Copy
News, information and much more for independent online news publishers. 
As print decline continues, new models emerge for local news

When some people say "local news is dead," what they really mean is that the legacy newspaper industry they're accustomed to is dead. The answer emerging across the world is independent journalism entrepreneurship.

New York Times editor Dean Baquet says that local news is the biggest "crisis" in journalism due to legacy cuts, and that the answer will have to come from grassroots philanthropists and entrepreneurs.

Not even alternative weekly print newspapers have escaped the legacy malaise, but community-supported indie online alternatives are emerging there, too.

The scariest chart in Mary Meeker’s state of the Internet slide deck for newspapers has gotten even a smidge scarier.

The latest Pew Research report shows a dismal 2016 for newspapers and boom times for cable news networks. Pew Research: U.S. newspaper circulation has been dropping every year since 1988. People consumed more media than ever last year — but growth is slowing.

Related: How Gatehouse destroyed a group of local newspapers.


Revenue Hub will help news orgs launch membership programs

The Voice of San Diego is spinning off the News Revenue Hub, which has helped InsideClimate News, NJ Spotlight, Honolulu Civil Beat, The Lens of New Orleans and Politifact raise more than $1 million over the past seven months, into a separate organization.

It will help news organizations launch membership programs as a key source of revenue to support local journalism.


LION member spotlight: Escondido Grapevine

A Q&A with LION member Dan Weisman of The Escondido Grapevine.

"I have never been a fan of knee-jerk community coverage, the hyper-local ground-up approach putting forth as many names and committees as possible, chamber of commerce-type coverage. I strive to provide coverage with perspective and look beyond traditional dog bites man news for content that addresses community issues and sensibilities, but is not limited to mom-and-pop news."


News About Local Independent Online News Sites

BROOKLYLN: Brooklyn Deeply is crowdfunding.

CHARLOTTE: Charlotte Agenda created a newcomer’s guide, in print, that brought in more than six figures. 

NEW JERSEY: How to scale our understanding of local news health.

TEXAS: Texas journalists collaborate on nonprofit to share data, enrich reporting.

WOMEN: Online news outlets employing more women than print, TV: Report.


Tools and Tips: Advertising and Revenue

AD BLOCKING: Consumers Need Choices to Stop Them From Using Ad Blockers.

EMAIL NEWSLETTERS: How The New York Times now has 13 million subscriptions to 50 email newsletters. Email bulletins help news media beat the duopoly.

FACEBOOK: Understanding Facebook’s Place as a Small Business Marketing Vehicle. ‘It doesn’t negate the negatives:’ Facebook’s Instant Articles update ignores revenue issues. UK weeklies cut all web editorial content in bid to drive traffic to Facebook.

FOUNDATIONS: Can philanthropy help rebuild trust in news and the public square?

FUNDRAISING: Starting a major gifts program.

MEMBERSHIPS: Billionaire-supported, but looking to expand its coverage, The Intercept also turns to reader memberships.

MOBILE: The state of mobile advertising.

NATIVE ADVERTISING: Rules for creating great native advertising.

SEARCH: Publishers renew focus on search optimization — and find new tricks. What happens if Google's personal filter tab in search results becomes another targeting tool ... Google’s next local conquest: Visual search.

VIDEO: “The accurate belief that people love consuming video doesn’t mean people love consuming news video.” In Norway, a newspaper’s digital video startup is now generating more revenue than print.


Tools and Tips: Journalism and Technology

ALGORITHMS: How to report on algorithms even if you’re not a data whiz.

AP STYLE: AP Stylebook now includes new guidelines on data (requesting it, scraping it, reporting on it, and publishing it).

AWARDS: Entries to the Online Journalism Awards are due next week.

CODING: Quartz editor on coding as a journalist.

DATA: Why Data Journalism, Even ‘Brilliant, Better Journalism’ is Coded as Liberal Propaganda.

ENGAGEMENT: Engagement Highest On Mondays And Evenings, According To A New Analysis.

GOVERNMENT: This tool will help you keep tabs on what’s happening in local government.

INSTAGRAM: How to Increase Your Organic Reach on Instagram.

METRICS: Why is my Session Duration less than my Time on Page? Understanding Google Analytics engagement metrics.

