In this episode of "E&P Reports," we go one-on-one with 16-year-old Hutchinson, Kansas high school student Michael Glenn, who became frustrated when his local Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper The Hutchinson (KS) News, was sold to Gannett and downsized to a "ghost paper." So, in the summer of 2023, Glenn recruited a team of journalists and started the competing Hutchinson Tribune at HutchTribune.com, which now out-reports the HutchNews.com site 36 local stories to six (on the day of this posting). more

For Tom Sofield’s bootstrap online publishing company, success has been about finding the right spaces. Now three websites strong, Street Light Media Group is growing in readership and revenue, a much different place than traditional publishers who have fled the markets Sofield’s team serves. more

Throughout my career in revenue generation, I have analyzed this situation from various perspectives, encountering both benefits and challenges. The print versus digital argument in local news media revenue has posed challenges for decades. However, one positive aspect has been the ability of any advertising to generate desired outcomes, including customer conversions, business transactions and income generation for local advertising sponsors. It is crucial to incorporate more impactful digital advertising that can replicate the sense and experience of a print ad. more

It is once again time to acknowledge and celebrate the accomplishments of the publishing operations industry’s outstanding performers for this year. The Operations All-Stars initiative is a collaborative effort between Editor & Publisher and the International Newspaper Group (ING) to recognize the industry’s top talent. This year’s winners were announced at the ING's Indianapolis News Conference. more

The place to begin solving the crisis engulfing American journalism is from the bottom of the pit that we’re in. Look up, and there’s light. But first, we have to look down and around. At our feet are the lifeless remains of more than 2,500 news outlets that existed 20 years ago, and the ghosts of tens of thousands of jobs. The void left behind in so many communities has been filled by misinformation and polarized discourse, and our social fabric is torn. more

In celebrating the first anniversary of ChatGPT on Nov. 30, it’s remarkable to consider how this “modern” artificial intelligence, better known as ChatGPT, has evolved from a niche tool into a global phenomenon. It's the most transformative technology since the introduction of the internet, but it's evolving 100 times faster. more

This moment in time feels like both an evolutionary milestone for social media and a pivotal point for news media publishers who have come to rely on social media for extending their journalism’s reach. E&P asked how all of this has influenced social strategy for multiplatform news publishers and where they are finding the biggest audiences and most meaningful engagement today. more

In this episode of "E&P Reports," we go one-on-one with Rio Blanco Herald Times Owner/Editor Niki Turner, who made the difficult choice of offering complete transparency about the newspaper's dire financial situation to the western Colorado citizens they serve. Turner truthfully revealed in an email that the company would cease operation within two weeks unless the community offered their support, which resulted in $33,000 in contributions that saved the weekly publication, which has been printed since 1885, from extinction. more

This month's Shoptalk article features a report from the recent News Desert U: Solutions conference, which gathered together “the best minds in local news from around the world to brainstorm practical solutions for what academia can do to help the news desert crisis.”  In this month's editorial, E&P Editor-in-Chief Robin Blinder writes that it will take "a huge commitment from our industry, academia, philanthropy and local communities to find what will work and make it happen." more

In July 2023, the Los Angeles Times unveiled “De Los,” described as a new “community-driven brand and platform” expressly for Latino audiences across metropolitan Los Angeles and the country. Three months in, E&P asked De Los’ Editorial Director Fidel Martinez and Design Director Martina Ibañez-Baldor about the mission and hopes for De Los.  more

Leonard Woolsey, president of Southern Newspapers, Inc. and president and publisher of The Galveston County Daily News, is Editor & Publisher’s 2023 Publisher of the Year. Woolsey accepted the award from E&P’s Publisher Mike Blinder and Editor-in-Chief Robin Blinder during America’s Newspapers’ Senior Leadership Conference in Chicago — where Woolsey also learned he’d been elected vice president of America’s Newspapers. more

This year, Editor & Publisher had many deserving nominees as Publisher of the Year, but one person stood out as much for his can-do and positive outlook as for his countless contributions to news media. Leonard Woolsey, president of Southern Newspapers, Inc. and president and publisher of The Galveston County Daily News in Galveston, Texas, is the epitome of a Publisher of the Year. more

I miss Twitter. I hate X. But despite all the terrible changes to the platform, I’m still posting, reading, scrolling, liking and bookmarking. I am far from alone in the world of journalism. What’s wrong with us? Anyway, if you haven’t left X yet and plan to remain until the lights get turned off, here are a couple of ways you might be able to improve your experience slightly... more

Local media are looking to sponsor participatory opportunities that are fun for local audiences and boost businesses' visibility. The Seattle Times is doing just that with its Best in the PNW (Pacific North West), which recognizes the best local businesses in various categories as voted by the public. more

A beautiful rainbow graced the skies on the west side of Niles in Michigan after a rainstorm on September 12, 2023. more

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The American Journalism Project and a group of Indiana organizations and philanthropists recently established the Indiana Local News Initiative. Their collaborative effort delivers independent local news and information to all residents of Indiana while providing more coverage of underreported public-service issues and the organizations dedicated to those issues. more

In this episode of “E&P Reports,” sales consultant, coach, and trainer Ryan Dohrn talks one-on-one with E&P's Mike Blinder, offering actionable, real-world advice on maximizing ad sales in 2024. Topics covered in this fast-paced, idea-driven interview include better prospecting for new business, how to find and retain quality sales talent and the best qualities and methods of leadership in today's competitive, ever-changing local media sales ecosystem. more

Ginger Meggs is an institution in Australia, where the beloved comic strip has run in newspapers nationwide for over 100 years. But that relationship between generations of Australians and the newspapers that have long published the comic strip was instantly severed when the two major chains decided to eliminate all comic strips. Cartoonists and syndication companies in the United States are keenly aware of what happened in Australia and what it could portend for comic strips here. more

To brand themselves as a primary voice in their communities and appeal to the broadest audience, newspapers have included games and puzzles in their entertainment content for over 100 years. Readers continue to enjoy games and puzzles, but now there are opportunities to monetize that content. more