GNI Student Fellowship Supports Students of Color Deadline August 1
The Google News Initiative, in partnership with the National Newspapers Publishers Association, the National Association of Hispanic Publishers, and the Association of Alternative Newsmedia, has launched the Google News Initiative Student Fellowship program aimed at developing and supporting students of color who are interested in careers at the intersection of technology, media, and journalism.
The Google News Initiative Student Fellowship program intends to address the barriers of access to early career opportunities many students of color face, as well as support investigative journalism, technological innovation, and digital transformation in local newsrooms that serve diverse and underrepresented populations.
Benefits
Fellows will be given a travel payment of $1,000, plus a stipend of $5,000 for the course of the 10-week program.
Deadline
The closing date of the application window is August 1, 2020 at midnight Pacific Time.
Term
The program will run from roughly September to December or 10 to 12 weeks.
Webinar Resources – Get Back Some Of Your Lost Revenue
The Pulse Research COVID-19 Shopping Impact survey results are encouraging for local businesses and therefore for newspapers.
On July 14 this free webinar explored how to use the data to get back some of your lost revenue and gave tips on how to approach your customers and prospect.
Presented by NENPA University and Sammy Papert, President of WORMHOLE.
Attendees received a copy of the New England survey data. Pulse Research is making this available to NENPA members as well as making some of their services free through the end of August.
Use this link to access the offer through Pulse: www.pulseresearch.com/support
Resources from webinar:
Download Slides: Get Back Some Of Your Lost Revenue
Covid-19 Impact and Local Business Survey: New England Regional Report – June 2020
Covid-19 Impact and Local Business Survey: User Guide
For questions on the presentation, Sammy Papert can be reached at:
(214) 505-6420
spapert@sbcglobal.net
If you’re having trouble accessing any of the resources or need more information about NENPA University webinars, contact Tara Cleary at t.cleary@nenpa.com.
2020 Yankee Quill Award Nominations Are Open
Nominations are now being accepted for the 2020 Yankee Quill award.
2020 marks the 60th anniversary of this prestigious award, administered by the New England Society of News Editors Foundation.
The award recognizes the efforts and dedication of those in New England who have had a broad influence for good in the field of journalism.
Recipients are inducted into the Academy of New England Journalists upon receiving the Yankee Quill award in the fall. The 2019 honorees were:
- Ross Connelly, longtime New England journalist who retired as editor and co-publisher of the Hardwick Gazette in Vermont.
- Callie Crossley, WGBH radio and TV in Boston; host of Basic Black, panelist on Beat the Press, producer, filmmaker and role model for women and people of color.
- Dan Kennedy, media critic and journalism professor at Northeastern University.
- Angelo Lynn, owner of the Addison Press and publisher-editor of Addison Independent in Vermont.
- John C. Peterson, of Connecticut, who has worked 50 years as newspaper consultant, group president, publisher and editor.
Selection for the award is not based on a single distinguished achievement. Rather, the Yankee Quill recognizes the effort and dedication of those in New England who have had a broad influence for good in the field of journalism. In other words, it is not based on a certain achievement in reporting, writing or editing or on the fact that someone runs a good newspaper or broadcast show or station. Instead, it honors a lifetime of contribution to the profession.
Nominations may range across the entire field of journalism — including daily and weekly newspapers, radio and television news coverage, and other forms of media that meet the tests of journalism.
Members of the Academy of New England Journalists, along with the representatives of several New England media associations, will select the persons to receive the Yankee Quill Award this year.
The links to the nomination forms can be found by clicking here.
The deadline for nominations is Friday, August 21, 2020.
Nominations may be emailed to: info@nenpa.com or hard copies may be mailed to:
Yankee Quill
c/o NENPA
1 Arrow Drive, Suite 6
Woburn MA 01801
For further information contact:
George Geers, academy chair, gnews@empire.net, (603) 785-4811
Linda Conway, academy clerk, l.conway@nenpa.com, (781) 281-7648
Contact your Congressional Representative to Co-sponsor the Local Journalism Sustainability Act
Dear Newspaper Colleagues,
I’m writing to you seeking your support for a bill that will help local journalism exist and transition during a time of COVID-19.
