The Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance recently developed a notification system that alerts subscribers in real time when certain information is posted to their website.

Currently, the information includes when a selected candidate or political committee files a campaign finance report, a committee such as a ballot question committee or SuperPAC files a report, a new candidate or committee organizes with OCPF, and when OCPF’s legal department posts a document resolving an issue with a candidate or committee. The agency plans to broaden the service to include educational materials, memoranda, and general press releases.

Users can subscribe to the system by going to the E-Notify icon on the front page of www.ocpf.us or by clicking here to register for OCPF’s e-notify system. Once registered, you will be able to subscribe to the notifications of your choice.

For additional information, contact OCPF at ocpf@mass.gov or by telephone at (617) 979-8300.

For information concerning this release, contact OCPF Director of Communications and Public Education Jason Tait at jason.tait@mass.gov

Looking to expand your business, strengthen your brand, and connect directly with decision-makers in the newspaper industry? Join us as a sponsor or exhibitor at the 2026 New England Newspaper Convention & Trade Show, taking place March 13–14 in a new location at The Venue at Portwalk Place in Portsmouth, NH.

As a Convention partner, you’ll gain direct access to publishers, editors, and senior leaders from daily, weekly, specialty, and digital news organizations across Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, and Vermont. Sponsorship offers meaningful opportunities to engage with current and prospective clients during two days of live programming, networking, and industry celebrations.

Sponsor one of our three award events and celebrate excellence in New England journalism. The New England Newspaper Hall of Fame Induction Dinner will take place on Friday, March 13, honoring individuals whose careers have made a lasting impact on journalism in the region. The Yankee Quill Awards Luncheon, held on Saturday, March 14, will recognize distinguished service to journalism, civic life, and community leadership. The Better Newspaper Competition Awards Banquet on the evening of Saturday, March 14, recognizing outstanding work from newsrooms across the region, caps off the convention, and is our largest gathering of the year.

We welcome creative partnership ideas and are happy to work with you on custom sponsorship packages.

Explore Sponsorship Options

Contact:

Tara Cleary at t.cleary@nenpa.com or (617) 520-4585 to reserve your sponsorship and answer any questions.

Schedule a meeting to discuss our sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities.

Planning to attend the 2026 New England Newspaper Convention in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, March 13–14? Now is the time to book your hotel accommodations. The official convention hotel room block is open, and rooms are currently available.

Attendees can reserve rooms at the Hampton Inn & Suites Portsmouth Downtown through the convention booking link at discounted rates: rooms with two queen beds are available for $169 per night, and king rooms are available for $209 per night, plus standard hotel taxes and fees. All room rates include a hot breakfast each day. Participants are encouraged to book early to secure their preferred room type.

NENPA Room Block March 13-14, 2026

The University of South Carolina is accepting applications from print, broadcast and internet journalists for its Media Law School program, which provides the opportunity to develop a basic understanding of the law and legal system so that participants can report accurately on the many important legal issues in the news. 

The program will be held March 26-27, 2026, on the University of South Carolina campus in Columbia, S.C. Applications for the program are due Feb. 13. 

There is no registration fee for the program, and fellows receive a travel allowance of up to $500, three nights hotel lodging and selected meals during the conference. The program is funded by the American Board of Trial Advocates and the American Board of Trial Advocates Foundation. 

Find out more and apply here.

For more information, contact Eric Robinson at medialawschool@sc.edu.

Planning to attend the 2026 New England Newspaper Convention in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, March 13–14? Now is the time to book your hotel accommodations. The official convention hotel room block is open, and rooms are currently available.

Attendees can reserve rooms at the Hampton Inn & Suites Portsmouth Downtown through the convention booking link at discounted rates: rooms with two queen beds are available for $169 per night, and king rooms are available for $209 per night, plus standard hotel taxes and fees. All room rates include a hot breakfast each day. Participants are encouraged to book early to secure their preferred room type.

NENPA Room Block March 13-14, 2026

Interested in sponsoring the event? Contact Tara Cleary at t.cleary@nenpa.com to learn more about our sponsorship packages.

Progam Highlights

This year’s convention will feature a forward-looking, practical program focused on the ideas and skills newsrooms need to thrive in a changing media landscape. Anticipated programming includes a screening of News Without a Newsroom, an unprecedented exploration into journalism’s uncertain future in the digital age. Examining the collapse of traditional media, the rise of misinformation, and the fight to preserve truth, trust, and accountability in an era of disruption. There will also be sessions focused on marketing and advertising, audience engagement, fundraising and philanthropy, nonprofit newsroom sustainability, FOIA and media law, newsroom collaboration, creator-driven journalism, and video storytelling—from getting comfortable on camera to making short-form video approachable and effective.

