It’s standard procedure at many newspapers to chronicle headlines in year-end editions. The continuing social and economic impact of COVID-19 is certain to capture a lion’s share of attention in most communities. Other noteworthy events can include the passing of key individuals; the success, or maybe failure, of a civic project; milestones in sports achievements, election results, or key community benchmarks.
That begs the question: Are you ready for 2022? All newsrooms should prepare an editorial calendar and review it regularly. Yes, we are already weeks into the new year, but it’s not too late to develop a plan of action.
Many of the things you cover spanning hard news and features are the same year after year. Use the opportunity to explore new ideas and approaches for coverage. When is the last time you’ve really examined reports on local government budgets, a community’s citizen of the year or United Way kickoff, the start of another school year or high school sports season, a civic fundraiser, the months-long election season?
Think across the spectrum of your community as you prepare a calendar. Here are three areas.
Public affairs always demand attention beginning with meetings of local government bodies. Do you preview the important agenda items? Do you go beyond the votes and explain the impact of actions in real and understandable terms? Think outside meetings. Trace the process of how a recommendation reaches an elected body. Government bodies spend weeks, even months, preparing budgets before adoption. Capital improvement projects are previewed – sometimes including a tour. A school board seeks feedback on a variety of fronts before deciding whether to close and/or consolidate schools.
Also, consider stories that warrant special coverage. Has a longtime public official announced that this will be his or her last term? In that regard, look at the private sector, too. Is a company’s founder retiring, selling the firm? Are single issues dominating a government body or communitywide debate?
Sports present a staple of stories: the preview, the continuum of the regular season, the playoffs. Team performance can present challenges and opportunities. How do you keep readers interested if a team suffers through a losing season, possibly not even winning a single game? In contrast, what stories can be pursued if a team is headed for a championship season, maybe even going undefeated?
Again, brainstorm stories that may warrant special coverage. Is an athlete on the verge of achieving a scoring milestone? Might a coach notch a noteworthy victory? Is this the last season for a school in a sports conference due to league realignment? Has a team suffered a revolving door of coaches in recent years?
Civic clubs are the fabric of communities. The number of groups and the range of contributions mean editors are routinely approached with requests for coverage. The “asks” range from the Lions Club annual brat feed fund-raiser to volunteer of the year recognition to a candidate forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters. It’s impossible to produce a story and photo for each event. Communicate with organizations early and discuss the two elements of publicity: promotion and actual coverage. An even better idea is to produce guidelines that can be distributed to publicity chairs.
Some items warrant special coverage here as well. Is a club celebrating a significant anniversary? Is a local officer rising through the ranks in an affiliated state or national organization? Does a fund-raiser or other project have extra significance for a community?
Planning a calendar can be overwhelming. These are but three areas in your entire menu of news. So take a slow approach. Explore and outline your editorial calendar for the everyday regimen of news.
Then identify one new area where you’d like to bolster coverage. Announce it in a column, and set up a process for soliciting community feedback. Develop a plan of action and present it to readers.
Every newsroom is stretched for time and resources as you strive to produce stories that people like to read and stories that people should read. The pandemic continues to demand regular attention, making your tasks even more challenging. Any additional time you give to planning your calendar is a win-win-win scenario for your newspaper, your readers, and your community.
Shaw Israel Izikson was named as the editor of The Country Journal in late November.
Freedom Forum Perspective: Bill of Rights Day Deserves Greeting Cards Too
More and more occasions today seem to call for cards, even setting aside the more transparently money-motivated “national days” for everything from dice to doughnuts (which actually get two days).
But there’s one holiday — now hear me out — I wouldn’t mind being more commercialized.
Bill of Rights Day on Dec. 15 commemorates the day in 1791 the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution became law.
THE BILL OF RIGHTS’ BEGINNING
When we think of Bill of Rights Day, if we do at all, we might picture weathered scrolls and men in curly powdered wigs. Those aren’t inaccurate images — just incomplete.
The founders wanted to prevent government abuse of its powers, but some saw naming citizens’ rights explicitly as too limiting, while others believed the best way to protect the people was to enshrine a bill of rights within the original Constitution. Still, others preferred a separate list of rights.
George Mason, author of Virginia’s Declaration of Rights, even refused to sign the Constitution — as did several states — in part because it lacked a bill of rights. Others signed with the promise one would be added by amendment.
Eventually, with Virginia’s ratification, the 10 amendments ultimately making up the Bill of Rights were approved by the three-fourths of states required to enact it.
THE RIGHTS THAT EMPOWER US
Today, the freedoms enshrined in the Bill of Rights enable us to work toward the “more perfect union” to which our founders aspired.
Our First Amendment freedoms have particularly protected the rights of activists to speak out and protest for suffrage, for civil rights, and for social changes both small and significant. The guarantee of these freedoms empowers us to participate in democracy. To have a say.
More fundamentally, our freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition enable us to be who we are, to believe what we believe, without fear of government punishment.
We may not think about these freedoms much because they are even more integral than doughnuts or dice to living as we choose each day. But they’re surely worth the parchment they’re inked on — and a supply of cardstock for greeting cards.
And there’s another reason Bill of Rights Day is a prime candidate for the greeting card industry.
THESE RIGHTS ARE YOURS, MINE AND OURS
If we think about the Bill of Rights long enough to get past the calligraphy and powdered wigs, we may focus on the rights it secures in personal, individual terms: I get to pray as I wish. It’s my right to speak. These rights protect me.
They do.
But these rights are only guaranteed for ourselves if they’re also ensured for everyone. They aren’t just mine or yours, but ours.
In forming a democratic society, and establishing a Bill of Rights, our founders agreed to protect these rights for each other. This part of the Bill of Rights’ promise is often overlooked but is key to safeguarding each of our freedoms.
Perhaps if a selection of Bill of Rights Day cards was readily available each Dec. 15, we might be more likely to take one day each year to recognize each other’s roles in practicing, protecting, and preserving our freedoms.
Download your free, sharable Bill of Rights Day cards here:
Bill of Rights Day Postcard 1
Bill of Rights Day Postcard 2
By Karen Hansen, Freedom Forum content managing editor. You can reach Karen at khansen@freedomforum.org.