June 30, 2009 •• Issue Number 23

Download PDF

MNA-top

MNA Newspaper Swap

   Whose idea was this anyway? Who really cares... as long as it’s a good idea!  You can get plenty of good ideas when you are a member of the MNA Newspaper Swap.
   Each week MNA “swappers” get a current edition of another Minnesota newspaper, filled with stories, editorials, advertising and special sections that are sure to start the creative wheels turning.  And swappers get to share their newspaper’s style and content once or twice a year when they send an edition of their newspaper to other swap members.
   Membership is just $35.  To begin receiving one or two different newspapers each week, use this sign up form.  Call Barb at 612-278-0240, or email mna@mna.org with questions. 
Now that’s a good idea!

Are your MNA e-mails being filtered?

   Each week are you receiving your e-mailed MNA Bulletin?  Your e-mailed news releases?
   If you have asked MNA to send these e-mails, but are not receiving them, it may be an issue of your Internet Service Provider (ISP) flagging the MNA e-mail as a spam message and blocking it.  Please check your spam filters, if you use them, or talk to your ISP. 
   Then, if you still have questions, contact Barbara Trebisovsky at Barbara@mna.org, 612-278-0240, 800-279-2979, for assistance.

How Would You Be Affected by Losing Saturday Mail?

   The Postal Service has asked Congress for permission to eliminate Saturday mail delivery. No decision has been made yet.
   The debate in Washington will begin this summer. Please help NNA understand how the loss of Saturday mail delivery would affect you.
   Your participation in this brief online survey will help inform our ongoing discussions with the Postal Service. Our thanks for your prompt consideration.
   To participate, please follow this link.

National Newspaper Association endorses effort to return bank public notices to newspapers

   National Newspaper Association President John W. Stevenson, publisher of The Randolph Leader, Roanoke, AL, announced that NNA’s board of directors endorsed HR 2727, the Financial Transparency Restoration Act, introduced June 4 by Rep. Walter 
   Jones, R-NC. Jones’s bill would reinstate publication requirements for financial services institutions required to make quarterly statement of condition reports to the Comptroller of the Currency. The statements of condition or “call reports,” as they were also called, appeared for more than 70 years in newspapers until 1994 when they were repealed without debate by Congress.
   In earlier years, the call reports were subject to both state and federal laws. Most state laws requiring publication were repealed after 1994 as bankers’ trade organizations campaigned to eliminate them. Since 1994, banking has radically changed, with the Gramm-Leach-Bliley law allowing banks into the securities business and securities firms to become bank holding companies. Jones’s bill would require all financial services companies governed by Gramm-Leach-Bliley to publish the reports in a newspaper in counties where they do business.
   “Public confidence in banks and other financial institutions has been gravely shaken by the credit freeze last fall. The effects are still being felt from job losses, small business closings, depleted retirement investments and inability to attract investment from economic growth,” Stevenson said. “This sorry tale began with the financial services world, where transparency has been clouded by lack of a genuine effort to help depositors and investors to understand the true conditions of banks and their business partners. Rep. Jones has introduced this act to restore one important piece to transparency. NNA is looking forward to working with him.”
   The bill would leave the design and detail of the notice to federal regulators. It has been referred to the House Financial Services Committee, chaired by Rep Barney Frank, D-MA, and the House Agriculture Committee, chaired by Rep. Collin Peterson, D-MN. Stevenson said NNA has recently concluded meetings with its state chairs to help NNA members understand the bill and to be able to approach their members of Congress for support. The campaign will be guided by the NNA Government Relations Committee, chaired by Reed Anfinson, publisher of the Swift County Monitor-News. More detail on the bill and NNA’s campaign to move it into law is in Publishers’ Auxiliary, and will be covered in NNA’s electronic newsletter, rEprint, published online each Thursday.

New Economic Models for News

   The New Economic Models for News conference at the Minnesota Journalism Center on June 16, 2009, brought together media professionals, students, professor and business leaders to discuss new economic methods to support the struggling news industry.  The conference included three panel discussions, a keynote address and three breakout sessions.  To read the conference summary, go to http://www.mjc.umn.ed/seminar1.html

Why Do 9 in 10 Americans Read Their Local Newspaper?

For Trustworthy, High Quality Content. According to a Harris Interactive survey conducted in March 2009, nearly 90% of Americans continue to read their local newspaper, both in print and online. The poll also found that more Americans read a printed newspaper- both weekday and Sunday editions-than get their news from the Internet. The numbers: 65% of Americans read the printed newspaper on weekdays vs. 57% who get their news from online news sources; on Sundays, the figures are 63% and 41%, respectively.

     Other key findings:

  • Newspapers (in print or online) are 3x more likely (74% vs. 37%) than Internet news sites or blogs to be used by respondents as a primary source for local news and information
  • Newspapers come out ahead of Internet news sites or blogs as sources for national and world events (70% vs. 43%) as well
  • Newspapers are considered more trustworthy than Internet news sites or blogs by a 2-to-1 margin
  • Respondents state that newspapers have higher quality content than Internet news sites or blogs by a margin of 38%.