The Local Journalism Sustainability Act is bi-partisan legislation providing an assist, not a hand out, to key local stakeholders that directly support local journalism.
U.S. Representatives Ann Kirkpatrick (D-Arizona) and Dan Newhouse (R-Washington) are the chief co-sponsors of this legislation, which I believe is part of the solution to remedy the very dire situation facing local journalism.
At this point I’m asking you to personally pick up your phone, email and communicate with your lawmakers and ask them directly to take a leadership role on this bill and sign up as an original co-sponsor.
In addition to state press associations, this bill is also supported by: News Media Alliance, National Newspaper Association, America’s Newspapers, Report for America and Rebuild Local News Coalition
Below you will find a link to a sample email containing talking points for a phone call or email that I am asking you to make/send to your Congressional representatives. You also will find the Dear Colleague email that was sent by Reps. Kirkpatrick and Newhouse to members of the House of Representatives, as well as contact information for Congressional representatives.
Dear Colleague email sent to Members of Congress by Reps. Kirkpatrick and Newhouse
Sample email that you can send to your representatives (or talking points for a phone call)
Find contact information for your Congressional representatives here
This legislation is well thought out, comprehensive and provides the bridge for journalism to achieve a stable footing in a digital reality. It will help newspapers deal with the impacts of COVID-19 … and every provision of the bill sunsets in a few years.
As you will note, this legislation drives three key stakeholders that support the ecosystem of local journalism — citizens, business owners and journalists.
We have approximately one week to get members of the House of Representatives — your congressman or woman — on board as a lead sponsor of the legislation. We need a broad group of Republicans and Democrats to support this important bill — right out of the gate — so that we can demonstrate to the Congressional leadership that this is a serious legislative endeavor.
Please do not hesitate to email or call with questions.
Thank you in advance for your efforts on this … your voice matters here as does the critical work our institutions perform.
Linda Conway, Executive Director
New England Newspaper & Press Association
(781) 281-7648
l.conway@nenpa.com
The Local Journalism Sustainability Act includes a series of three tax credits aimed at sustaining and providing a pathway to viability for the local journalism industry in the years to come. The credits are as follows:
Credit for Local Newspaper Subscriptions
A five-year non-refundable credit of up to $250 annually to incentivize individual subscriptions to local newspapers, defined as print and online publications which primarily produce content related to news and current events and which have a majority of their readership within the publication’s state of operation or within 200 miles.
The credit can cover 80% of subscription costs in the first year and 50% of subscription costs in the subsequent four years.
Payroll Credit for Compensation of Journalists
A five-year refundable credit for local newspapers (utilizing the same definition as above) to employ and adequately compensate journalists.
The credit can be up to $25,000 in the first year and $15,000 in the subsequent four years.
Credit for Advertising in Local Newspapers and Local Media
A five-year non-refundable tax credit that would incentivize small-to-medium sized businesses to advertise with local newspapers (utilizing the same definition as above), as well as local radio and television stations.
The credit can cover up to $5,000 of advertising costs in the first year and $2,500 in the subsequent four years.
Information for this article provided by America’s Newspapers.
Webinar Resources – Five Ways We Must Change Our Sales Approach
Business changed overnight because of the Covid-19 pandemic. On June 30 this free webinar explored how our sales approach must change too.
Presented by NENPA University and Al Getler, Vice President of Advantage Newspaper Consultants.
In the presentation, Getler draws on his 37-year career in newspaper and website publishing to look at how do we sell in this new environment without alienating the client.
