Mike Fortman’s introduction to The Center Square, a news service that provides state government, public policy and economic reporting free for publishers to republish, began with a longstanding professional relationship.
Fortman, publisher of TH Media and vice president of Woodward Community Media, had known John Derr since both worked as advertising directors. They had stayed in touch over the years, and before the Mega conference, Derr reached out with an invitation to reconnect and learn about his work with The Center Square.
The conversation interested Fortman. Before moving forward, however, he wanted the person responsible for his newsroom’s journalism involved. “I’m not gonna go down this path without our executive editor being deeply involved in this conversation,” Fortman recalled thinking.
Executive Editor Amy Gilligan of the Telegraph-Herald was also attending the conference. They arranged a conversation, bringing the publisher’s business perspective and the editor’s coverage priorities into the evaluation from the beginning.
A coverage challenge spanning three states
For the Telegraph-Herald, regional reporting means serving an audience with interests in Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin. That geography creates a particular challenge. Reporting from one state does not necessarily meet the needs of readers across the river. A useful content source must provide stories relevant to the communities within the publication’s reach.
“We sit right where Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin meet,” Amy said.
The newspaper already draws on several reporting relationships. Along with AP, it uses Iowa Capital Dispatch content and exchanges stories with the Cedar Rapids Gazette. The Center Square gives its editors another source to evaluate, particularly for Wisconsin coverage. “Wisconsin is probably the thing we’ve tapped into the most,” Amy said.
The value becomes clear when a story fills a specific gap. Amy recalled a Wisconsin development involving Gov. Tony Evers that The Center Square covered when her newsroom had not received an AP story. “AP did not move a story on it, and they did, and we were able to use it,” she said.
That example illustrates the service’s current role: adding relevant coverage to the sources the newsroom already uses.
Looking ahead while testing what works now
The evaluation is also part of a larger discussion about TH Media’s future content mix. Fortman said the organization has begun the process of informing AP that it intends to end the relationship. That transition remains ahead, with contractual obligations still in place. In the meantime, The Center Square offers an opportunity to learn how another reporting source might fit.
“This has provided us an opportunity to, I guess, test the waters with John’s group and see how this might play in,” Fortman said.
The organization is also asking readers to help shape its decisions. A reader panel, launched a few months before the interview, is providing input on what audiences consider valuable and important. Fortman said that discussion has begun to include the role of national news, although the panel’s work on that question is still developing.
“Hearing from our readers what their content needs [are] is also kind of helping dictate where things go on our regional and national coverage,” he said.
For now, the newsroom continues to use AP substantially. The Center Square is one piece of an evolving approach, with editors gaining experience using its reporting before deciding how large a role it could play.
Editors decide what belongs
Amy’s evaluation rests on the decisions editors make every day: Is a story relevant? Is it timely? Does it provide enough reporting to warrant space?
Agriculture and healthcare are two subject feeds the newsroom receives from The Center Square. Their usefulness depends on whether individual stories address the publication’s three-state region or issues with broader implications for readers.
She pointed to reporting on gray-wolf protections becoming an issue in the Wisconsin governor’s race as an example of coverage worth considering. “They’ve got a really solid story,” she said, noting that she had not seen the subject covered elsewhere in the material available to her. At the time of the interview, the newspaper had not yet published it.
\Her assessment also includes limitations. One story arrived after her newsroom had already covered the development, and she found another potentially useful as a brief but wanted more sourcing for a larger treatment.
Those distinctions are part of assessing how any outside reporting fits the newspaper. The Center Square gives editors additional choices; relevance, timing and depth guide what they select.
An easy relationship to begin
From Fortman’s perspective, getting started was straightforward. He described getting the service launched and an agreement in place as “very easy.”
His familiarity with Derr helped, but Fortman also credits Derr’s understanding of the pressures publishers face. That experience gave their conversations a practical foundation. “John comes from the front lines and he understands the challenges that our industry faces,” Fortman said.
He described Derr as “very solution-based in his approach,” bringing firsthand industry experience to discussions about what a publishing partner might need.
For an organization evaluating future options while continuing to produce its publications, that ease of working together matters. It creates room to try the reporting, assess its usefulness and develop the relationship through experience.
A resource with room to grow
TH Media’s experience is still developing. Amy sees The Center Square as a source that can fill gaps today and potentially contribute more as the newsroom’s resources change. “We could lean on this relationship even more heavily and really build on it,” she said.
Fortman’s recommendation to other publishers reflects the same practical outlook. With organizations managing both staffing and financial pressures, he believes additional content options deserve serious consideration. “Any publisher looking to strengthen coverage and bring more value to readers should give The Center Square a serious look.
To learn more about The Center Square’s Partner Network, contact John Derr at jderr@thecentersquare.com. To support The Center Square’s reporting, contact Laurel Abraham at labraham@thecentersquare.com
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