Arkansas Publisher Weekly: October 21, 2022

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Guest Column:

Go beyond ‘votes and quotes’ when delivering election results

By Jim Pumarlo

Arkansas Press Association Publisher Weekly

Headliner of the Year Awards presented to U of A’s Yurachek and Gov. Hutchinson at inaugural Arkansas Press Freedom Gala

Yurachek brings national acclaim back to Arkansas with winning athletic program

In his fifth year as vice chancellor and director of athletics at the University Hunter Yurachek has solidified the Razorbacks as one of the nation’s elite intercollegiate athletics program while leading it to unprecedented success.

Since his appointment on Dec. 4, 2017, Yurachek has worked tirelessly to foster athletics success in 19 sports, restore time-honored traditions and, most importantly enhance the collegiate experience for 465 razorback student-athletes.

For his efforts, Yurachek will receive the 2021 Headliner of the Year Award from the Arkansas Press Association. The annual award honors those who bring national attention and positive headlines to the state.

Guided by the program’s mission of building champions and Razorbacks for life, Yurachek has implemented a strategic plan that focuses on fostering student-athlete success.

Thanks to the dedicated efforts of Razorback student-athletes, coaches, administrators, Razorback Foundation members and fans, results are being realized both on and off the field.

After recording a program-record student-athlete GPA and posting a seventh place finish in the Learfield IMG Directors’ Cup

Gov. Hutchinson honored for leadership, transparency during COVID-19 pandemic

Asa Hutchinson has come a long way since the day in April 1985 he put on a bullet-resistant vest.

A photo in the Encyclopedia of Arkansas tells the tale. It appears Hutchinson had just stepped out of a car. Dressed in a white shirt and gray slacks, he’s next to a law enforcement agent who holds the vest, the first two letters of FBI clearly visible in yellow.

The photo caption says Hutchinson was preparing to “mediate the removal of suspects and their families from the compound of the Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord.”

Which he did, safely, supported by 300 lawenforcement agents, defusing the danger presented by the militia organization whose compound was located in Marion County near Bull Shoals Lake.

At the time, Hutchinson was the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, and the youngest U.S. attorney in the country, having been appointed by President Ronald Reagan

Now he’s being honored as APA’s 2020 Headliner of the Year, an annual award recognizing

Yurachek brings national acclaim back to Arkansas with winning athletic program

in 2021-22, the University of Arkansas and Yurachek are nationally recognized for those accomplishments. The Directors’ Cup competition tracks the nation’s most successful intercollegiate athletics program.

“The Directors’ Cup is a highly soughtafter award that compares and ranks 350 Division I athletics programs across the breadth of success of their top 20 sports programs. Since we only have 19 sports programs to place into the equation, and based on how our operating budget compares to our peers in the Top 20, this is a phenomenal department-wide accolade,” Yurachek said.

Yurachek was selected as a 2021-22 Football Bowl Subdivision Cushman & Wakefield Athletics Director of the Year by his peers. He was also a finalist for the Sports Business Journal 2022 Athletics Director of the Year.

Arkansas continues its momentum, winning eight Southeastern Conference championships (men’s and women’s cross country, soccer, men’s and women’s indoor track and field, men’s outdoor track and field, softball regular season and softball tournament) and winning a New Year’s Day football bowl game for the first time since 2000.

In the past two years alone, Arkansas has won 18 SEC regular season or tournament crowns. In addition, the Razorbacks advanced to the College World Series, the Elite Eight in men’s basketball and women’s soccer, and the NCAA Golf Championships in both men’s and women’s golf.

In the classroom, Razorback studentathletes earned a program-record 3.27 GPA. A total of 97 Razorback studentathletes earned their degrees and added their names to the Senior Walk in the 2021-22 academic year.

The Razorbacks won another NCAA title (Women’s Indoor Track & Field), earned eight Top-10 NCAA finishes and a remarkable 10 Southeastern Conference regular season and tournament championships, including SEC triple crown sweeps in both men’s and women’s cross country and track and field, a secondstraight soccer regular season crown, the program’s first softball regular season

3

Gov. Hutchinson, a 1975 graduate of the University of Arkansas School of Law, and Yurachek talk Razorback football from the sidelines. Yurachek was named to the Governor’s Economic Recovery Task Force in 2020 to help with the COVID-19 pandemic recovery.

Yurachek on the field with his family from left to right: Brooks Yurachek, Ryan and Morgan Yurachek, Jennifer Yurachek and Jake Yurachek.

Yurachek brings national acclaim back to Arkansas with winning athletic program

title and a baseball regular season and tournament championship. Arkansas’s championship total led the league and doubled the next closest SEC program.

Additionally, a multi-million-dollar renovation of the Randal Tyson Track Center was completed, while brand new facilities, including the $27 million J.B. and Johnelle Hunt Family Baseball Development Center and the $15 million Frank O’Mara Track and Field High Performance Center were constructed.

The Razorbacks are among the most newsworthy of newsmakers in Arkansas. Yurachek has some advice for the many journalists whose beat includes university sports.

“Work to build lasting relationships in these spaces with the coaches and administrators, and from these relationships will come trust,” he said. “Remember most of the young men and women you are writing about are just that, young men and women. They are playing their sport because they have a passion for it, and already have enough external pressures.

