Volume 84 May 2021 No. 11

INSIDE When our readers told us what they wanted to know MARCUS FITZSIMMONS numbers on the pandemic, there Richardson: Comings and Adams Publishing Group were, and continue to be, multiple Goings December 19, 2020 approaches. In Maryville’s case, The Daily Page 2 Editor’s note: Adams Publishing owns dozens of media products na- Times began with stories on the tionwide, including eight Tennessee first case, then the first death and Daniels: Difficult year Press Association member newspa- the second, third and fourth in with General Assembly pers such as The Greeneville Sun, rapid succession. The Daily Post-Athenian and The When the State of Tennessee Page 3 Daily Times, Maryville. began providing statistics on the Ad-libs: Beware All of our papers have learned county level, reporter Shelby Harris advertisers’ blind spots lessons over the last 14 months of asked aloud in the newsroom, the pandemic, but I take this case “Should we make something out of Page 4 from Maryville, as a multiple-pur- this?” which started a conversation Showcase: ‘God wasn’t pose example worth sharing. Not that ended up concluding in City because the content itself is unique, Editor Mike Sisco’s office. done with me’ checking out e-editions from all After some discussion on the Page 7 over APG is part of the job, and I’ve merits, the planning went into seen lots of approaches to provid- place. Realizing from the out- Obituaries ing readers with similar content. In set data was likely to evolve, a this case the solution provided two universal spreadsheet was set up Page 9 good lessons. and shared via googlesheets to News outlets can help First, it shows how listening track the numbers and do basic vaccination navigation to the readers can lead to better math independent of the state’s as a results. verification. Submitted Page 10 Second, it shows a flexibility to MDT took that data and began The Daily Times in Maryville, Tenn., used a COVID blurb at top of page 2A adapt content and not just do it the producing a two-column daily Get Real: 2021 a year of each day from April 3 to Dec. 19, 2020. It introduced a 6 column graphic way it was decided at the start. blurb listing the numbers on at the top of 2A on Dec. 20 and is on its fourth version of that chart as reckoning for newspapers When COVID-19 arrived in the testing, positives and deaths within Page 11 U.S. in 2020 and papers began try- the statistics its readers wanted have changed from spread to vaccina- ing to decipher how to report vital See READERS Page 6 tion rates. (See page 6 for their improved version of the graphic.) Photos of participants in April TPA ‘coffee’ Page 12 Bodycam footage from officer-involved shooting inside Knoxville school might be confidential for a long while Police body camera footage that presumably captures what hap- Tennessee Supreme Court has from a shooting that left a 17-year- TN Coalition pened in the confrontation until her said that law enforcement records old dead inside a Knox County investigation is concluded. When that are relevant to an ongoing high school is likely to be kept for Open a police officer shoots someone, investigation may be kept con- confidential for a while, and it’s overnment an investigation takes place to see fidential and not released to the possible some of it may be confi- G if the shooting was justified. Very public while an investigation is dential forever based on state laws Deborah Fisher rarely are criminal charges filed. ongoing. The exemption to public protecting juveniles and mandat- Allen said she would release all the records law can last until a case ing confidentiality of some types evidence if a decision is made to not is resolved, if criminal charges of body camera footage. A school resource officer was shot file charges. If charges are filed, the are filed, and after all appeals are Anthony J. Thompson Jr., 17, and injured, but it was from a evidence won’t be revealed until the exhausted. This is a discretionary was killed in the shooting. The bullet from a police weapon, the criminal trial, she said. exemption. Police may release all Tennessee Bureau of Investigation TBI has said. Here are the laws that govern or parts of information they’ve has said that police were respond- Knoxville District Attorney the confidentiality of public re- gathered during an investigation. ing to reports of a student in the Charme Allen said she will not cords in this type of situation. school possibly armed with a gun. release the body camera footage 1. Investigative exemption. The See FISHER Page 2 Page 2 • The Tennessee Press • May 2021 Good people, coming and going Meeting and building relation- ing in Waverly. ships with like-minded people is Your Matthew Wolfe is the new (USPS 616-460) one of the biggest benefits of being general manager of The Rogers- Published monthly by the involved in newspapers and the Presiding ville Review and regional audience Tennessee Press Association. eporter development marketing director for TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION, INC. Recently we heard the unfor- R Adams Publishing Group’s Tennes- 412 N. Cedar Bluff Road, Suite 403 tunate (for us) news that Brian Daniel Richardson see/Western North Carolina Region. Knoxville, Tennessee 37923 Blackley of Lakeway Publishers of Richard Clark is the new adver- Telephone (865) 584-5761/Fax (865) 558-8687/www.tnpress.com Middle Tennessee was leaving the tising director for The Greeneville newspaper industry to pursue other chair of the Membership Commit- Sun. Artie Wehenkel, longtime Sun Subscriptions: $12 annually endeavors. Brian had worked as tee during a time when we brought advertising director, recently retired. Periodicals Postage Paid At Knoxville, TN publisher of The Leader in Coving- on several new members. Wehenkel served TPA as chairman of ton before joining Lakeway in a Waverly News-Democrat Pub- the Advertising committee. Clark is POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Tennessee Press, newspaper career that spans back lisher Ward Phillips will be retiring also regional advertising director for 412 N. Cedar Bluff Road, Suite 403, Knoxville, TN 37923 to high school. He took the media from a long newspaper career in Adams Publishing Group’s Tennes- relations/director position with the May. Ward originally worked for see/Western North Carolina Region. The Tennessee Press is printed by The Standard Banner in Jefferson City, Tenn. Tennessee Department of Education. the Shopper’s Guide in Waverly as I hope that all involved with TPA On a positive note, former TPA a competitor to the News-Demo- have a wonderful summer and trav- Carol Daniels ...... Editor director Keith Ponder has jumped crat before the publications came el safely while you find some time Mike Towle...... Managing Editor back into the industry, signing on under the same roof. Ward will me to step away from the ink. Robyn Gentile ...... Production Coordinator as publisher of the Tullahoma News missed by the Magic Valley Pub- and Vice President of Lakeway Pub- lishing family, and we wish him Daniel Richardson, publisher of lishers, Middle Tennessee. Ponder well in his next chapter of life. the Carroll County News Leader, The Tennessee Press was instrumental to the TPA before For those nearby, a reception Huntingdon, and group publisher is printed on recycled paper and I’m sure will continue to be. He will be held 2-4 p.m., May 11 at of the eastern division of Music Val- and is recyclable. served on the board of directors as the Apex Bank Community Build- ley Publishing, is TPA president. TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION Daniel Richardson, Carroll County News Leader, Huntingdon...... President from Page 1 Rick Thomason, Kingsport Times-News, Johnson City Press...... Vice President FISHER Jack McNeely, Herald-Citizen, Cookeville ...... Vice President And records entered as evidence Joseph Hurd, The Courier, Savannah ...... Secretary into court are public. Eric Barnes, The Daily News, Memphis ...... Treasurer 2. Body camera footage. Body Chris Vass, Chattanooga Times Free Press...... Immediate Past President camera video of a minor, when Carol Daniels ...... Executive Director taken within a school that serves any grades from kindergarten DIRECTORS through grade twelve (K-12), is Scott Critchlow, Union City Daily Messenger ...... District 1 confidential under a state law Calvin Anderson, New Tri-State Defender of Memphis...... District 1 passed in 2017. The statute, § 10- Daniel Williams, The Paris Post-Intelligencer ...... District 1 7-504 (u), says that nothing would Maria De Varenne, The Tennessean, Nashville ...... District 2 prohibit the body camera footage Dave Gould, Main Street Media of Tennessee, Gallatin...... District 2 from being redacted and released, Vacant...... District 2 as long as the video of the minor Paul Mauney, The Greeneville Sun...... District 3 remained confidential. Submitted Dale Gentry, The Standard Banner, Jefferson City...... District 3 3. All investigative records of the File art of a policeman’s mounted bodycam. Sara Jane Locke, The Herald-News, Dayton ...... District 3 Tennessee Bureau of Investigation are confidential forever, but in the passed by the House and by the “request is made subject to a court TENNESSEE PRESS SERVICE case of a TBI investigation into an Senate this year that would make order” but it is not exactly clear Dave Gould, Main Street Media of Tennessee, Gallatin ...... President officer-involved death, the district what that process would be. At any rate, that legislation may not apply Jana Thomasson, The Mountain Press, Sevierville ...... Vice President attorney may release all or part of Note: The Knox County District Mike Fishman, Lakeway Publishers, Morristown...... Director the record after the “completion of Attorney’s office released the body because even if it goes into law in David Critchlow Jr., Union City Daily Messenger ...... Director the prosecutorial function of the camera footage on April 21. the coming weeks, the Knoxville W.R. (Ron) Fryar, Cannon Courier...... Director district attorney.” T.C.A. 38-3-311. shooting happened before. Michael Williams, Paris Post-Intelligencer ...... Director 4. A photographic or video That bill was being carried by confidential “(a) record of a minor state Rep. Ryan Williams and state Carol Daniels ...... Executive Vice President depiction of a minor victim of a criminal offense is confidential. student attending an institution of Sen. Paul Bailey. The House re- secondary or elementary educa- TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION FOUNDATION So if charges are filed against the fused to conform to an amendment tion that is created by a school by the Senate that would have put Victor Parkins, The Milan Mirror-Exchange ...... President officer, and the teen is considered resource or other law enforcement a sunset date on the amendment. Mike Fishman, Lakeway Publishers, Morristown ...... Vice President a victim, this exemption would make the video confidential. T.C.A. officer, or that is maintained by Richard L. Hollow, Knoxville ...... General Counsel a law enforcement agency as the Carol Daniels...... Secretary-Treasurer 10-7-504(t). The only way it would This column was originally pub- become public is if it was entered result of an incident involving the lished by the Tennessee Coalition minor that occurred on school CONTACT THE MANAGING EDITOR as evidence in court and was not for Open Government on April 15, TPAers with suggestions, questions or comments about items in The sealed by a judge. It’s not clear property and did not result in a 2021. Deborah Fisher has been Tennessee Press are welcome to contact the managing editor. Call Mike whether the video could be redact- charge of delinquency.” executive director of Tennessee Towle, (615) 293-5771; or email [email protected]. The deadline for the ed, but presumably, it could be. The legislation says that the Coalition for Open Government July 2021 issue is June 8, 2021. In addition, legislation has been record could be released if the since 2013. May 2021 • The Tennessee Press • Page 3