The program will also include a full-day Community Insight Reporting Track, focused on community-centered reporting and newsroom leadership, with topics such as language and representation in coverage, reporting across difference, accountability journalism, immigration and public policy, mental wellness in media, and building inclusive newsroom cultures.

📣 Convention registration opens next week, with full program details to follow.

Applications are open for the Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference, June 21-26, 2026, in Washington, D.C. One student from each state and the District of Columbia will be selected for the skill-building, networking-growing, and all-expenses-paid trip. 

Now in its 25th year, the annual conference, established to honor Al Neuharth, founder of Freedom Forum and USA TODAY, is designed to inspire and encourage high school juniors to pursue careers in journalism, multimedia storytelling, and the media industry.

Students will:

• Go behind the scenes in some of D.C.’s top newsrooms
• Hear from leading journalists about their work, learn from Free Spirit alumni, and be inspired by honorees at Freedom Forum’s Free Expression Awards
• Receive a $1,000 college scholarship
• Tour the sites of the nation’s capital
• Make connections with students from around the country who are passionate about journalism and multimedia storytelling
• Join the Free Spirit Scholar community, which includes a network of over 1,700 alumni who have gone on to work for organizations including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, ESPN, network-affiliated TV stations, the “This American Life” podcast, entrepreneurial media outlets like The Juggernaut, and more.

The application deadline is March 15, 2026.

APPLY HERE

As we close out the year, the staff and Board of Directors of the New England Newspaper & Press Association extend our warmest wishes to you and your families for a joyful holiday season and a peaceful, healthy, and hopeful New Year.

This has been another year marked by both challenge and resilience for journalism and the media. At a time when the work of local news is too often questioned, criticized, or under fire, we are continually inspired by the journalists, editors, publishers, photographers, designers, students, and newsroom professionals across New England who show up every day with integrity, courage, and a deep commitment to public service. Your work matters. Your voices matter. And your role in strengthening informed, connected communities has never been more essential.

Even in uncertain times, we remain optimistic about the future of local journalism—because of you. The creativity, collaboration, and dedication we see across our region give us reason for hope, and we are proud to stand with you as an advocate, partner, and supporter of your work.

Please note that the NENPA office will be closed on December 25 and 26, as well as January 1. Our weekly eBulletin will take a brief holiday break and will return on Friday, January 9, with industry news, resources, training opportunities, and updates from across the region.

We are deeply grateful for your continued engagement, support, and trust. It is truly a privilege to represent and serve the daily, weekly, specialty, and online news organizations that make up New England’s vibrant local news ecosystem.

We wish you time to rest, reflect, and recharge during the holiday season, and we look forward to working alongside you in the year ahead—continuing to support strong, independent journalism and to gather, learn, and celebrate together in the months to come.

Warmest regards,

The NENPA Team

Planning to attend the 2026 New England Newspaper Convention in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, March 13–14? Now is the time to book your hotel accommodations, as the official convention hotel room block is open and rooms are currently available.

Attendees can reserve rooms at the Hampton Inn & Suites Portsmouth Downtown, in Portsmouth, NH, through the convention’s booking link below at the following discounted rates: rooms with two queen beds are available for $169 per night, and king rooms are available for $209 per night, plus standard hotel taxes and fees. All room rates include a hot breakfast each day. Participants are encouraged to book early to secure their preferred room type.

NENPA Room Block March 13-14, 2026

The 2026 convention will bring together journalists, editors, publishers, educators, and newsroom leaders from across New England for two days of learning, connection, and celebration in historic downtown Portsmouth. This year’s theme, “Honoring the Past. Celebrating the Present. Inspiring the Future.” reflects both the legacy of New England journalism and the innovation shaping its future.

The convention will once again feature the Better Newspaper Competition Awards Banquet on the evening of Saturday, March 14, recognizing outstanding work from newsrooms across the region. This year’s competition saw one of the strongest participation levels in recent years, highlighting the continued strength and creativity of local journalism.

