The Oklahoma Publisher Official Publication of the Oklahoma Press Association www.OkPress.com Vol. 87, No. 3 www.Facebook.com/okpress 16 Pages • March 2016 INSIDE Subscription drives give back to community Two Oklahoma newspapers processes, overall vetting ser- HALL OF FAME: Meet the are going above and beyond to vices, in addition to new proj- nine journalists who will be help their community, and get ects such as an expanded cat inducted into the Oklahoma newspaper subscribers in the room. Journalism Hall of Fame on process. Owasso City Manager War- April 28. The Owasso Reporter and ren Lehr said he appreciates PAGE 6 the Wagoner Tribune are hold- the Owasso Reporter selecting ing subscription drives. Both the Animal Shelter to receive PHONE APPS: A list of papers sent out 1,000 newspa- donations. practical and useful mobile pers free to non-subscribers for “I know our Animal Shelter reporting apps for journalists. about a month. staff takes great pride in its PAGE 9 The Owasso Reporter is humane care of stray animals donating half a $52 yearly sub- and in making every effort to TOP 10 LIST: Design scription to the Owasso Animal find homes for as many as pos- consultant Ed Henninger’s tips Shelter to improve its facilities sible,” Warren said. for a successful newspaper. and better care for animals in The Wagoner Tribune is PAGE 15 the area. using its subscription drive to “We’re proud of our paper, benefit the Wagoner Education DONATE TO ONF to receive and we want people who aren’t Foundation. this Will Rogers print. Details at currently subscribed to the For a limited time, new read- OkPress.com/will-rogers. paper to see it,” said Jamey ers and current subscribers can Honeycutt, publisher of the subscribe to the Tribune for Reporter. “We wanted to step $52 a year, with $26 going to the up and do our part to help the foundation. Owasso Animal Shelter.” The subscription includes “I’m excited about this unlimited access to the paper’s because it’ll give the shelter a website and e-edition, as well chance to invest in some of our as being delivered to the front unwanted pet population,” said door every Wednesday morn- Animal Control Officer Bran- ing. don Hemsoth. “Any donated “Having covered educa- Owasso Animal Control officer Brandon Hemsoth in front of the money we get, we put right tion budet issues in the past, Owasso Animal Shelter with two rescue dogs. back into the community or we knew we had to help our Reprinted with permission. Photo by Art Haddaway, Owasso Reporter right back into the animals to schools,” said Dave Spiva, man- help them … it helps the shel- aging editor at the Tribune. age others to do the same,” said a good place to start is helping ter a tremendous amount.” “We feel it is important to Spiva. our children, teachers and pub- The donations could help help our schools and our com- “We are all about improving lic schools.” fund rescue efforts, surgical munity, and we want to encour- our community, and we believe Spring is a good time to make a disaster plan It’s beginning to look a lot a Disaster Checklist for News- weather problem you can expe- a recent backup of anything like springtime in Oklahoma – papers, available to download rience in Oklahoma. Several you need to put out your news- redbuds are blooming, walkers at www.okpress.com/disaster- newspapers know first-hand paper – templates, subscriber and runners are on the streets checklist-for-newspapers. the problems an Oklahoma ice lists, fonts, standing heads and and the trees are budding. It’s critical to have a plan in storm can cause. Some this ads, etc. But along with the beauty place before disaster strikes. spring and summer will likely If disaster strikes, it’s good comes the beast – tornado sea- The thought-provoking bro- experience electrical outages to have a plan in place that will son. Although tornadoes can chure takes you through a from thunderstorms. allow you to continue publish- occur at any time in the state, series of questions including Take a look around your ing. it’s more common from late where to go for assistance; newspaper office to see if your Make sure you’re prepared March through August. what insurance covers; what equipment is protected from to fulfill your obligation to the It’s important for all news- you need to get started again power spikes with good surge community, neighbors, family papers to have a plan in case of and more. protectors. This is also a good and friends who rely on the a disaster. The OPA provides Tornadoes aren’t the only time to make sure you have newspaper for information. 