Legislative session showed importance of in-person contact For Your Calendar I hope by the time you read attended by council members nourishing the relationships with May 2021 this, the 112th General Assembly From the via video or phone. This bill just your local representatives as soon will have been completed (my failed in the House Finance, Ways as this session ends. 6: Webinar on InDesign Data fingers are crossed!) Executive and Means committee, but ac- It is also abundantly apparent According to those who’ve been cording to rules that if a bill has to me just how important the Merge. www.onlinemedia doing this for much longer than Director passed through three committees, Tennessee Press Association Win- campus.com. Contact TPA for me, this was by far and away one it needs to be put back on the ter Convention is to our efforts of the most difficult years to work Carol Daniels calendar to be voted on again the with the General Assembly. Just the free access code. with the General Assembly and following week. So, we are in a having that small amount of face- 20: Photoshop Webinar. Using lobby on behalf and in opposition would have raised the requirement wait and see phase with that bill. time with our lawmakers in that to proposed legislation. At the for notifying the public on contract We are not sure what the Senate setting is very impactful. Good Old Photoshop in New beginning of the session very few opportunities from $10,000 to will do at this point, but if it voted I would like to challenge each Ways. www.onlinemedia people were allowed in the build- down again in the House, it will of you between now and the $25,000. We were able to negoti- campus.com. Contact TPA for ing and meetings were difficult to ate with the bill sponsors to limit be off the books for this year. winter convention 2022 to set up a get. We did do quite a few ZOOM the increase to just one-third of Hopefully this will be on the win luncheon with your local repre- the free access code. meetings and obviously a lot of Tennessee counties; bidding min- side. All three leaders - Lt. Gov. sentatives and invite me along 11-27: 2021 International News phone calls, but it is not the same imums for the rest of Tennessee Randy McNally, Speaker Cameron for the conversation, and if their as talking face-to-face. Perhaps it counties will remain at $10,000. Sexton and Gov. Bill Lee - have all calendars allows I would like to Media Association (INMA) 91st was the lack of interaction, but it The Tennessee Comptroller was told us during calls that they are have lobbyists Megan Lane and Annual World Congress of News seemed that most of the lawmak- successful (no legislator appeared not interested in passing legisla- Matt King along for the luncheon. ers had already determined the willing to go against the comptrol- tion that deals with the pandemic I would like to dedicate one day Media. Zoom meeting. www. bills they were going to pass and ler) in eliminating the newspaper and have them in effect in our each week to meet with you and inma.org the ones they weren’t. Lobbying notice requirement for Tennessee post-pandemic world. your legislator. I know it will seemed to have little effect on the Governmental Entity Review We can hope that a legislative benefit your newspapers and our 17-21: 2021 Investigative Report- outcome of several bills. Law, allowing the meeting to be session like this one will not be re- association. ers and Editors (IRE) Data Boot This year we opposed two bills noticed on the General Assembly’s peated, but the silver lining of this Thank you. that eroded public notice and website, which is consistent with experience is how it has crystalized Camp for Educators Online. several other bills that impacted how other legislative committees how important deep relationships Carol Includes hands-on training on open meeting requirements. operate (SB1294/HB573). are with legislators. I think that The public notice bills included Bills impacting open meetings one of the best and easiest things Carol Daniels is executive spreadsheets. www.ire.org one brought by a single school included SB301/HB327, which we can do to be a bigger voice for director of the Tennessee Press June 2021 board (SB1200/HB1261) that would allow meetings to be next session is start creating and Association. 14-18: Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) Conference. www. News & Moves ire.org Ponder named News it reminded him able to readers. Walters, 59, has lived in King- 23-25: The American Jewish Press of the small “I think we have a tremendous sport for nearly five years with his Association annual conference, publisher, Lakeway VP town where he opportunity to serve the Tullaho- wife, Anna, and their two dogs. Keith Ponder has been named raised his family ma community,” Ponder said. “I’m “Rob brings four decades of virtual. www.ajpa.org Publisher of The Tullahoma News in Kentucky. here to help the team get better experience in a diverse variety September 2021 and Vice President Lakeway Pub- “I’m most and do better.” of markets,” said Times News lishers, Inc., of Middle Tennessee. proud of the Ponder is replacing Brian Black- Publisher Rick Thomason. “Each Sept. 30-Oct. 2: National News- The 29-year publishing veteran people who have ley, who left Lakeway to pursue of those stops in his career has paper Association’s 135th takes the helm of the division an opportunity with the Tennes- given him challenges he has met advanced within Annual Convention and Trade after leading the Daily Herald Ponder the organization see Department of Education. and expecta- in Columbia for five years. Prior and the work Tullahoma News tions he has Show, Hyatt Regency, Jack- exceeded. With to that time, he worked in Iowa, we did that was recognized as April 6, 2021 sonville, Fla. Texas, Arkansas and Kentucky, the best in the state,” Ponder said. almost five years under his belt where he spent 20 years as a “That’s pretty cool to hang that Walters named Times- October 2021 publisher at CNHI (Community on your wall, but it’s a sign you’re in the Tri-Cities, he has a broad 14-17: Fall National College Newspaper Holdings, Inc.) and serving your community.” News editor knowledge of Stephens Media. He stated he’s a firm believer of Media Association Convention Rob Walters, an award-winning the region and “I’m thrilled to be given the former Tennessee Lady Vols Bas- journalist with decades of expe- understands the 2021, offered in conjunction opportunity to work for Lakeway,” ketball Coach Pat Summitt’s quote rience, has been named editor of Walters myriad opportu- with Associated Collegiate Ponder said during his introduc- that you “win with people.” the Kingsport Times-News. Walters nities.” tion as vice president. “I’ve known “I’ve been fortunate to work joined the Six Rivers Media family Walters fills a position left Press, New Orleans, Sheraton the Fishman family through the with some great people and to on Monday. He came from the open in January when Stephanie New Orleans Tennessee Press Association and help them grow,” Ponder said. “I Bristol Herald Courier, where he McClellan, who served as Times have always admired them.” think that’s my role as a leader in had served as managing editor News editor for more than five June 2022 After CNHI and Stephens Me- the organization, to be a teacher since 2016. years — and was city editor for 23-25: Tri-State Press Convention dia, Ponder worked with Gate- and a coach. Immediately prior to his start in nearly 20 years prior to that, trans- House Media in Columbia in 2015 While he had the opportunity Bristol, Walters was assistant man- ferred to the Johnson City Press. June 23-25, 2022 Arkansas • and was there until the merger of to work in metro journalism, aging editor at the Frederick News- “Stephanie agreed to take the Gatehouse and Gannett. He said Ponder said he loves community Post. His career began in 1982 at Mississippi • Tennessee, to be what drew him to Tullahoma was journalism, as it lets him be avail- the Bakersfield Californian. See NEWS & MOVES Page 5 held in Memphis Page 4 • The Tennessee Press • May 2021 Advertisers have their blind spots: tread carefully When we learned how to drive, hire and fire, they set office poli- ity, which had been our big selling general. we heard about blind spots. Those cies, they select inventories, and point. It was like the CEO became Blind spots are real, but not nec- are the areas which are not visible they keep their own books. blind to what we had going for us essarily fatal for an ad campaign. in our rear- and side-view mirrors. Ad-libs® They also maintain tight control all along. It took a while to regain After all, we have blind spots, too As a result, we have to be extra of their marketing. In their minds, our balance in the market.” – and some of them involve our careful when we change lanes. no one could know more about Some advertisers make the same perspectives on advertising. The term “blind spots” has be- promoting their businesses than mistake. They spend so much time How should you handle an come popular in today’s business John Foust they do. thinking about their competitors advertiser with a blind spot that is environment. It refers to significant 3. Competitor distractions. that they lose sight of what differ- blocking the way? A good place to things that are not acknowledged wrote our ad slogan, and if it was Someone told me about his expe- entiates them in the marketplace. start is to look for common ground or given fair consideration by good enough for him, it’s good rience in working for a furniture 4. History. We’re all products of and bite your tongue if you are management. Outside observers enough for me.” Or, “My son just manufacturer. His company our past experiences. It should be tempted to criticize. are often perplexed by the fact that finished a marketing class, and suddenly started losing orders, no surprise when we encounter certain obvious factors are always he’s got some good ad ideas.” Or, because a competing company was otherwise savvy business people (c) Copyright 2021 by John ignored. “My niece says we need to have a dramatically cutting prices. His who are wedded to old media Foust. All rights reserved. Foust has Blind spots are common in the bigger presence on social media.” CEO called an all-staff meeting and choices – or old ad campaigns – conducted training programs for advertising business. Let’s take a 2. Do-it-yourself mentality. A announced that their new focus even if those choices are no longer thousands of newspaper advertising look at a few examples: lot of entrepreneurs and Mom-and- was to beat the competitor at their producing results. There may be professionals. Many ad departments 1. Family. This can be a big Pop businesses are used to doing own game. “From that point on,” long-standing relationships with are using his training videos to save blind spot in family-owned busi- just about everything themselves. he said, “it was like Captain Ahab those media outlets. Or there time and get quick results from in- nesses. It’s a clear sign if you hear They don’t like to delegate tasks going after Moby Dick. But along may be a bias against a particu- house training. E-mail for informa- something like, “My grandfather and they resist outside help. They the way, we lost our focus on qual- lar newspaper or newspapers in tion: [email protected] Bold, persistent experimentation needed Become a ‘harmless linker’ in 3 steps SUBMITTED gether but that’s not ideal because Editor’s note: This column was provide value, which means good Reynolds Journalism Institute transparency and showing the written and originally published in public-service journalism. How do March 1, 2021 evidence has become increasingly June 2020, but almost a year later it The you pay for that when advertising critical for suspicious and skeptical Mis- and dis-information are still discusses some important points has dried up? Community newspa- readers. Rural spread a number of ways and the relative to the COVID-19 pandemic pers need to be more aggressive in Another option, Golding notes, thought of trying to free the news every bit as relevant today. log following their metro counterparts is using a screenshot, similar to B ecosystem of misleading, disingen- Our country may not be in a in asking their audiences to provide the Twitter effort. The problem depression, but the newspaper busi- Al Cross a greater share of revenue, and they uous and fraudulent news items with that approach, he points ness is, and its fatality rate may be need to be frank with their readers can be overwhelming and disil- out, is that a screenshot is out of as great at that of the coronavirus. opinion, and clearly separate the about their paper’s finances. lusioning. But former RJI Fellow context, easy to forge and hard to The pandemic and its econom- two. (That separation has eroded They also need explore a source Barrett Golding is advocating one verify. ic restrictions have accelerated lately, and needs shoring up.) of revenue that’s becoming more small step for mankind with some A screenshot “doesn’t provide closures and mergers, which have Social media have almost no common: philanthropy. It’s unlikely new research on his Iffy.news site. the same depth of information or increasingly affected county-seat discipline and no verification, so that many community papers will Golding has taken a look at the make the source as easy to share weeklies, long the most stable type the facts get lost in a sea of opinion have reporters paid by nonprofits, unintended consequences of news- and monitor over time,” says Ed of American newspaper. and invective, driven by algorithms or get grants from foundations, but rooms linking to the same sites McCain, RJI’s digital curator and The economy is gradually giving people what they want, in every county in this country, they are citing for bad behavior. digital archiving expert. reopening, but with no vaccine not what they need. They need to there are people with money who “The lax linking habits of many So, what’s the answer? Take or proven treatment, the virus know that. would like to put it to good use. fact-based news sites inadvertently advantage of the Internet Archive’s remains a threat, and that threatens Don’t like online arguments? Many of them would define becom- help fake news profit and propa- Wayback Machine. Golding a resurgence of covid-19 cases and This is a fight for your life, so you ing a sponsor of a newspaper, to gate,” Golding writes in his recent outlines the three-step process to more economic reversals. To get should wage it on all fronts. Ask help it offer good journalism and post about the problem. make a URL link informative but through this, newspapers need to your critics to cite specifics, and stay alive, as a good use of their And while there has been a fair harmless. Here are the steps he prove their value, and they need to when they do, remind them that money. amount of advocacy on Twitter outlines in his article: try new things. it’s easy to pick examples of bad Perhaps the best example of that encouraging journalists to post 1. Find a copy of the untrust- The pandemic is spawning rivers journalism from thousands of is the Foothills Forum, a nonprofit screenshots of awful posts rather worthy source in (or save the page of misinformation, an if there reports. As someone who got into in Rappahanock County, Virginia, than sending running up numbers into) a web archive. was ever a time for newspapers to journalism as a youth baseball that finances high-quality, in-depth for the original tweet, there hasn’t 2. Copy the web-archive’s URL reassert their franchise as the main scorekeeper and correspondent, I journalism for the weekly Rappah- been as much attention directed to that you found or saved. finders of fact for democracy, this like to say journalism has a fielding annock News. The county has more the URL dilemma. 3. Paste that URL into your is it. But they must remember to percentage about as good as Major money and more journalists than The problem, in a nutshell, is article. assert that on social media, too, and League players, around .984. By my average, because it’s a little over an that linking to an actual page of an Also, you might want to con- to remind social-media consumers reckoning, we’re fair and accurate hour from Washington, D.C., but offending site helps that site gain sider adding a quick explainer how those media and newspapers 49 times out of 50. We do make its paper has more than four years revenue, boosts its search-engine sentence after the link that let’s differ. two-base errors sometimes, but of experience that could provide results and burnishes its brand. All your audience know what you did. We must repeatedly explain unlike social media and ballplayers, guidance for others. We’ve written with just a simple “insert hyper- Something like: “To avoid spread- that news media offer journalism, we correct them. about it several times on The Rural link” click. ing the information on this site, we which has a discipline of verifica- Newspapers’ survival depends Blog. Some newsrooms have opted to are linking to an inactive archived tion: we emphasize facts, attribute on more than trust. They must See CROSS Page 8 leave out offending URLs all to- version of the website.” May 2021• The Tennessee Press • Page 5 A salute of appreciation to those who wave the editorial banner Last summer’s Grassroots Editor It’s pretty easy to weigh in on na- revisiting an issue and changing She knew that, too, and was my still sits in my stack of journalism tional issues. Yes, you’ll have your an editorial perspective if circum- biggest booster. She admired and publications. The edition an- Community detractors. But the response from stances change. respected the fact that we took nounced the Golden Quill winners ewsroom readers – even those strongly op- • Offer kudos, too: Don’t hesitate strong stances on local issues as an in annual competition sponsored N posed – will likely be less animated to write complimentary editori- institution in the community. She’d by the International Society of Success than if you take issue with the local als. Your credibility will take a suggest ideas, too. As you sit down Weekly Newspaper Editors. human rights or economic devel- hit – and communication with key to write an editorial, keep that at I have a passion for vibrant, lo- opment commission or criticize a individuals will be hindered – if the forefront: Strive for the same cal editorials. I believe energized, Jim Pumarlo decision by the school board. certain bodies are always on the admiration and respect from your local editorials are at the founda- Courageous publishers and receiving end of an editorial rant. community, and you’ll have the tion of energized communities. accolades to a deputy who brought editors take those stances, regard- • Think local: Editorials should foundation for a strong editorial. The Golden Quill recognizes the to light official misconduct in less of potential repercussions. be localized in the same manner as In truth, writing the editorial is top 12 editorials written among the sheriff’s department that was That does not mean advancing news stories are. almost the easiest part. You should nondailies. reinforced by a grand jury inves- positions with reckless abandon. • Write with substance: Effective introduce the subject, present the The competition is a reminder tigation. “For several years, we’ve Editorials, especially those certain editorials, by definition, should pros and cons, and reach a con- that many newspapers – even the been writing stories about how to generate strong reaction, should leave an impression. In contrast, clusion. The challenge is getting smallest – still wave the banner of various law enforcement officers be thoroughly researched and nondescript editorials are easily the ideas, then approaching a topic local editorials. They are a bright in Leadville and Lake County have carefully crafted. forgotten. with facts and self-confidence. It’s note amid a disappointing land- run amok,” she wrote. “… So what Here is one set of principles to I fondly remember my late wife, not as foreboding as you might scape of more and more newspa- a relief it is to be able to talk about guide editorial writing: who I often used as a sounding think if you devote attention to pers giving less attention to their a law enforcement officer who did • Don’t portray yourself as an board. She’d admit, on occasion, your editorial page on a regular ba- editorial consciences. the right thing.” ivory tower: Editorials should that the aggressive local editorials sis and create an editorial mind-set. Among last year’s honorees: Dan Wehmer at the Webster not be positioned as the “correct” could be uncomfortable among The Golden Quill winners should Overall winner Brian Wilson County Citizen in Seymour, Mo., opinion or the final word on a our circle of friends. We once were inspire us all to strive for that edito- at the Star News in Medford, articulated in detail why residents subject. Editorials should present walking downtown about to cross rial excellence. Wis., addressed the death of a should support a levy increase for a well-reasoned argument and paths with a local official who we mentally ill man who was killed the school district. “Over the past conclusion. had taken to task in our coverage. I Jim Pumarlo writes, speaks and after shooting at and injuring a two decades, this newspaper has • Welcome rebuttals: News- could almost hear her saying, “Can provides training on community police officer during a standoff. never endorsed a tax increase of papers should readily publish we turn around?” newsroom success strategies. He is “Legislative leadership cares more any type,” he wrote. “Our tax- contrary opinions. But, as I would remind her, author of “Journalism Primer: A about playing political games than bump tally is zero. Until today.” • Be consistent in stances: many subjects received their edi- Guide to Community News Cover- in having a grown-up discussion The editorials represent the best Editorials should be unwavering torial due at one time or another: age,” “Votes and Quotes: A Guide to about firearms and lack of mental in community journalism. Many in promoting common themes. Democrats and Republicans, Outstanding Election Coverage” and health care,” he wrote. “ … No newsrooms devote immense re- Newspapers often are labeled – downtown and strip mall mer- “Bad News and Good Judgment: action will be perfect, but action sources to coverage of local public and criticized – for promoting a chants, business and labor leaders, A Guide to Reporting on Sensitive needs to take place in order to affairs. Yet they often fall short conservative or liberal agenda. But school administrators and coaches. Issues in Small-Town Newspapers.” prevent the next tragedy.” in the final step: advancing the newspapers that regularly flip-flop We’d never leave the house if we He can be reached at www.pumarlo. Marcia Martinek at the Herald exchange of opinions through local on issues will lose their credibil- wanted to shy away from potential com and welcomes comments and Democrat in Leadville, Colo., gave editorials. ity. At the same time, be open to confrontations. questions at [email protected].

