswith incomplete information, but it is a

trait that does not always serve us wellwhen writing or editing.So while Id like to think my le

is swelling for a reason other thandecimated, harried copy desks (andnewsrooms overall), I fear thats why itis.

Aside from accuracy and credibility,theres another reason to pay attention.You might actually nd a better story.

My friend Benjy Hamm, editorialdirector of Landmark CommunityNewspapers, uses for instructiona Florida newspaper article abouthow funding cuts were endangering

summer classes at that states collegesand universities. It meanders for about20 inches through the budget woesand possibility of class cuts. But a fewparagraphs from the end pops out asentence that Florida makes studentstake nine summer credits.

A state that requires students to takesummer courses to graduate is thinkingof doing away with many of those

courses? Isnt that something readerswould be talking about tomorrow? Iftrue and with more information aboutthat you have a heck of a story.

And if it isnt true, questioning itcould save an embarrassing gaffe.

Doug Fisher, a former AP news editor, teaches journalism at the

University of South Carolina and can be reached at d [email protected] or 803-

777-3315.Past issues of Common Sense

Journalism can be found at http://www. jour.sc.edu/news/csj/index.html.

Sensefrom Page 20

Columns

A publishersquestionsBy Ed Henninger

A new publishers got a lot to think about: cash ow,staf ng, pro t and loss, circulation, paper costs, internetpresenceand thats just for starters.

Eventually, hes going to want to focus on the papersdesignbecause he understands that the visual impact ofhis newspaper is critical to its success with both readers andadvertisers.

What does he need to know? What are the questions heneeds to ask so he can take a leadership role in the designprocess? Its not important that he know all the details, oreven that he remember them if hes told. What is important isthat his managersespecially in the newsroomknow theanswers and be ready to respond when asked.

If newsroom leaders cant offer ready responses to any ofthe following questions, its a sign that someone isnt givingthe newspapers design the attention it requires.

These 25 questions (some with follow-up questions)will help any publisher know more about the design of hispaperand how well that design is being shepherded by hisnewsroom.

25 questions a publisher should ask about the design ofthe newspaper:

What is the size of our text type? What is the spacing between lines of text?

What is our text font? Why that one? What is our display type face? Why that one? What are the rules for the use of non-standard

typefaces? Why do we use (or not use) page labels? Do we have a consistent style for labels and other

standing elements?

A new publisher shouldhave a batch of questions

about the design of hisnewspaper.

See QUESTION , Page 22


22/25


How wide are our gutters? Why that width? What unit of measure do we use:

picas or inches (or other)? What are our rules on color use? Do we have a signature color?

What is it? Why do we have certain pages

positioned where they are? What pagination software are we

using? When was the last time we

upgraded our software? When was the last time we

redesigned?

Why did we do it then? How is it holding up?

Do we have a design style guide? When was it written? Who wrote it? Who is in charge of updating it? When was the last time it was

updated? Whose responsibility is it to keep

the design on track? When did we last do a focus

group looking at the design?

If the newsroom can answer thesequestions without hesitation, thenew publisher can rest assured thatsomeone is looking out for the well-being of the design.

FREE DESIGN EVALUATION: Ed Henninger offers design evaluations

at no charge and with no obligationto readers of this column. For more information, check the FREEBIE

page on Eds web site: www.henningerconsulting.com

ED HENNINGER is an independent newspaper consultant

and the Director of Henninger Consulting. Offering comprehensive

newspaper design services including redesigns, workshops, staff training

and evaluations. E-mail: edh@ henningerconsulting.com. On the

web: www. henningerconsulting.com.Phone: 803-327-3322.

Questionfrom Page 21

Columns

Help WantedMultimedia Manager/ Classi ed

Advertiser Media Group is the RiverRegions number one source for newsand information. We offer a variety ofprint and internet product to meet ourcustomers needs. We are looking fortalented individuals who want to growwith the organization and be a partof our success story. We have thefollowing opportunities available:

MULTIMEDIA MANAGER/ CLASSIFIED

The Multimedia Manager/Classi edresponsible for developing andexecuting strategies and tactics to driverevenue and active account growthacross classi ed verticals includingautomotive and real estate for ourdaily and weekly newspaper, digitaland magazine products. As an integral

member of the organizations leadershipteam, this person will be responsiblefor making recommendations toenhance our competitive positionin the marketplace. The selectedcandidate must also have the provenability to de ne, develop, and assist incoaching our teams to a high level ofperformance.

The ideal candidate must have a highsense of urgency, be a self-motivatedover-achiever and have a strong desireto succeed.

This is an outstanding careeropportunity for candidates to developa rewarding career working withone of the River Regions most highpro le brands The MontgomeryAdvertiser, while working for one of thenations leading news and informationcompaniesGannett.

Responsibilities Lead a team that is responsible

for automotive and real estate salesand service functions across print anddigital platforms including Cars.com,Home nder.com and Apartments.com.

Develop staff skills on prospectingnew advertisers, closing sales,communication, negotiation, andselling multi-media product packages.