Resources from webinar:
Download Slides: Five Ways We Must Change Our Sales Approach
ANC Revenue Ideas Videos: https://newspaperconsultants.com/videos/
ANC eBook Download: https://mailchi.mp/newspaperconsultants/5ways-ebook
If you’re having trouble accessing any of the resources or need more information about NENPA University webinars, contact Tara Cleary at t.cleary@nenpa.com.
Radically Rural – Remote Summit: Local journalism seeks sustainability through innovation
KEENE, NH — This current time of crisis and virus has created a signature moment in history for the local news industry. Journalists are covering unchartered political, economic and societal waters, and, more than ever, trusted, accurate information is needed in local communities, a growing number of which no longer have local news organizations serving them. Financial challenges, particularly for newspapers, have placed many in jeopardy.
On Sept. 24, at Radically Rural – Remote, the event’s Community Journalism Track, will address tactics for remaining resilient in journalism in a period marked by turbulence and fast change, says Terrence L. Williams, president and publisher of The Keene Sentinel, and organizer of the journalism track.
“The need for communities to be informed has never been greater,” Williams said. “But how can we guarantee that against market forces that are resulting in lost journalism jobs and even publications? We’ve focused the Summit this year on the ways and means that can help with that goal.”
Radically Rural – Remote, a partnership between the Keene Sentinel and that Hannah Grimes Center for Entrepreneurship, is being held online this, it’s third year, on Sept. 24, starting at 8 a.m. with a keynote speaker. Track sessions are staged at 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. with a closing speaker at 4 p.m. An interactive idea jam is planned between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. on a video conference platform.
Radically Rural features tracks in community journalism, arts and culture, lands and community, main streets and downtowns, clean energy and entrepreneurship.
The journalism track includes:
What’s at Stake: An introduction to the power of the “Table Stakes” approach to editorial content and subscription revenue at small news operations – 9 a.m.
This first journalism session will include an expert panel led by Amy Kovac-Ashley, vice president and senior director at the American Press Institute. Panelists include Autumn Phillips, managing editor, Post & Courier of Charleston, S.C.; Liz White, publisher, The Record-Journal, Meriden, CT; and Les High, publisher, The News Reporter, Columbus County, N.C. They will discuss the Table Stakes model for analyzing readership data in order to deliver stories that build readership. The session will get at the question of how community news organizations can increase paid readership and retain existing customers.
New Models for Success: Innovative approaches to community news publications – 11 a.m.
Moderator Kristen Hare, a reporter at the Poynter Institute, leads a panel discussion on new types of publications and new approaches to news across the country. These include non-profits, digital-only publications and legacy operations that have pivoted successfully during economic challenges.
She is joined by panelists Tamika Moore, managing producer at Red Clay Media, Birmingham, Ala.; Larry Rykman, co-founder of The Colorado Sun; Les Zaitz, editor and publisher of Oregon’s Malheur Enterprise; and Jim Iovino, visiting assistant professor of media innovation at West Virginia University.
Crazy Good: 50 ideas to build revenue and readership – 2 p.m.
It’s back! A fast-paced romp through best practices to boost revenue and audience at news organizations. Linda Conway, executive director for the New England Newspaper and Press Association, and Williams will lead attendees through 50 ideas to build readership and revenue. These concepts, pulled from rural news organizations across the country, can be “dragged and dropped” into existing and start-up news organizations and will be presented in a fun and lively way.
For more information on the Radically Rural – Remote summit and to purchase tickets, please visit the event’s website at www.radicallyrural.org
Applications for New England First Amendment Institute Now Available
Applications are now open for the New England First Amendment Coalition’s, tuition-free, First Amendment Institute in investigative journalism, awarded to 25 working journalists within the region annually.
This is the 10th anniversary of this exclusive investigative reporting program that began in 2011.
The program will run September 26 to October 3, 2020 and the application deadline is August 15, 2020.
It includes workshops and presentations featuring some of the country’s most elite investigative reporters, editors and media attorneys.
More than 225 journalists from about 100 local news organizations have benefited from the New England First Amendment Institute since it started.