NEWS & MOVES from Page 3 proud of a project that won nation- products, including Main Street include a website We strongly believe cutting-edge al recognition. Nashville, a daily e-newspaper. and e-newsletters. products like these are the future helm at the Johnson City Press “I’m particularly proud of our Our 8-year-old company owns Formatted of media, and we are very proud to when we were looking for an editor staff project ‘Addicted at Birth,’ that and operates 12 local weekly news- and designed share them with you. there,” Thomason said. “She’s a focused on the problem of infants papers along with websites, social like a traditional The focus of our content will lifelong Johnson City resident, so it being born addicted to opioids,” media pages and magazines in eight newspaper, the be local. Coverage topics will just made sense to bring that sense Walters said. “That series took Middle Tennessee counties — Da- e-newspaper can include local government, crime of community to the Press.” seven months to report, involved vidson, Montgomery, Cheatham, be accessed at and courts, schools, growth and Thomason said under Walters’ every member of the staff and won Robertson, Dickson, Sumner, Wilson mainstreet-nash- development, transportation, leadership of the newsroom, Times a couple of national awards — in- and Rutherford — as well as the Fort Gould ville.com and will business, the state legislature, News readers should expect to see cluding the Scripps Howard Award Campbell Courier, the official weekly soon be distribut- health, events, arts and culture, more depth of reporting when top- for Community Journalism.” newspaper of Fort Campbell. ed through an app. It is optimized music, comics and interactive ics call for some deeper digging. Kingsport Times News We also produce podcasts, to provide an outstanding reader puzzles. “They will see reader-centric March 30, 2021 videos, virtual events, radio shows, experience, and the addition of rich We will have a separate sports reporting that focuses on why a e-newsletters and much more. media will bring the e-newspaper section every day with a strong topic matters to both the reader and Ours is a family business. Ellen to life. Interactive features will focus on high school sports. the area,” Thomason said. “And Main Street Nashville and I work in it full time, and some allow readers to adjust a story’s We have hired a 12-person they will see more analytical stories of our eight kids, who range in age text size, tap to watch videos, flip newsroom to produce our con- that give meaning to statistics and debuts as news source from 13 to 28, help as needed when through photo galleries and more. tent. We will also include the best numbers.” From Dave Gould, owner of Main they have time. We have engaged with some work from our 30-person subur- Of his time at the Bristol newspa- Street Media of Tennessee, Gallatin: Main Street Nashville includes a of the best-in-class technology ban newsroom so readers have a per, Walters said the focus was on On behalf of my wife, Ellen, and suite of digital products headlined companies in our industry to make good sense of what is happening community journalism, stories that our company, Main Street Media by a five-day-a-week e-newspaper sure our suite of digital products across the region. hit readers where they live, trying of Tennessee, please allow me to delivered to mobile devices and (website, e-newspaper, email Main Street Media of Tennessee, to go a little deeper, and looking at share with you how excited we computers at 5 a.m. Monday-Fri- newsletters) provide an outstand- Gallatin the big picture. He said he is most are to launch a new suite of digital day. Main Street Nashville also will ing experience for our readers. March 2, 2021 Page 6 • The Tennessee Press • May 2021