Manage and measure expectedresults through use of standards ofperformance and by coaching teammembers to success through ongoingfeedback, training and conductingannual performance appraisals.

Achieve revenue and activeaccount goals through developmentand implementation of productsfocused on meeting customer needs.

Grow revenue for the Advertisershigh pro le products by developingbusiness from existing and newcustomers.

Assess and monitor marketconditions and sales performance.Create, adapt, implement andcommunicate strategic and tacticalplans to achieve desired results and

initiatives. Negotiate contracts and establish

relationships with key current andprospective clients.

Serve as a member of thedepartmental operational planningteam responsible for executingstrategies and budgets.

Requirements Minimum three years sales and

managerial experience. Newspaper,magazine or digital sales and salesmanagement a plus.

Bachelors degree or combinationof education and experience.

Ability to effectively manageand develop others and direct theoperations of the department.

Ability to meet/exceed sales/ revenue goals and to identify newopportunities and create sales solution

Knowledge of digital productapplications as they relate to advertisingopportunities. Excellent understandingof sales compensation and standardsof performance programs.

Excellent verbal communicationsskills. Must be articulate and persuasive.

Highly organized and disciplinedself-starter able to work independentlyand as part of a team.

Must have the drive to exceedexpectations and outperform peers.

PC and Internet pro ciency,including MS Of ce and Outlook

See HELP , Page 22


23/25


Help Wanted from Page 22with advanced skills with Excel andPowerPoint.

Current driver license, clean drivingrecord (no more than three movingviolations within three years), reliabletransportation and proof of insurance.

Your Opportunity Competitive base compensation

with bonus potential. Comprehensive bene ts plan that

promotes health and wellness, buildscurrent and future nancial security,enhances work-life balance and allowsfor personal choice and exibility foremployees and their dependents.

The Advertiser Company offersan excellent compensation packageincluding health, dental, vision and401(k) plan. If you are interested andmeet our requirements, please email,mail or fax your resume along with acover letter, and salary history to:

The Advertiser Company HumanResources Department

425 Molton StreetMontgomery, AL 36104Fax: 334-261-1587Email:[email protected]/M/F/D/VAll positions are listed on

CareerBuilder.com and you may alsoapply online there.

03/23/10

Multimedia Manager/RetailAdvertiser Media Group is the River

Regions number one source for newsand information. Our family of newsproducts includes the MontgomeryAdvertiser, montgomeryadvertiser.com, Prattville Progress, WednesdayProgress, Millbrook Progress,Wetumpka Progress, Bulletin Board,and the Maxwell Gunter Dispatch. Weare looking for talented individuals whowant to grow with the organization andbe a part of our success story. We havethe following opportunities available:

Multimedia Manager/Retail

The Multimedia Manager/Retailis responsible for developing andexecuting strategies and tactics todrive revenue and active accountgrowth across retail verticals includingdaily and weekly newspaper, digitaland magazine products. As an integral

member of the organizations leadershipteam, this person will be responsiblefor making recommendations toenhance our competitive positionin the marketplace. The selectedcandidate must also have the provenability to de ne, develop, and assist incoaching our teams to a high level ofperformance.

The ideal candidate must havea high sense of urgency, be a self-motivated over-achiever and have astrong desire to succeed.

This is an outstanding careeropportunity for candidates to developa rewarding career working withone of the River Regions most highpro le brands The MontgomeryAdvertiser, while working for one of thenations leading news and informationcompaniesGannett.

Responsibilities Lead a team that is responsible

for retail sales and service functionsacross print and digital platforms.

Develop staff skills on prospectingnew advertisers, closing sales,communication, negotiation, andselling multi-media product packages.

Manage and measure expectedresults through use of standards ofperformance and by coaching teammembers to success through ongoingfeedback, training and conductingannual performance appraisals.

Achieve revenue and activeaccount goals through developmentand implementation of productsfocused on meeting customer needs.

Grow revenue for the Advertisershigh pro le products by developingbusiness from existing and newcustomers.

Assess and monitor marketconditions and sales performance.Create, adapt, implement andcommunicate strategic and tacticalplans to achieve desired results andinitiatives.

Negotiate contracts and establishrelationships with key current andprospective clients.

Serve as a member of thedepartmental operational planningteam responsible for executingstrategies and budgets.

Requirements Minimum three years sales and

managerial experience. Newspaper,magazine or digital sales and salesmanagement a plus.

Bachelors degree or combinationof education and experience.

Ability to effectively manageand develop others and direct theoperations of the department.

Ability to meet/exceed sales/ revenue goals and to identify newopportunities and create sales solution

Knowledge of digital productapplications as they relate to advertisingopportunities. Excellent understandingof sales compensation and standardsof performance programs.

Excellent verbal communicationsskills. Must be articulate andpersuasive.

Highly organized and disciplinedself-starter able to work independentlyand as part of a team.

Must have the drive to exceedexpectations and outperform peers.

PC and Internet pro ciency,including MS Of ce and Outlookincluding advanced skills with Exceland PowerPoint.

Current driver license, clean drivingrecord (no more than three movingviolations within three years), reliabletransportation and proof of insurance.