SOCIAL MEDIA: Stop killing your social stories with bad headlines and images. Here’s how newsrooms should be rethinking social metrics. A case study in social-first reporting. The life of a niche, social media-optimized publisher: Q&A with Wide Open Spaces.

WRITING: Nine ways to end your stories.


Industry News

DIVERSITY: The Ida B. Wells Society is getting $150,000 from the Knight Foundation to expand its operations.

FAKE NEWS: Trolls Are Targeting Indian Restaurants With A Create-Your-Own Fake News Site. Fight Fire with Convergence: J-Schools Must Address Both Anger and Distrust of Media. Repetition boosts lies — but could help fact-checkers, too. Want to stop a spreading fake news story? Choose one of these four points of attack to fight back.

LIBEL: Katie Couric Beats Defamation Lawsuit Over Gun Documentary.

NEW YORK TIMES: The New York Times killed the public editor job just when it’s needed most.

OBSERVER: Jared Kushner’s New York Observer Lays Off Staffers.

PENNY HOARDER: This penny-pinching digital media company is on track to bring in $40 million this year.

PUBLIC MEDIA: Has WAMU Solved Public Radio’s Diversity Problem?

THE RINGER: Why The Ringer's deal to be hosted by Vox could be a model for other publishers. The Ringer will use Chorus and Vox Media's ad sales staff and tech but otherwise remains independent.

RURAL NEWS: Digital gap between rural and non-rural America persists.

SKIFT: Nearly 5 years in, Skift is launching a book, producing a documentary and expanding to new topics.

STUDENT JOURNALISM: Arizona veto a temporary setback for student journalists' rights.

TRONC: Tronc plan to buy Sun-Times may face competition. Chicago’s ‘one owner, two newspapers’ dilemma. Deadline for Chicago Sun-Times bids extended to Monday.

TV: Sinclair-Tribune Merger Faces Roadblock as Court Puts Hold on FCC Station Ownership Rule.

VERIZON: How many media organizations, ad tech and people's very access to the Internet will Verizon end up controlling?

WEST VIRGINIA: HD Media acquires four West Virginia newspapers from North Carolina-based Civitas Media.

WISCONSIN: The Eau Claire Press Company Sells to Adams Publishing Group.


UPCOMING EVENTS

INN DAYS: The Institute for Nonprofit News will hold its annual conference in association with IRE in Phoenix, June 21-22. LION members are welcome.

IRE: Investigative Reporters & Editors conference in Phoenix, June 22-25.

LION SUMMIT - PHOENIX: LION Publishers will hold a day-long program at the IRE conference hotel in Phoenix on June 23.

LION SUMMIT - CHICAGO: Save the dates! LION Publishers' annual conference will be held Oct. 26-28 in Chicago.

LION WEBINARS: LION Publishers hosts a monthly webinar series. Upcoming webinars:
* June 22: Copyright and fair use for journalists, with American University Professor Patricia Aufderheide.
* July 18: Making sense of metrics for local independent online news publishers, with Metrics Shift Editor Jason Alcorn.
* Aug. 17: Free content for local publishers from national partners, with Tucson Sentinel Publisher Dylan Smith.
* Sept. 14: Hiring, paying and managing sales reps at local independent online news sites, with ARLNow.com Publisher Scott Brodbeck, Home Page Media Publisher Kelly Gilfillan and Richland Source Publisher Jay Allred.


Is Your LION Publishers Membership Up for Renewal?
 
For many of our LION Publishers members, it's time to renew! Your membership includes participation in the LION Publishers Den on Facebook, networking and support from fellow LION publishers, our new newsletter, discounted rates on media liability and directors and officers insurance and more. 

Plus, being a member gives you access to a members-only rate to the LION Summit – a savings of up to $175 compared to the non-member rate. If your membership is due for renewal, please go to http://www.lionpublishers.com/members/dues/renew to submit your payment. Those who opt for multi-year membership save, and easy, secure payment options are available via credit card or through Paypal. (Not sure when your membership expires? You can look it up easily on LIONPublishers.com.)
Follow on Twitter   Friend on Facebook   Forward to Friend 
Copyright © 2017 LION Publishers, All rights reserved.


Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp
unsubscribe from this list   update subscription preferences