The Daily Times in Maryville, Tenn., currently publishes this version of a 6-column graphic each day for the top of 2A and publishes the .jpg via Blox to the COVID-19 section on its web- site. This is the fourth version of the graphic that has evolved largely by reader request and feedback. . . . The line in tiny type directly beneath the “COVID-19 BY THE NUMBERS” chart reads as follows: NOTES: Hospital is total hospitalizations, not current hospitalized cases. | Population based on 2019 estimate used by state. | The one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine appears as Fully Vaccinated and is not reflected in 1st dose only.

READERS from Page 1 that once compact two-column mattered to them. Business and Economic Research. way they do in a newsroom). blurb had evolved into something They didn’t want to scan a When the winter surge began to But when there’s no defined the paper’s home county, its border too long and too cumbersome for quarter page of data to find the few lift and vaccine distribution went answer, as in “that’s the way we’ve counties and the state as a whole. the readers. numbers they wanted. beyond frontline workers to the always done it” and nobody knows It went in the same location every It took a reader’s letter for the When getting a test was a strug- public, the chart evolved again as a reason for it being done that way, day starting with the April 3, 2020, staff to reexamine that now stand- gle, there was much more interest readers became more interested in there’s the opportunity to find the edition. The blurb was intended to ing item of the paper. in how many tests were being how many had been vaccinated as real answer or an opportunity to let readers compare home county The letter from a reader arrived at done and it had been included for they counted down to their turn. make an improvement to some- versus neighbors and versus the The Daily Times in early December. months, long after the staff had val- After being prompted by that thing better. state to let them make their own It didn’t take long for that letter id firsthand experience that when first letter and the conversations judgments regarding their routines and the enclosed clipping of a chart you needed a test, you could get that resulted, asking readers what of daily pandemic life. being used by a weekly paper in one. By the time the first six-col- they thought or wanted to know 2) Readers do have good There were several points where Virginia to land on my desk with a umn graphic appeared in the Dec. helped guide and continues to ideas. conceptions about wearing masks, note from Publisher Bryan Sandmei- guide what is important to be 20 edition, testing wasn’t included One of the casualties in a lot of students in the schools versus re- er and Editor Todd Foster asking, included right now. in the categories, it was no longer a newsrooms in recent years has mote, safer-at-home and other items “Can you do something like this?” In response, transmission rate concern to the reader. been reader trust. We talk a lot of contention could be compared To the copy desk chief, when one was dropped and a section reflect- about how the public view of news- county A versus county B a few of your pubs seeks input upfront ing how many had received first See Sidebar papers and media has suffered. weeks after one change or the other on a graphic element rather than dose and second dose was added in What we don’t always realize was made one place but not another. NIRTSing you, you relish the on top of Page 7 February. That was later refined in is that our trust of readers has The staff was able to take the chance to define the intent and ask March to the current version which also taken a hit. As the fake news googlesheet and with some creativ- why before how. also uses the state’s population What readers said they wanted complaints and accusations of bias ity on using “=CONCATENATE” Turning the why loose in the estimates to provide a percentage of was a chart showing what had have intensified our frustration let the spreadsheet produce all the newsroom, prompted conversations the fully vaccinated. happened that day, over the last on the receiving end has grown blurb based on the numbers added that began asking “What numbers There were two lessons from week, last month and a total and as well. When a simple typo of from that day’s state reports. need to be included?” and “What Maryville’s experience: The Daily Times is a seven-day numbers are readers actually look- they wanted it in categories that an athlete’s name is no longer an a.m. paper. Putting in the numbers ing for?” The reader’s letter provided mattered to them — how many angry mom’s phone call but instead each day was shared out among a a starting point, but it took a little positives, how many active cases, 1) Asking ourselves “why’ splashed on social media as proof group of three reporters with other bit of indirect asking and listening how many hospitalized and how is just as important as it of fake news and our bias against, staff able to use a help page that to sort out what was possible from many had died. is to ask the subject of an well, something, (it’s often difficult Fortunately, the staff had all provided the links to the state’s the data available and what readers interview. to follow the rambling wreck of ex- COVID-19 portal and other stat were actually looking for when they that data already available in that planation past the fact they believe resources along with instructions looked at the numbers. googlesheet. Using some query A reporter asked why and the the paper intentionally misspelled on downloading and explanations There was a realization that functions, a table was created that blurb was born. A reader asked the child’s name) we tend to start of some of the quirks that began to while in some ways readers had provided the numbers in a format why and in turn the paper’s lead- tuning out all the readers as noise. appear in the data due to revisions become numb to the numbers, reflecting the daily value, the last ership asked why, and the graphic Our readers are our customers, by the state. In a rough count, half they had also become extremely seven days, the last 30 days and a was born to replace the blurb. and the reason we write, design, the design desk, the three-man well-versed in pandemic terms. No total. It then became a matter of Asking ourselves why we do sell ads, etc. We can’t let a loud sports department and every re- matter their belief on validity and finding the simplest way to get that things a certain way is always an minority, that often aren’t even porter ended up doing the numbers source, eight months of COVID-19 table into a format that worked best opportunity. There’s either a defined our readers, deafen us to what the at least once over the last year. coverage had educated the readers for print and web uses. answer, such as “because that’s AP average reader actually desires. As new data points became vail- and that level of understanding had Another reader request in Style” or “because our rulesets in able over summer and fall, terms eliminated some of the need to pro- January led to the inclusion of the Blox look for that in the slug,” which Marcus Fitzsimmons is the copy like Active Case County and Trans- vide continual context in text form. transmission rate in each county is expanding your career knowledge desk chief at Adams Publishing’s mission Rate and Hospitalization They just wanted the numbers. that was being calculated by the base (or to paraphrase Star Trek II, design center for southeastern Rate were added to the blurb. And They just wanted the ones that University of Tennessee Center for understanding why things work the Tennessee. May 2021• The Tennessee Press • Page 7