2 The Oklahoma Publisher // March 2016 to call the police station and set off ing overhead and the cry of a child the sirens. … All they could hear was with a bandaged head bespoke the ‘Tornado!’ Then we went up in the air.” reality of the disaster. The eastern He remembered looking out and see- Oklahoma town has since rebuilt ing rooftops during lightning flashes, “with lots of cellars.” and “shingles coming in and slappin’ Later that day I went to the nearest us in the face.” hospital, Okmulgee Memorial, seek- “You could hear people hollerin’,” ing to talk with the injured. he said. The town “looked like a dump Walking unannounced down a hos- ground.” pital hallway, glancing into rooms, Many residents expressed thank- I found a patient who agreed to be fulness for just being alive, but had interviewed. She had suffered bruises trouble describing the magnitude of and lacerations. the destruction. Many compared it to “It looked like a funnel of fire,” she a combat war zone. said of the tornado that devastated People gathered in small groups, her home and injured seven family Tornado coverage important some weeping and hugging one anoth- members. er. Others frantically looked for miss- I had never heard a tornado to citizens trying to recover ing relatives and friends. described that way. People more “The little neighbor boy came into often describe a big, black funnel that It looked like a scene out of a Hol- So it was in Morris as I drove at our house and said it blew his mommy sounds like the roar of a passing train. lywood disaster movie, only this was daybreak – on my first assignment and daddy away,” one searcher said. I asked what made her think the real – too real. as a new state reporter for The Daily “He saw them go.” The parents were tornado was on fire. The deadly tornado that struck Oklahoman – to cover the story. later found injured, but alive. She said as the twister came across Morris about 15 minutes before mid- There before me was the “Morris” “The wind blew me out from under a freshly plowed field near her house, night on April 26, 1984, took only 45 water tower toppled over, lying amid the bed and I bumped my head, but it sucked red dirt up into the air and seconds to take eight lives and destroy mangled steel beams and partially I’m all right,” a third-grader said. “My with the lightning flashes in its top it 173 homes and businesses – 85 per- blocking the street. The city hall and cat, Panda, also is alive, but I lost my appeared to be ablaze. cent – of the Okmulgee County town police station also were heavily dam- dogs, Pumpkin and Rascal.” “It was red and looked like fire,” of 1,200 residents. aged. Another witness said, “A man she said. “I was scared when I saw If you work in Oklahoma journal- The police chief’s 28-year-old twin across the street was killed and his that. The tornado made a blasting ism, odds are you will get too many sister died, but her two-year-old son son just went berserk and started driv- sound like thunder, or like a gun being opportunities to cover violent spring survived, found clutched in his dead ing his pickup truck wild. I think he fired, or the backfire of a car. storms. mother’s arms on an asphalt road had his dead father inside the truck “I don’t want to ever go through There is no greater service the amid the debris of a mobile home. and was berserk because he couldn’t another one. It’s true that your whole news media provides the public than The police chief himself was injured get any help. life flashes by you.” when it covers a disaster – whether when the police car he was driving “I armed myself to protect my fam- --- man-made or natural. The public is was swept up and hurled for about ily. You didn’t know what was going to Tornado season 2016 has arrived – hungry for information as people try three blocks. happen next.” reporters be careful out there. to make sense of what has befallen “It started hailin’, the wind started After the night of terror, the morn- them. Many survivors want to tell changin’ and our ears started poppin’,” ing’s weather was calm. But a distant their stories. he later told The Oklahoman. “I tried siren, a howling dog, a helicopter fly- OPA CALENDAR OF EVENTS Watonga editor wins FRI., MARCH 25, 2016 FRI. & SAT., JUNE 10-11, 2016 Citizen of the Year GROWING YOUR DIGITAL AUDIENCE OPA ANNUAL CONVENTION award from chamber Cost: $35, 1:00 p.m DOWNTOWN OKLAHOMA CITY SHERATON HOTEL GateHouse Media’s Penny Riordan and Carlene Cox will share best This year’s convention will be held on Friday and Saturday.