USING FICTION TO BUILD READERSHIP
Newspapers have published serialized fiction off and on for decades, and many U.S. papers continue to dabble with such features. One California daily has committed to running regular serials over the past few years because of their appeal to younger readers. The Redding Record Searchlight publishes children's serials in the spring and fall, and is considering adding a third to run in the summer. "If you can manage it, do it," says Editor Kelly Brewer. "Readers love it. And we've found it's one of those things that connects with younger readers in a way that keeps them coming back to the newspaper." The Record Searchlight's serials come from a variety of authors -- some are best sellers in the children's book industry -- and are written specifically for newspapers. Costs vary depending upon the author and the paper's circulation. Redding, a 35,000-circulation daily, pays several hundred dollars per serial, plus up to $100 for an accompanying teachers' guide to encourage their use in classroom lesson plans. A business sponsor offsets the paper's costs. Redding publishes chapters Tuesdays and Thursdays in a format that allows each installment -- typically 30 inches long -- to be easily cut out and placed in "blank books" designed specifically for each serial. Those blank books foster repeat readings and include activities related to the serial, a biography of the author, and letters from the publisher and story sponsor. Record Searchlight Marketing Director Michelle Martin-Streeby, who oversees the paper's Newspapers In Education programs, recommends editors anchor serials in prominent spots, use color and illustrations in design, and work closely with NIE staff to promote the effectiveness of reading each chapter as part of classroom activities. She added that the Newspaper Association of America and state NIE programs have lists of authors who write serials specifically for newspapers. For details, e-mail Martin-Streeby or call 530-225-8239.
To share your newspaper's cool ideas for broadening readership, e-mail Logan Molen and we'll consider them for future APME Updates.
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IT'S TIME TO TAKE TIME-OUT FOR DIVERSITY AND ACCURACY
Journalists in 74 newsrooms are taking action this month to connect with their increasingly diverse audiences. It's not too late to join them:
- At the Detroit Free Press, they're taking a bus tour of a coverage area not typically visited by staffers.
- The San Francisco Chronicle is launching a newsroom mentorship program.
- The Journal Times of Racine, Wis., is focusing on readers ages 20 to 40.
- Reporters at the Potomac News and the Manassas Journal Messenger in Virginia will do a series of stories that reflect the growing ethnic diversity of the area, near Washington, D.C.
For more information on Time-Out, visit this link on the APME Web site. And if you plan to participate, please let us know by e-mailing Rich Ramirez of the San Jose Mercury News with the name, city and state of your newspaper and the e-mail address, phone number and title of your newsroom's contact person.
UPDATE FOR APPM REGIONAL WORKSHOP AND NEW WEB SITE
The first northeast regional Associated Press Photo Managers seminar had a date change and will be Monday, May 24, from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. at the Philadelphia Inquirer. Registration is free and organizers are planning the following itinerary:
- 10 a.m. - Eye opener slide show from the Associated Press's Guy Solimano, Philadelphia AP photo editor
- 10:15 a.m. - How people's brains work: culture and the difference between what people say and what they do (from leadership and readership perspectives) by Jamie O'Boyle, with Cultural Studies & Analysis (a thinktank that studies how consumers determine value in products, concepts, ideas and what elements cue that value and drive consumer choice)
- 11:30 a.m. - Tentatively a representative from The Washington Post's Web site to lead a discussion about photos and news websites.
- 12:30 - Lunch.
- 1:30 p.m. - The Inquirer's David Swanson, just returned from making incredible photos in Iraq, will show the work and talk about his experience.
- 2:30 p.m. - Panel on leadership and team building in the newsroom, featuring Naomi Halperin, director of photography at The Morning Call, Allentown, Pa., and Pim Van Hemmen, assistant managing editor for photography at The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J.; moderator Mark Pynes, director of photography at The Patriot-News, Harrisburg, Pa.
- 3:30 p.m. - Open discussion on topics of interest to participants
As always with news people, assignments and events may cause last minute program changes. Anyone interested in attending the no cost event should e-mail Mark Pynes, director of photography at The Patriot-News, Harrisburg, Pa., with their name, job title, name of newspaper, e-mail address and work phone number by May 17.
The first Northern California APPM regional meeting will be held July 1 at the San Francisco Chronicle. It will be coordinated by Susan Gilbert, deputy managing editor of the Chronicle, Geri Migielicz, director of photography of the San Jose Mercury News, and Stephanie Mullen, AP's photo editor in San Francisco. Food and beverages will be served. Photo editors at newspapers in Northern California are encouraged to attend and all photo managers are welcome. For more information or registration for this no-cost workshop contact Gilbert, Migielicz or Mullen.
Also, check out the new APPM Web site. Here is what you will find:
- News: Latest APPM developments.
- Resources: Stories on management, press access, legal issues, controversial photographs.
- Workshops: News about national and regional APPM workshops.
- Registration: You can join or renew on line using your credit card.
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Today's Update includes contributions from Logan Molen of The Bakersfield Californian, Rich Ramirez of the San Jose Mercury News and Darrell Hoemann of The News-Gazette at Champaign, Ill.
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COOPERATION KUDOS
Member newspapers and broadcast stations are AP's eyes and ears on the ground, and frequently share stories and photographs with other members through the news cooperative. These members will received APME Instant Citations for their recent contributions:
- The Daily Sitka Sentinel for quickly sharing photographs and information when a state ferry boat with 86 passengers and 23 crew went hard aground Monday in a strait about 30 miles northwest of Sitka, a small coastal town in Southeast Alaska.
- The Great Falls (Mont.) Tribune for quickly sharing a photo of Zameer Mohamed after a court appearance in Great Falls. He was arrested crossing from Canada and faces federal charges of making a phony terrorist threat that a West Los Angeles shopping mall would be attacked.
- The Daily Inter Lake in Kalispell, Mont., for quickly providing a photo April 20 of a Burlington Northern Santa Fe freight train that derailed and blocked the main northern rail line across northern Montana, halting Amtrak service between the Midwest and West Coast.
- The Williamsport (Pa.) Sun-Gazette for quickly providing photo coverage from the scene of a shooting in which two sheriff's deputies were killed March 31. In addition to sharing photographs immediately, the Sun-Gazette provided AP and its members photo of the slain officers.
AP Photo/The Times, Shreveport, La.,
Jessica Leigh
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Also, congratulations to Jessica Leigh of The Times of Shreveport, La., for contributing to the AP photo network a dramatic photograph of two smoke rings filling the air during the "TORA! TORA! TORA!" act at an air show at Barksdale Air Force Base, La. The photograph was judged the APME Member Showcase Photo of the Month by a panel of photo editors at AP and member newspapers.
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