late proofing are more time-con- story in each edition. You’ll also week just like it. The end result sonal barometer, I fall back on the BUT WHAT ABOUT? suming to fix. This hasn’t been an need your hub on board, as they was so much cleaner, that rather adage “write like your mother will (Sidebar continuation from Page 6) issue often but has once or twice will have a perspective for what than making the chart a once-a- read it.” Mom’s 70-something with created some hurried fixes and re- works best in BLOX. week addition, it just replaced the subscriptions to four papers. If she How did it work out in export of a new .jpg file to replace daily blurb. says text is too small, it’s too small. BLOX? the old photo in Blox. The Set Up How do you know when What is NIRTS? The blurb was simply a story Is it hard to replicate? The table text was based on the asset and it was directed by slug paper’s existing paragraph styles to change? Need the impossible right this to a ruleset that formatted it like The main place that costs time for breakout box text, cutlines In many cases the readers let the second. Refers to requests for a a Maryville breakout box. (The is in building the spreadsheet and and breakout head so it would paper know. When the current ver- graphic element when that edition same basic style your seeing in this getting all the data added. Some appear as a native element and not sion went into print, it took about is hours from being off the floor. states have very different reports coming from an outside source. breakout.) At first it was simple but a week before a reader called with Tech note by the end, the print version was than are provided by Tennessee. The color was based on the press. a question about if the vaccination using color to signal areas and it If your state provides county level The press printing for MDT tends totals meant 1st dose or 2nd and The chart data is copied out didn’t display nearly as clean on- data as either a spreadsheet or to get the C and M plates synced what about the one-dose J&J? That of googlesheets and put in Apple line as it did in print. The current where there’s an archive to get up before the Y. So there was no Y resulted in the current formatting Numbers using match style and graphic is a photo asset by the time past reports, the process of orga- used in the table. to clarify. Asking staff what they then exported as a file for Blox. nizing the data is straight forward. it goes into BLOX. It’s much easier What about this letter? hear, asking circulation what they Numbers has CMYK controls for users to find and share since Customizing it to what your pa- get on the phone and just listening so the black value could be set as a photo it has a preview. On the per’s readers want, that’s the trick. The reader sent the paper to what readers are talking about to 0:0:0:100 to avoid full color print page it’s much easier to man- A copy of Maryville’s sheet can a clipped out graphic from a help. (Eavesdropping isn’t polite, black used by many spreadsheet age in most regards. The downside provide a template. Staffing wise weekly paper with a note asking but just listening in public can be programs. its less time than a status update is any errors that get through to the if Maryville could do a chart each extremely informative.) As a per- - Fitzsimmons

TPA MEMBER COVERAGE SHOWCASE: Main Street Media of Tennessee, Gallatin ‘God wasn’t done with me’: One man’s brush with death MONTE HALE, JR. “I went to TrustPoint (Hospital) I would recommend them to any- Main Street Media, Gallatin and those people are awesome,” body. Being a coach myself, I would November 26, 2020 Dotson said. “They were great have cut myself from my team, but with the speech therapy, physical Ben Dotson was headed to Cool they pushed me and pushed me like therapy and OT therapy. I had a Springs Mall with his birthday girl, I did my kids. My family and my C.J., on June 19, 2020. tracheotomy down my throat to daughter were my motivation.” After merging onto Interstate help me breath. 65 off I-840, his life would change “They busted my butt pretty good. See CRASH Page 8 forever. “She was in the backseat; it was my daughter’s fifth birthday,” Dotson said. “I was just getting onto I-65 and an 18-wheeler came over on me from what they tell me.” In a flash, Dotson’s truck was mangled. It had to be cut open to safely get him out, and he was transported to Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital in Murfreesboro. Soon afterward, he was taken by LifeFlight to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. “(My daughter) didn’t have a scratch,” Dotson said. “She was in the backseat in her car seat and Submitted everything happened on the driver’s side. Just so blessed. I was basically An 18-wheel truck rolled over onto Ben Dotson’s truck on I-65 in June in a coma five and a half weeks and 2020. The former Siegel boys basketball coach as of November 2020 was on my back eight weeks total. still recovering from his injuries. His 5-year-old daughter who was sitting “The only thing broke was my in the back seat was unhurt. head. They cut from ear to ear, Celebrating 150 years pulled my face down and worked Dotson defied a lot of odds The former Siegel boys’ basket- on me a little. They said a couple along the way and was later taken ball coach, who took the Stars to of serving the of millimeters left or right I’d been to TrustPoint Hospital to begin four state tournaments in eight a vegetable, or a couple of milli- therapy. years and two Final Four appear- newspapers of Tennessee meters either way I would have ances between 2008-2016, admits been dead.” The road to recovery he wasn’t the best of patients. Page 8 • The Tennessee Press • May 2021

CRASH from Page 7 my players wished that part of June,” said Ben, whose fa- have endured so much more. would have been the ther, Guy Sr., passed away in 2018. “It hasn’t been good, but what Like a basketball season, it has case back in the day. The “When I had my wreck, he was in Guy Jr. and his wife (Nicole) did been a grind for Dotson as he tries emails, the texts, I don’t and out of the hospital. They buried do is reintroduce me to Jesus on to return to normalcy. know if I could have him when I was in a coma. When I January 6,” Ben said, reflecting on “Physically, I’m doing much bet- gotten through it without came out of the coma, I would ask his survival and recovery. “They ter. Mentally, all of the brain trauma them. I got an email the every day how is Guy Jr. doing. (My introduced my daughter to Him still slows me down,” Dotson said. other day from a player family) would say that he didn’t and I’ve always got that. “I’m good for about 20 or 25 min- thanking me for teaching have a good day today, or they “He took me Bible shopping and utes before I just stop and rest. It’s him how to become a would say he had a good day today. we got in the car after and prayed. just the pressure (on the brain). It man. Stuff like that is “When I went to TrustPoint I’m a better person because of big doesn’t really hurt. I don’t need my better than any champi- where he had been, my sister Guy and little Guy. Guy Jr. had a walker as much. I call it an adult onship. It just gives you a (Bethe) pulled me aside to tell me knack of knowing what was need- stroller. I’ve just been blessed.” reason, you know? Guy Jr. had passed. He had been ed to help and fix people. During Dotson’s recovery, he “My family has been there and my family didn’t want “I asked my minister and have missed some emotional moments, there every day,” he con- anyone there to tell me. I learned talked at Bible study about things. I including his daughter’s first day of tinued. “I’m way ahead don’t know how my family would school. about 30 seconds before I went have done losing two. I didn’t “She started kindergarten, and of where I should be and there. know why I survived.” her first day of school I’m lying that’s because of my fami- “They streamed his funeral Every day is still a challenge for flat on my back and can’t move,” ly, friends, email and texts. because of the COVID stuff. I’m not Dotson, but every day presents he recalled. “I’ve got pictures and When I got to TrustPoint going to watch it by myself. I don’t another eason to be thankful. videos, but still . . . in July, I had over 200 want to reopen wounds. I’ll even- texts. It took me a week to tually see it but I don’t want to ask At first, Dotson wondered at “Every time I talk to her I get Submitted teary-eyed. The very first time we read them all. I still can’t Von (his brother) to watch it either. times why he survived the horrific talked, the first 10 minutes were me Former Siegel boys basketball coach Ben say enough about Trust- I’m so thankful that I survived.” accident back on June 19, but and her crying. When you have a Dotson took the Stars to four state tourna- Point. Those people really he eventually came up with the 5-year-old telling you it’s going to ments and two Final Four appearances in busted my tail.” The spiritual side reason. be OK . . . I just don’t know what eight years. He was involved in a near-fatal Dotson’s difficulties “God wasn’t done with me,” to say about that. I’m totally bless- car accident in June 2020. were compounded before This year has been a difficult year Dotson said. “I know he has a plan ed and thank the Lord. I can get he got to TrustPoint, even for many, but some like Dotson for me.” up now and use the restroom and together every day and every night. though he didn’t know it. get dressed on my own — just the I thank Jesus every day. My voice is His older brother, Guy Jr., died of little things you take for granted. I still raspy and I have a hole in neck cancer July 3 while Ben was still in didn’t do anything on my own until that will eventually close up. a coma. the middle of September. We pray “I can’t scream anymore. I know “Guy got really sick at the first