Two of New England’s most respected lifetime journalism honors will also be presented during the convention. The New England Newspaper Hall of Fame Induction Dinner will take place on Friday, March 13, honoring individuals whose careers have made a lasting impact on journalism in the region. The Yankee Quill Awards Luncheon, held on Saturday, March 14, will recognize distinguished service to journalism, civic life, and community leadership.

Additional details, including convention registration, programming, speakers, and networking events, will be released soon. In the meantime, attendees are encouraged to secure hotel reservations now and mark their calendars for a memorable gathering of New England’s journalism community.

The Associated Press introduced AP Verify this week, a verification dashboard combining AI-powered features with established digital verification tools to transform the way newsrooms authenticate online photos, videos, and other digital content.

The unified web-based interface features:

• AI-driven capabilities such as geolocation, object and landmark detection, and transcription
• An AI chatbot assistant
• Generative AI text detection
• Core verification tools including reverse image search, frame-by-frame video analysis and social listening
• Ability to store work and share across teams

AP Verify was developed by AP journalists to meet growing demands for digital verification in newsgathering. AP Verify is used daily across AP’s global news operations, supporting teams covering breaking news, misinformation and investigative reporting.

Read more

The Boston Globe announced that Brian McGrory will rejoin the organization as editor, effective January 5, 2026.

McGrory brings a distinguished record of leadership, innovation, and journalistic excellence from his prior tenure at the Globe, along with expanded experience from academia and the nonprofit news sector. He shares a deep and lasting commitment to The Boston Globe and to the communities it serves.

Previously, McGrory spent 34 years at the Globe, beginning in 1989 as a reporter in the former South Weekly before holding a wide range of roles, including general assignment reporter, roving national reporter, White House correspondent, signature metro columnist, editor of the Metro department, and editor of the Globe from 2012 to early 2023.

While editor, McGrory led the Globe newsroom through a period of dramatic industry transformation while overseeing coverage of major regional and national stories. Under his leadership, the Globe reinvented its coverage with new beats, a renewed editorial outlook, and a stronger emphasis on digital journalism, while winning multiple Pulitzer Prizes and significantly expanding its digital subscriber base.

Since leaving the Globe, McGrory has remained deeply engaged in journalism and media leadership. As chair of the Journalism Department at Boston University and a professor of the practice, he launched the Local News Initiative, an ambitious effort designed to foster collaboration among local nonprofit and independent news organizations across New England. A central component of that effort is the BU Newsroom, which McGrory launched last year, hiring an editor in chief and producing more than 400 student-written stories, all professionally edited and published in partnership with local nonprofit and independent news organizations. McGrory plans to continue his involvement with the initiative.

Read more

The New England High School Journalism Collaborative is excited to announce that we will hold our all-expense-paid summer workshop for students interested in journalism for the 39th year.

The workshop dates are June 20-27, 2026.

The program is intended to reach out to inner-city students and others in underserved communities. Some preference is given to current juniors and seniors in high school.

Students will be housed and work out of a newsroom at Simmons University in Boston, and learn to report, write, edit for a newspaper, and produce multimedia projects for a website. They will be assigned stories, conduct interviews, and will be exposed to working on a deadline to create their own newspaper.

The New England Newspaper and Press Association will be assisting with the application process. Application guidelines are as follows:

1. Only students who attend high school in the New England states (CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT) are eligible.
2. Only students currently in high school may apply, including graduating seniors. The program is not accepting students who have already taken part in the program.
3. Students must be recommended by a teacher.
4. A letter of recommendation from the sponsoring teacher must accompany the application.
5. A transcript from the school with the student’s most recent grades must accompany the application.
6. An essay of no more than 500 words must accompany the application. The applicant can write about why they should be selected to participate in this program OR how writing has helped the applicant explore and understand a problem in their life.
7. Students will need to upload a headshot.
8. PLEASE NOTE: You will receive an email confirming the receipt of your application with a link to a Dropbox folder to upload the required documents (letter of recommendation, transcript, personal essay, and headshot).

If you have problems using the form or uploading documents, you should email students@nenpa.com.

The deadline for applications is Friday, April 3, 2026.

Students will be notified of their status by the end of April.

Don’t miss the chance to take part in this unique program established more than 39 years ago and funded by the Carole C. Remick Foundation. We are looking forward to training the next generation of journalists.

If there are additional questions or if the applicant needs special accommodations to submit information, please email Leah Lamson, NEHSJC managing director, at lamsonleah@gmail.com.

Summer Workshop Application