Source: The Newspaper Project, New research finds newspapers are popular, trusted source for news, April 16, 2009.

ADVERTISING

Has your newspaper column width changed?

   If your newspaper has had a size change in the column widths, please let us know at the Minnesota Newspaper Association office. It is a challenge trying to keep up on the ever changing columns sizes, so even if you think you may have informed us, as they can easily slip by us, please let us know again.  Advertisers are always asking column widths and we are trying to keep up on the changes but can only do so with your help. We will try to send you the correct ad size but may have to send you a variety of sizes since the advertisers do not always make them to spec. Please fax your information to 612-342-2064 or email it to advertising@mna.org
   Thank you.

Reminder to MCAN/2x2 participants

   Next Friday, July 10, is the deadline to return your MCAN and 2x2 tracking sheet for the second quarter of the year.  If you need a new form, you can download it here.
   If you have any questions, please contact Randy Kelsey at MNA, 612-278-0225, 800-279-2979, or by e-mail to Randy@mna.org

June 2x2 and MCAN Honor Roll

   Six newspapers placed at least one MCAN ad and six papers placed at least one 2x2 ad in MNA’s network during the month of June.  We would like to thank those members for contributing to the success of the networks in June.

MCAN

  • Echo Press, Alexandria
  • Crookston Daily Times
  • Grant County Herald, Elbow Lake
  • Herald Journal, Howard Lake
  • Redwood Gazette, Redwood Falls
  • St. Cloud Times

2x2

  • Swift County Monitor-News, Benson
  • Daily News, Breckenridge
  • Herald Journal, Howard Lake
  • Hutchinson Leader
  • Kerkhoven Banner
  • Tracy Headlight-Herald

Congratulations to all of the salespeople who sold an ad and earned a bonus!
Ted Almen, Meghann Boser, Michelle Dennie, Sarah Fasching, Byron Higgin, Cheri Luhman, Bill Norman, Tina McMillan, Anne O’Flynn, Nancy Ridler and Pat Schmidt.

MINNESOTA NEWSPAPER FOUNDATION UPDATE

Time to register for New Product & Services webinars

   The Minnesota Newspaper Foundation is pleased to partner with Borrell Associates on its “Press Forward: Bold Internet Strategies for Newspapers” webinar series.  The next series of training webinars, which focus on New Products and Services, begin on July 15.

   They are:

  • Social Networking: The New Content Model – July 15
  • Mobile: From Content to Ads – July 29
  • The Online Insert – Aug. 12
  • Video Online: Implementing and Selling – Aug. 26

   The cost of these hour-long webinars is $75 each, or $250 for the series of four. To register, go to www.newspaperwebinars.com

Online Journalism Training at NewsU: New Free Courses, New Webinars

Reporting Global Issues Locally  Most big international stories have ripples that reach even the smallest of communities. “Reporting Global Issues Locally” will show you how to find the local angle in the broadest of international stories.  This course was created to help you shrink the world and bring it to your readers, your viewers, your listeners. In partnership with the James M. Cox Jr. Center at the Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Georgia
Enroll now >>

Anatomy of a Multimedia News Organization  Learn how an online-only news organization functions as a business by exploring its structure, departments and business model. In partnership with the Maynard Institute      
Coming Soon >>

Upcoming Webinars

Managing Millennials: Helping the Next Generation of Journalists Succeed in Your Newsroom  2-3 p.m., ET, July 9 Learn how managers can embrace what these younger journalists bring to our changing industry. A Poynter/NewsU Webinar
Register now >>

10 Things You Can Do For Free  2-3 p.m., ET, July 16 Discover a variety of reader engagement tools you can start using today for free on your Web site. A Poynter/NewsU Webinar  
Register now >>

Online Group Seminars

Writing Better Headlines  July 27-Aug. 21, apply by July 2. Explore using key words for headlines, making headlines more specific, pinpointing the best verbs to use, avoiding traditional headline traps and recognizing when and how to use word play. Led by Kenn Finkel  
Apply now >>

New Software and Technical Training

Introducing NewsU Tech  Develop your software and technical skills with our new training modules through NewsU Tech. Using audio, slideshows and offline activities, you’ll explore how to use such programs as Flash, Dreamweaver, Photoshop and more.
See our complete list >>

Read about all of our courses!

Crew News

NewsU by the Numbers

   NewsU now has more than 109,000 registered users and offers more than 85 online training courses. Thanks for using NewsU and thanks for telling others about the great e-learning they can find here. The more we grow, the more courses we can offer. The more courses we offer, the more training you get.  And thanks to all our partners. 

NewsU Gets a Redo
   Later this year NewsU will redo its Web site, its technology, its course list, its...well, you get the idea.  Learn more about NewsU 3.0 on our blog, next.newsu.org >>

Updating Your NewsU Account
   Moving to a new job or e-mail provider? Take NewsU with you. To update any information in your profile,  log in at www.newsu.org and click on My Profile in the Welcome box

- 30 -

spacer-horizontal