CROSS from Page 4 advertising during the pandemic. In presidential candidate Franklin D. Kentucky, local governments have Roosevelt called for “bold, per- Philanthropists often want to help financed sample-copy editions of sistent experimentation.” students, and that includes student weeklies loaded with information That’s not something for which journalists. When many University about the coronavirus and prevent- newspapers are known, especially of Missouri journalism students’ ing covid-19, and there is even more community papers, but they’d do internships fell through, faculty reason to do that now, as we need well to follow it. After all, FDR’s members Kathy Kiely and Damon to take care to prevent a resurgence. line was written by a newspaper Kiesow created a pop-up newsroom Now also might be a good time reporter, Ernest K. Lindley of the to produce stories for news outlets for a makeover, to spur single-co- strongly Republican New York across the state, with students paid py sales. Think about a magazine Herald Tribune. When Lindley and with funds from the school, the format like The Canadian Record other reporters chided him about Knight Foundation and alumnus in Texas, which runs a compelling the lack of zing in his pre-conven- Walt Potter. As paid internships color photo on the front with blurbs tion remarks, FDR challenged them May 20 • Free to TPA Members have become less common, stu- about major features. It goes for to draft a speech. “Lindley took the dents are accepting unpaid intern- $1.50 a copy, and folks in Hemphill bait,” wrote presidential historian ships at community papers, and the County snap it up, because they James MacGregor Burns, and bold, relationship is mutually beneficial. know it’s good journalism. persistent experimentation helped Universities can help in other Many other ideas are out there, save the country. It might save ways. There is scant published in Pub Aux, state press groups and newspapers, too. research about community news- the International Society of Weekly papers, and state press associations Newspaper Editors’ online discus- Al Cross edited and managed or newspaper groups should get sion board and monthly newsletter. rural newspapers before covering researchers to examine the rela- The May edition had ideas on politics for the Louisville Courier tionships of community papers and advertising, covering covid-19, on- Journal and serving as president of Contact TPA for the free code: [email protected] their audiences – including why line journalism, dealing with social the Society of Professional Journal- they are losing readers and how media and helping communities get ists. He is the extension professor of they might get them back. through the crisis. journalism at the University of Ken- Another potential source of help Ideas are what we need. Not all tucky and director of its Institute for is government – not the direct will work, but our industry is at Rural Journalism and Community subsidies that are anathema to a juncture much like the bottom Issues, which publishes the Rural most journalists, but public-service of the Great Depression, when Blog at http://irjci.blogspot.com. May 2021 • The Tennessee Press • Page 9

