'We'd like to see a local indie publisher in every city and small town across the U.S.'
Street Fight has published a Q&A with LION's interim executive director, Matt DeRienzo.
Highlights:
- The diversity of LION's membership (from sites covering neighborhoods in Brooklyn or San Francisco, to a single suburban town in New Jersey or Ohio, to a rural county in upstate New York, to an entire state out West) was emphasized, along with the organization's philosophy that one size or business model couldn't possibly work for every community.
- On the value of LION membership: "Our publishers have a near-constant, 24-7 conversation, and there’s always someone willing to lend a hand or offer advice on a wide variety of topics, from business contracts to technical troubles to managing employees."
- On the value of independent local journalism: "Regardless of whether legacy media has completely or only partially abandoned a community, we’d like to see a local indie publisher in every city and small town across the U.S. That would be good for local merchants, civic engagement and holding people in power accountable."
A guide to legal issues for digital media startups
The Tow Knight Center has published an invaluable guide to legal issues for digital media startups.
J-Lab's Jan Schaffer explains why it was written in this piece, saying that digital news entrepreneurs face a host of legal questions behind the traditional journalism issues of libel and Freedom of Information battles.
"How should you respond when someone is demanding the IP address or the identity of a commenter on your sites. How should you flag sites that steal your content? How can your make sure, in a rush to add an image to an article, that you are not posting a copyrighted photo? How to deal with a freelancer’s request to use for another assignment research gathered for a story you commissioned? When is it OK for someone to be a freelancer, and when do they have a right to be an employee?"
Some interesting takes on Pew's local news research
Several smart responses have been written in the wake of Pew Research Center's big report on engagement with local news in three U.S. cities of various sizes.
Two of the best were Josh Stearns piece, "Closing the gaps in local news," and Steve Buttry's post on how the study shows the opportunities that exist in diversity and engagement.
SOMEWHAT RELATED: Poynter writes about the "debunked myth" about minorities and local news - they may be consuming more of it now than whites. This Nieman Lab piece on how local news isn't really local in New Jersey when it comes to being caught between New York City and Philadelphia TV stations. A CJR piece explaining what we already know about local TV stations and clickbait. And this roundup on Pew's social media research.

Ken Doctor on Jim Brady's Philadelphia effort
Ken Doctor has one of the most insightful pieces yet on Jim Brady's latest project - the "mobile-focused, Millennial-reaching" Philadelphia local news site (and LION member), Billy Penn.
Brady's philosophy includes:
• Don’t chase page views;
• Don’t chase stories everyone else is chasing.
• Think of long-term impact of stories.
• Partner with anyone and everyone to get exposure.
Sunshine Week highlights open records laws
March 15-21 is Sunshine Week, and you can find a lot of good ideas at the Sunshine Week website for testing compliance with and highlighting the importance of open records and Freedom of Information laws in your community and state.
The site includes a "toolkit" local editors can use to participate in Sunshine Week and many ideas from past years from across the country.
Meanwhile, open government leaders are criticizing a new policy in New York in which government emails are automatically deleted after a short period of time - short enough to not even allow time for most FOIA requests.
INN name change focuses on nonprofit media models
The Investigative News Network is now the Institute for Nonprofit News, a name change that reflects and sharpens the organization's mission.
What are the editorial products journalists aren't building?
If you missed this thoughtful Nieman Lab piece by Jonathan Stray last week, it's a must read. "Take two steps back from journalism: What are the editorial products we're not building."
Tools and Tips: Advertising and Revenue
BANNER ADS: Here's a message you might be up against in pitching banner ad sales, complete with extreme, trolling headline: "Scientific proof that no one pays attention to banner ads."
METRICS: "ROI is dead: A new metric is needed for customer relationships."
MOBILE: The real world isn't mobile first, it's people first. Why it's important to craft marketing campaigns around the needs and user experience of real people.
FOUNDATION SUPPORT: Who benefits from an increase in philanthropic money going to journalism?
PROGRAMMATIC: A look at the pricing of programmatic advertising.
RETAIL: Advertisers must "adapt or die" as technology drives change in consumer attention, response.
SEARCH: How Google is fixing its small business problem.
Tools and Tips: Journalism
COPY EDITING: A new study shows that copy editing has a significant impact on readers' perception of a news product. And here are seven self-editing tips for journalists who are working without a copy editor.
CYBERSECURITY: Here's a guide to cybersecurity for journalists.
INSTAGRAM: Five ways journalists can make the most of Instagram.
IRE tips: If you missed the Investigative Reporters and Editors NICAR conference last week, here's a guide to online slide presentations and tutorials.
LINKING: Is it excusable for reporters not to include links in articles? Is it excusable that we're still debating this?
LIVE STREAMING: There's lots of experimenting happening with Meerkat, a new service that allows you to livestream on Twitter. Coincidentally, Twitter just acquired video start-up and might be looking to offer the same kind of service in an "official" capacity.
MILLENNIALS: Dumbing it down and other myths about millennials and media.
MOBILE: Ken Doctor says newspaper companies should focus on apps. Also, 21 takeaways from a recent ONA London conference on mobile.
VIRAL TRAFFIC: Why viral traffic's days may be numbered. And another take on that same topic. And how to write long-form articles that will "absolutely go viral."
Industry News
FUNDING AND MARKET SIZE: The size of the market for "hyperlocal" news start-ups is a key consideration for people looking to invest.
GATEHOUSE LAYOFFS: Gatehouse is laying off journalists at the newspapers it recently acquired from Halifax.
PAYWALL DROPPED: The Toronto Star is eliminating its paywall this year.
NEXT DOOR: Remember Next Door, the social network aimed at communicating with just your immediate geographic neighbors? It's received investments valuing the company at $1.1 billion.
GIGAOM: Pioneering tech blog GigaOm shut down abruptly this week, spurring a million takes on what went wrong and what it means for digital media start-ups. Danny Sullivan says it should be a warning about venture capital funding of such sites. Dan Rowinski has a thoughtful piece on mobile's rapid disruption of Web 2.0 startups, and solving the revenue puzzle.
TEXAS TRIBUNE: Texas Tribune is partnering with the Center for Investigative Reporting's public radio show, Reveal.
TAMPA BAY TIMES: They're independent, and they aren't focused on squeezing tons of profit out of the operation, and the foundation-owned Tampa Bay Times is still struggling to survive.
PLAGIARISM INC.: A former Daily Mail Online staffer talks about how ripping off other websites was part of newsroom culture.
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 www.lionpublishers.com/members/dues 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.)
Thanks to our current members who have already renewed! |