Your Opportunity Competitive base compensation

with bonus potential. Comprehensive bene ts plan that

promotes health and wellness, buildscurrent and future nancial security,enhances work-life balance and allowsfor personal choice and exibility foremployees and their dependents.

The Advertiser Company offersan excellent compensation packageincluding health, dental, vision and401(k) plan. If you are interested andmeet our requirements, please email,mail or fax your resume along with acover letter, and salary history to:

The Advertiser Company HumanResources Department

425 Molton StreetMontgomery, AL 36104Fax: 334-261-1587Email:[email protected]/M/F/D/V. All positions are listed

on CareerBuilder.com and you mayalso apply online there.

03/23/10

See HELP , Page 25


24/25


Selling AgainstYour CompetitionFriday, April 232:00-3:00 p.m. EST | 1:00-2:00 p.m. CST

Registration deadline: Tuesday, April 20(Registrations submitted after this date are subject to a $10 late fee.)



The presenter... In this webinar...

Based on in his soon-to-be-released book,Competitive Selling ,newspaper industry sales trainer Landy Chase will show youthe proper approach to positioning yourself as the best possiblemedia option and how to consistently win media buyingdecisions over radio, television, and other media competitors. Inthis content-rich webinar, you will learn: The keys to value differentiate the value of newspaper media

buys How to sell against radio, TV, and other major media

competitors How to persuasively communicate your ability to deliver results Why competitive media sales are rarely lost on price and

what really drives most media buying decisions

How to identify, and gain access to, the decision maker in themedia buying decision

How to win media sales consistently as the higher-priced option



Landy Chase is the author of VALUE-BASED SELLINGfor ADVERTISING SOLUTIONS, the rst skills-based salestraining system developed exclusively for newspapers.He specializes in helping newspaper organizations attainad revenue results through highly effective learning re-sources. He has worked with proper ties of all sizes aroundthe United States including The Houston Chronicle, The

Denver Post/Rocky Mountain News, The San Antonio Express-News, TheSan Francisco Examiner and many others. He also works regularly with statepress associations around the country and has been a repeat featured pre-senter for the Newspaper Association of America.

His work is based on personal eld experience and includes repeat nationalPresidents Club awards as a sales professional, formal experience as a

National Sales Trainer, and management experience directing the efforts of sales forces in both small business and major-account sales teams. His rstbook,Competitive Selling , will be published by McGraw-Hill in June 2010.

He holds the CSP designation from the National Speakers Association, thehighest earned level of excellence in the industry and a distinction represent-ing the top seven percent of all members of the speaking profession.



25/25

Help Wanted from Page 23Immediate Opening:

Versatile Reporter.The Gadsden Times has animmediate opening for a versatilereporter to enhance our print andonline products. Ideal candidatewill be a self starter capable ofdeveloping stories from a beat orfrom an assignment and be equallycomfortable with hard news orfeatures. Familiarity with video storytelling will be a plus. Knowledge ofAP Style is very important. Collegedegree or equivalent experience isrequired. Please send resume andclips to Ron Reaves [email protected]. No phone callsplease.

03/22/10

General AssignmentReporter, Magee Courier,Magee, MS

The Magee Courier/SimpsonCounty News is seeking the rightcandidate to join our staff as ageneral assignment reporter.Experience is not required howevercandidate should have schooltraining in journalism. Candidatemust have excellent writing skillsand computer knowledge. Thisposition will include covering cityand county government, sports,law enforcement as well as othernews assignments. Compensation$20,000 to $22,000 based onexperience. We offer paid vacation,holidays, insurance bene tsand 401K. For more informationplease send resume to [email protected].

03/17/10

PublisherMarion County Newspapers,

Inc. seeks a dynamic publisherwith a proven track record in printand internet advertising sales. Aspublisher, you will be responsiblefor all aspects of the operation.The ideal candidate will havesound news judgment as well as

experience in managing a smallstaff. Community involvement,leadership and sales skills are amust.

Our two weekly newspapersand shopper serve the beautifulSequatchie Valley, approximatelyone half hour west of Chattanooga,TN. We offer a competitive salary/ incentive plan; along with a bene tpackage including paid vacationand sick leave; group healthinsurance; and a company matchIRA program. To apply, pleaseEMAIL a resume, cover letter and

earnings expectations using MCPUBLISHER as the subject line [email protected] EOE.

03/16/10

EditorThe Cullman Times, an

11,000-circulation daily in northcentral Alabama, is seeking aneditor to take us to the next level.This is the top position in oureight-person newsroom, withresponsibility over our print edition

and Web site. We need someonewho can wear a lot of different hats Quark page designer, editorialwriter, copy editor, project planner,writing coach and occasionalreporter all while maintaining higheditorial standards and inspiring ourteam of young, talented journalists.Planning and execution are critical,as is an understanding of theimportance of local news content ina community newspaper. Our neweditor also needs to have the skillsto give our readers a great Webexperience, preferably includingaudio and video content. We offercompetitive pay, a good bene

alapressa for april 2010

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