Obituaries Nash Armstrong strong also studied at Tusculum Col- catch all the errors and do the work Gail Grammer Atkins ship and board lege and the University of Tennes- that no one else would raise their capacities with The WVLT newsroom is mourn- see-Knoxville, where he served as hand for.”Create Account Gail Grammer Atkins passed the Tennessee ing the death of Nash Armstrong, the editor-in-chief of The Daily Beacon. Armstrong’s colleagues at WVLT away on April 10, 2021. Press Association, station’s assistant news director, after He continued reporting in his describe him as an avid golfer who She was born on November 9, Tennessee Press a single-car crash Sunday morning, community “volunteered to work every holiday 1941 in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Service and TPA April 18, in West Knoxville. after graduation. but always took vacation to watch to F.A. Grammer and Bettye Dyke Foundation. Mrs. Armstrong, 33, worked with the Known as “the the Masters Golf Tournament.” He Grammer. A graduate of Chatta- Atkins often station since 2013 and reported for Swiss Army also enjoyed watching professional nooga High School, she attended accompanied her news outlets across East Tennessee knife of the wrestling, working alongside his Austin Peay State University and Atkins husband to TPA his entire career. Jasmine Hardin, newsroom,” Arm- rescue dog Brady, grilling for the University of Tennessee. She was a conventions and the station’s general manager, told strong settled at WVLT team at company cookouts retired registered nurse. was well-known throughout the Knox News that Armstrong’s love WVLT after stints and cheering on the Tennessee She is preceded in death by her statewide newspaper community in for East Tennessee and knack for at The Green- Volunteers. parents and daughter, Jennifer her own right. making others feel at home here Armstrong eville Sun, the Armstrong’s family is making Gail Atkins. She is survived by her A Celebration of life for Mrs. will be remembered by colleagues. Knoxville News funeral arrangements, and WVLT husband of nearly 60 years, Bob Atkins was to be held on the after- Hardin said Armstrong always Sentinel and WATE. Armstrong was employees will plan a memorial for Atkins; daughters Tracey (Sterling) noon of Thursday, April 15, 2021 at volunteered to work holidays so revered by his coworkers, allow- Armstrong in the coming days. van der Spuy and Jill (Stephen) Hendersonville Funeral Home with employees could visit home, and if ing him to rise through the ranks “When you work in news, we Anderson; grandchildren Zachary Pastor Bruce Chesser officiating. they couldn’t travel home, Arm- quickly. He was promoted from have to run to the incident and Peck, Jansen van der Spuy, Ally Pallbearers were her sons-in-law, strong would insist on cooking executive producer to managing report it with facts quickly and Anderson, Connor Peck, and Jenna grandsons and dear friend Otis them a meal and giving them good editor before becoming the assistant accurately. But then when it’s one Anderson; sister Judi Grammer Hackney. A visitation was held company. Despite being offered news director in 2018. of your own, it’s a very different Sartain. prior to the service. multiple promotions in other mar- In 2020, Armstrong was recog- process,” Hardin said. “For some of Her husband Bob’s many In lieu of flowers the family kets, Armstrong “made it clear this nized again for his work and was our employees, this is the first time leadership and innovative roles in has requested that donations be was his home and this is where he named Employee of the Year. that they’ve been through that, but the newspaper industry include made to Habilitation and Training wanted to stay.” “He could do everything,” Hardin even for those of us who’ve been publisher and group president Services (H.A.T.S) 545 Airport Armstrong’s passion for jour- said. “It’s going to take us weeks or around a long time, it’s definitely of Middle Tennessee Publishing Rd, Gallatin, TN 37066. (615) nalism started while he attended months to figure out what he knew the most substantial loss.” Company and vice president of 451-0974. Greeneville High School and wrote that no one else knew how to do Knoxville News Sentinel the Leaf-Chronicle Company. He Hendersonville Standard for the school newspaper. Arm- because he was the guy who would April 19, 2021 has also served in various leader- April 14, 2021 Phillips to retire after 41 years of service with The News-Democrat Magic Valley Publishing Com- staff and the of so many great people as we all production assistant. The paper in Camden. MVP President Dennis pany (MVP), publishers of The community and I stressed to meet our deadlines, was owned by Multi-Media Cor- Richardson retained Phillips in News-Democrat and The Shopper’s wish him well in seeing my advertising clients reg- poration at that time. The Shop- the same position, where he has Guide, announces the retirement his well-deserved ularly, hearing subscriber/reader per’s Guide, owned by Bill and directed the weekly operation of Publisher and General Manager retirement.” feedback, good or bad, and con- Betty Haxton of Waverly, was the until now. Ward Phillips. Phillips has necting with the public at so many competing publication. Ultimately Magic Valley Publishing Although an exact departure been associated events, as we have tried to let our the Haxtons would purchase The April 26, 2021 date had not been determined as with these pub- readers see themselves through News-Democrat from Multi-Media of this publication’s deadline, MVP lications since our pages each week. This career in 1982 and Ridings and Phillips officials are weighing options for Phillips 1980, when he has been a wonderful experience, joined them in producing both filling the vacancy soon. Phillips returned to his but I do look forward to a slower publications. said, “After much thought and hometown of Waverly, following a schedule and more time at home The Haxtons sold both publica- consideration in coming to this 3-year employment with Newspa- with Marilyn and our family.” tions to Sam and Betty Kennedy, decision, I wanted to give Magic per Printing Corporation (NPC) in Phillips graduated from Middle owners of Kennedy Newspapers The Tennessee Press Valley Publishing the time they Nashville. Tennessee State University in 1976 Company, Inc. a Columbia, Tenn. Association Foundation need to assure a smooth transition Phillips said, “Over the 44 years with a B.S degree in mass commu- based company, with Ridings also gratefully acknowledges here, and so I will remain flexible of my newspaper career much nications and public relations. He buying shares in the ownership. a contribution with my personal timetable. I have has changed in the day-to-day began his professional newspaper Ridings sold his shares back to every faith and confidence that operation of producing a weekly career at NPC, which served, at Kennedy and retired in 2012 and In memory of MVP will make the best decision community newspaper, as well as that time, as the business agent for recommended Phillips as his for our readers, advertisers and, the Shopper. So many technologi- The Tennessean and The Nash- replacement as Publisher and Gen- above all, our staff as they deter- cal advancements, production pro- ville Banner daily newspapers in eral Manager; a recommendation Gail Atkins mine who will assume the reins cedure transitions and communi- 1976. He was later added to the Sam Kennedy agreed with, and he here.” cation avenues have occurred, and display advertising sales staff and immediately promoted Phillips to given in fond In reference to Phillips’ retire- I’m sure will continue to evolve. was ultimately promoted to Sales that position. remembrance by ment, MVP President Dennis But the thing that has remained Supervisor over the automotive Following the passing of Sam Richardson said, “Ward is one of a consistent for me are the countless advertising group,. Kennedy, his wife Betty Kennedy Michael Williams and kind. I remember the day that he relationships built with the good Bill Ridings, who was the and the Kennedy family sold the The Williams Family started work with the News-Dem- people of Humphreys County. Publisher of The News-Democrat publications in 2018 to its present ocrat and the Shopper’s News. I “I have enjoyed, more than I at that time, hired Phillips in 1980, owners, Magic Valley Publishing The Paris Post-Intelligencer am sure he will be missed by the can express, working alongside as an advertising salesman and Company (MVP), headquartered Page 10 • The Tennessee Press • May 2021 Local news outlets can help communities navigate vaccination process My mother was frustrated. At county health department. (The bridge gaps in our coverage and to vor Island scramble for shots. Lo- 78, she was next in line for the Local CDC only recently released its up- leverage their unique social media cal media outlets are covering that COVID-19 vaccine under state guid- dated vaccine finder tool to help.) and digital storytelling skills. We story well but need to do more. ance in Illinois, but like so many Matters While I don’t expect the skeleton are now more than a year into the We can consolidate information in seniors, she was having difficulty local news outlets to produce an in- pandemic, and many of our home- one place on our websites. We can navigating the various websites teractive tool like the one NPR cre- town college students are still at provide maps. and phone lines to secure an ap- ated that helps people in every state home and in need of professional We also need to help our com- pointment. When she finally got on Jackie Spinner find appointments, the pandemic experience and who would relish munities tackle the problem of dis- a waiting list at the local hospital, provides an opportunity for us to the opportunity to help a local tributions by looking at places that she found out there were at least first shot. collaborate to do more than simply media outlet build an interactive have succeeded and by examining 1,000 people in front of her. Throughout her scramble to find report on the state of affairs. chart or graphic that might help and understanding data evidence. After posting about it on social an appointment, which included Since 2018, more people in our their grandparents find a vaccine Most of all, we can do it void of media, friends responded with being turned away at a county communities have been getting appointment. the politicization that has gripped stories about their own struggles vaccination site after erroneously their news from social media than We don’t need web development so much of the discourse in our to help their parents get a covet- thinking she had made one, I kept from print newspapers, accord- experts on our staff to pull this country around the coronavirus ed vaccination slot. High school wondering what role local news ing to the Pew Research Center. off. There are free and low-cost and the COVID vaccine. We can and grade school friends from could have played in helping her Many people I know got vaccine publishing tools like ZeeMaps give it to our readers straight. my hometown in Central Illi- and others navigate the process. appointments after following tips and StoryMap JS that we can use nois reached out with tips about While her local newspaper and from neighborhood list-serves to produce interactives that help This story first appeared in the waiting lists and pharmacies TV stations did a good job report- and Facebook groups. My mom’s people find vaccine appointments. March 2021 edition of Publisher’s with the vaccine. She finally got ing on who was eligible and also relationship with “the news” has Journalism schools like mine are Auxiliary, and is republished here an appointment in another town the problems with those people deteriorated as it became politi- teaching these tools to our stu- with the permission of its author, about an hour away, but then that getting vaccinated, I couldn’t find cized. But she still watches local dents. This is the kind of virtual Jackie Spinner. A former staff was abruptly cancelled when the a single interactive map or tool TV news and expressed frustration project that publishers could do writer for The Washington Post, pharmacy ran out of supply. that might have helped her see all that it wasn’t more helpful. in collaboration with journalism Spinner is the editor of Gateway In the end, it was a phone call of the places distributing vaccines. Last year I wrote about the students at a nearby institution. Journalism Review and an associ- from my 85-year-old aunt that en- I couldn’t find step-by-step video unique opportunity the pandemic The vaccine distribution, vary- ate professor at Columbia College abled her to find an appointment instructions for navigating the has given local news outlets to ing state guidance and eligibility Chicago. Follow her on Twitter @ at a local pharmacy and get her sign-up at local pharmacies or the recruit journalism students to requirements have created a Survi- jackiespinner. Finding the story in the legals can sometimes be a winner

SUBMITTED The Journal won the award for Turns out the residents of Divide earlier this summer is one of the listed Dollar General as the appli- Public Notice Resource Center a story by veteran reporter Brad County aren’t as relaxed as their most unusual public-notice stories cant, instead of the company that September 1, 2020 Nygaard — Wehrman’s husband county attorney about changing we’ve ever read. It focused squarely planned to develop the property Small towns are different. — based on what was ostensibly a election procedures. “We heard on the deficiency of a notice for a Take Crosby, North Dakota, run-of-the-mill notice about a Nov. a lot of, ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix public hearing on zoning changes See LEGALS Page 11 population 1,300, for instance. It’s 21, 2019, meeting of the Divide it,’ at the meeting,” says Nygaard. relating to the potential construction located in the upper northwest County Commission. Crosby is the When the commission chairman of a Dollar General store in Crosby. corner of the state, approximate- county seat. asked, “How many here are in “The notice does not inform Opportunity: Newspaper ly 35 miles east of Montana and The notice informed citizens that favor of not having districts?”, not the public the hearing relates to a Leadership Role six miles south of the Canadian the purpose of the meeting was to one of the attendees said a word. proposed change from agricultural Seeking an energetic, motivated leader border. Many folks there have an seek public input to determine if And that was the end of Divide to commercial zoning, or that it for a role in beautiful Middle Tennessee. extraordinary interest in the pub- the county should abolish electoral County’s casual flirtation with will involve approval of a plat, The successful candidate will have lic notices published in the local districts, which might change who new election procedures. or subdivision, of the property,” responsibilities for revenue production paper, the Journal. is eligible to run for a seat on the The Journal’s award-winning wrote Nygaard. The notice also “Sometimes we get calls from commission. Nygaard’s front-page story about the meeting notice failed to “indicate the scope or size (newspaper, digital, event and niche) as people aware of something happen- story questioned whether the coun- wasn’t an outlier. The paper writes of the project” or “advise citizens well as significant community relations ing in town and wondering why a ty had the authority to change its frequently about information con- they have the right to view the and community leadership role. Ensuring notice about it wasn’t published in election procedures by resolution, tained in the notices within its pag- application or request copies of delivery of financial goals, both revenue the paper,” says Cecile Wehrman, the mechanism recommended by es. An article by Nygaard published it,” he reported. And it mistakenly and expense, is integral to the position. the Journal’s editor and publisher. County Attorney Seymour Jordan. Candidates must have related managerial With a readership so attuned to “My suggestion is to have a public and revenue production experience. This official notice, perhaps it’s fitting meeting and see what happens,” Tennessee Press Service market leader will work to ensure that this the Journal won the 2020 PNRC said Jordan, shrugging off con- Advertising Placement county-seat operation remains the prima- Public Notice Journalism Contest. cerns about his legal analysis. “You ry and most relevant source for informa- Honorary public-notice reporting can always put it to a vote if people Snapshot tion in the market and supports the com Hall-of-Famer Jim Lockwood, of don’t like the resolution.” munity we serve. Position is salaried with the Times-Tribune in Scranton, Pa., Following the Journal’s front- ROP: Networks: full benefits and is part of a great team of and the Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald, page alert, about 20 people attend- March 2021 $62,925 $19,423 media professionals providing you with were awarded second- and third- ed the meeting — a huge turnout place, respectively. The winners for this county of 2,300 people, Year* as of March 31 $366,451 $72,551 financial, HR, production and distribution were announced by the National according to Nygaard and Wehr- support. Please send resume and salary Newspaper Association, which man. “Folks drove in from all over * The TPS Fiscal Year runs Dec. 1 through Nov. 30 requirements to [email protected]. administers the competition. the county,” Nygaard says. May 2021• The Tennessee Press • Page 11 2021 showing itself as year of reckoning for newspaper publishers The “good old days,” when the of stressful financial and employ- customed to staying close to home news, support the community, hometown newspaper was often Get ment issues. and buying, when possible, locally. lift the afflicted and afflict the the only game in town, are gone In the future, the same approach There has been an increased focus self-serving. Gone are the opinion forever. New digital platforms are Real to multi-paper centralization on family, health and home. pages, heartwarming stories of arriving, and sometimes disap- could be applied to other essential But buyers have also learned to social interaction, under-the-mi- pearing, quicker than an editor can services: accounting, billing, ad de- be more selective and restrained. croscope investigations of local shout “stop the press.” sign, editing, page design, circula- Advertising will have to be more government, coverage of non-scho- But digital competition isn’t Peter W. Wagner tion management and postal paper educational and persuasive. Local lastic sports and in-depth reporting just upsetting the newspaper and work, for example. The time could businesses are going to need more on health, business and education. shopper industry. Small town and interest in operating a paper for the come when smaller publication ed- help in designing attractive layouts In their place are far too many major market radio stations, metro reason it was established but only itors and publishers choose to out- as well as writing detailed copy canned news releases. television stations and even the for what profit it can return. source areas difficult for them and that will to an actual sale. Readers grew up expecting their local cable services are also discov- But here is the truth. The nay- concentrate on reporting, writing, Additionally, community papers hometown paper would always ering this to be a time of significant sayers declared radio was dead sales or other disciplines they enjoy are going to find themselves have all the details about all that financial crisis. when television blossomed into most. As with the introduction of creating and managing more is happening in their community. Who would have thought, 10 existence. However, according to central printing, these additional actual, virtual and hybrid events They can get headlines, rumors years ago, that America’s host or FCC records, there are still 30,367 centralized services could result to drive advertising sales as well as and tidbits from the internet and popular radios stations would lose FM and AM radio stations in the in reduced expenses and greater drive buyers to their community. broadcast media; but they expect many of their once loyal listeners United States today. And in many efficiency for all size publications. The future for print is all about to get the details and the facts from to SiriusXM, Pandora, Amazon regions a single metro television IMPROVED CONTENT: Being service. Sales teams and creative their local paper. Music, Apple Music and Spotify? Or operation now broadcasts as many an excellent source of “all that’s’ departments are going to have to There are many more ways that traditional network program- as four networks — including one local” will no longer be enough. overdeliver to succeed. That means hometown papers can reestablish ming and local television affiliates that is nothing but decades-old Readers are going to demand, more providing even more original pro- themselves with community. News- would lose a huge percentage of shows — with about the same size top-quality content. Newspapers motions and ad ideas and investing paper websites are going to have their viewers to direct streaming staff as when they were home to and shoppers will never “save them- the time to make every ad the best to expand the variety of what they competition like Netflix, Hulu, only one. It’s called reducing cost selves into success.” Content alone it can possibly be. offer while actually going live, for Sling, Virgo, Disney Plus, YouTube and maximizing revenue. will drive change and growth. DIVERSIFICATION: Wise example. Shoppers are going to find and Crackle? Newspapers and shoppers have But change takes talent and fresh publishers are going to need to new opportunities in areas where And most surprising, who would one exceptional advantage over ideas. Thankfully, for community diversify their strategies, business the local newspaper ceases pub- have suspected that Google and Google, Facebook, streaming chan- papers, there are many excellent model and marketing. That might lication. They’ll supplement their Facebook would take so many nels and commercial television reporters and editors looking to be something as simple as turning weekly advertising paper by produc- dollars away from all earlier forms operations: a variety and abun- move from some corporate daily open floor space into a paperback ing, with freelance writers, lucrative of advertising in big and small dance of important and valuable to a weekly where they can feel book store or digital print center. bonus sections honoring that year’s markets? local news. secure and can excel. Or it might mean offering local graduates or promoting the commu- The truth is newspaper and Still, there are some key consid- Finally, paid and free distribu- businesses regular material for their nity’s annual celebration. shopper publishers have some erations that publishers, editors tion publications will need to be Facebook page or even professional Yes, there will be many changes difficult challenges ahead of them. and investors need to consider to more nimble in 2021 if they are design for their websites. I know of in 2021. Some will seem disastrous, Small markets have lost many of stay vital and profitable this year going to survive. From expanding one paper that turned their old press but many will be create exciting their larger advertisers. Younger and the years ahead. their news coverage to responding area into a coffee shop. It created ex- new revenue opportunities and audiences appear to have no inter- GREATER UNIFICATION: Fifty to an advertising sales opportunity, ceptional new traffic and provided lead to new heights of community est in reading news in a printed years ago, the newspaper industry publishers will need to learn to a great opportunity for their news involvement. form. The hawkers of the internet was energized by the establishment innovate faster. team to mix and mingle with the have convinced many advertisers of central printing plants. Many APPROACH TO ADVERTISING paper’s readers. Peter W. Wagner is founder and that “print is dead.” The investment were cooperatives, but almost all SALES: The COVID-19 lockdown READER SATISFACTION: Too publisher of the award winning groups controlling the nation’s reached out to print smaller publi- has changed the mindset of many many papers have forgotten that Sheldon, IA, N’West Iowa REVIEW largest newspaper chains have no cations, relieving those publishers Americans. We have become ac- they exist primarily to report the and 13 additional publications.

LEGALS from Page 10 learn that local government offi- says Wehrman. “In my mind, it category in the Pennsylvania whether the Roosevelt (Minn.) cials are not always happy with ties back to the lack of account- NewsMedia Association’s annual City Council had properly noticed and lease it to the retailer. Nygaard and Wehrman despite ability on the federal level. We’ve journalism contest every year a special meeting. The incident The story also noted the prop- their helpful advice. always had a somewhat adversar- since it was first included in the itself and the Herald’s ensuing erty at issue had been annexed by “This isn’t our first rodeo,” ial relationship with some public competition in 2014. This year’s coverage led to the resignations the city last year during a previous notes Wehrman, who has been at officials, but these days it seems package of articles included in of the city administrator and a council meeting, but the annex- the Journal for 20 years and also the national attacks on the press Lockwood’s entry was even larger councilman. And all but one of the ation had not yet been recorded. owns the Tioga Tribune, published have come home to roost in a local than usual, with 26 separate sto- remaining council members were “The Journal contacted city about 50 miles southeast of Crosby. attitude among elected officials ries covering topics ranging from defeated in the following election attorney Seymour Jordan by email “When we see a notice, we may al- that they don’t have to answer to the disposal of landfill “garbage by candidates who stressed the last week making him aware of ready have prior experience with it. the press. They forget that’s the juice” to city employee gas-card issue of transparency. the apparent deficiencies in the I was here when they did it before.” same as saying what the public usage and the potential building of hearing notice, but no further And when they see something thinks doesn’t matter.” a homeless shelter. The Public Notice Resource corrections or additions had been wrong with a notice they let their Our second-place winner, Jim Third place went to the Grand Center is a nonprofit, charitable received as of press time,” wrote clients know. But public officials Lockwood, won the award in 2015 Forks Herald for its coverage of organization that provides research Nygaard. (Jordan is the attorney often ignore their concerns. “This and has come in second place in a reporter from a different paper and education about effective pub- for both the city and county.) type of disregard is becoming every PNRC contest since then. who faced threats and abuse from lic notice. You may not be surprised to more apparent in recent months,” He has also won the public notice city officials after questioning Page 12 • The Tennessee Press • May 2021 Images from April 16 TPA spring coffee break via Zoom

All photos by Mike Towle Clint Confehr, The Tennessee Krista Etter, Grainger Today, Bean Jana Thomasson, The Mountain Andrew Oppman, Middle Alison Gerber, Chattanooga Times Tribune, Nashville Station Press, Sevierville Tennessee State University. Free Press

Marcus Fitzsimmons, APG Design Chris Vass, Chattanooga Times Carol Daniels, executive director, Jimmy Hart, Middle Tennessee Daniel Richardson, TPA president, Center/The Daily Times, Maryville Free Press Tennessee Press Association. State University Carroll County News Leader, Huntingdon

Sara Jane Locke, The Herald News, Charles Primm, University of Ten- Mary Ella Hazelwood, Tennessee Darrell Richardson, The Daily Rebecca Moats, Tennessee Press Dayton nessee, Knoxville Press Service Times, Maryville Service

TPA thanks everyone who participated in the Spring Coffee Break on April 16. And, congratulations to Marcus Fitzsimmons of the APG Design Center and Paul Mauney of The Greeneville Sun. They were the winners of the prize drawings from among the participants. Paul Mauney, The Greeneville Sun, Alison Gerber, again, this time Hail, hail, the gang’s all here . . . well, most of it anyway, as things got Each winner received a $25 Adams Publishing with a feline friend ready to wrap up on the April 16 TPA morning coffee. gas gift card.