“Report the news, tell the story of the game and of the athletes, with a fair and non-harmful tone.”

Yurachek’s leadership is making a difference within Arkansas, the SEC and throughout intercollegiate athletics. In 2020, Gov. Asa Hutchinson named Yurachek to the Governor’s Economic Recovery Task Force, to help guide the state’s reopening in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. In April 2021, he was named to the NCAA Football Oversight Committee, after previously serving on the NCAA Football Competition Committee.

Before coming to Arkansas, Yurachek served as Director of Athletics at the University of Houston and Coastal Carolina University. He has also worked at the University of Akron, the University of Virginia, Western Carolina University, Vanderbilt University and Wake Forest University.

Yurachek earned his bachelor’s degree in business management at Guilford College in 1990, where he was a four-year letter winner in basketball. He earned his master’s degree in sports administration from the University of Richmond in 1994.

“I quickly found out about the passion and fervor of Razorback fans as I watched my number of followers on Twitter grow from 5,000 to 25,000 in a matter of hours after being named as Director of Athletics at the University of Arkansas,” he said.

“My wife and I had never spent any time in Arkansas prior to me being named director of athletics and I remember flying into Drake Field in the early morning hours in December of 2017 for my press conference and I looked out the window of the plane and said to Jennifer, ‘I sure hope we like it,’ and I can tell you today, almost five years later, we have fallen in love with this special state.”

Born in Richmond, Virginia, and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina, Yurachek and his wife, Jennifer, have three sons: Ryan, Jake and Brooks

Ryan is Tight End Coach at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee, where he and his wife, Morgan, live. Jake is a former football student-athlete at Arkansas and now works in intercollegiate athletics at Southern Methodist University. Brooks is a senior at Fayetteville High School and a member of both the football and

Sam and Jamie Pittman celebrate Razorback athletics with Hunter and Jennifer Yurachek.

Yurachek greets U of A Men’s basketball coach Eric Musselman.

Yurachek brings national acclaim back to Arkansas with winning athletic program

basketball teams.

“When you choose your profession, job or whatever you want to pursue in life, make sure it is something you are passionate about, and it is something that makes you happy,” Yurachek said. “I wear a silicone bracelet with the phrase ‘Do what you love and love what you do’ and I feel very blessed to be able to live this out in my role as director of athletics at the University of Arkansas.”

Five years into his role as a prime newsmaker in Arkansas, Yurachek reflected on the APA award and the role of newspapers in Arkansas.

“There is a passion for the Razorbacks across this state that I do not believe exists in any other state. As such, it is important for fans across our state to know both the upfront and behind the scenes stories of Razorback athletics, especially during a period of unprecedented success like we are now experiencing.

“As we put the pandemic in our rearview mirror, I truly believe that the promotion our program received from the media during the past two years helped our entire state battle through COVID-19 and return to a sense of normalcy.”

Gov. Hutchinson honored for leadership, transparency during COVID-19 pandemic

Continued from Page 1

those who bring national attention and positive headlines to the state.

Hutchinson has been on the move as a public servant ever since his peaceful resolution of the CSA standoff, when he subsequently prosecuted and gained convictions of several members of the CSA.

Then, in 1996, he won the first of three successive terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing the state’s 1st Congressional District. During his third term in Congress, President George W. Bush appointed him director of the Drug Enforcement Administration and, later, as Under Secretary for Border and Transportation Security at the Department of Homeland Security, a post he held from 2003 to 2005.

A Republican, Gov. Hutchinson will soon complete his second four-year term as the state’s 46th governor. He was first elected in 2014 and again in 2018.

In between Homeland Security and the governor’s office, Gov. Hutchinson was active in politics.

He was the Republican Party candidate for governor in 2006, but lost to Mike Beebe, a Democrat. In 2014, he defeated former Congressman Mike Ross; in 2018, he defeated Jared Henderson, both Democats. In the latter race, he earned about 65 percent of the vote, a percentage greater than any other Republican elected as Arkansas’s governor.

While in Congress, Gov. Hutchinson was a member of the House Judiciary Committee and was appointed one of the 13 House

Former President Ronald Reagan (right) appointed Hutchinson as the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Arkansas. At the time, Hutchinson was the youngest U.S. attorney in the country.

Dallas Cowboys owner and U of A alum Jerry Jones (left) visits with Yurachek.

managers during the Senate impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton

A native of Bentonville, Gov. Hutchinson is a graduate of the University of Arkansas School of Law, and has practiced as a private attorney. He comes from a politically active family. His father, John Malcom Hutchinson Sr., was mayor of Sulphur Springs. His brother, Tim Hutchinson, also a Republican, was a state representative, a U.S. representative, and a U.S. senator.

Gov. Hutchinson and his wife, Susan, have been married 49 years. They have four children and seven grandchildren.

Gov. Hutchinson’s second term, encapsulating the COVID-19 pandemic, has been especially challenging.

“History will be the ultimate judge of the response to COVID-19, and I am very interested in a commission-style report as to what we did right and what we did wrong,” he said.

“In hindsight, I think our push for transparency was very important. Along with the Department of Health, I was able to ensure Arkansans knew what was happening and were up to date with what we knew about the virus. I am also sure that keeping schools open in August 2020 was the best possible decision during the pandemic, along with resisting the pressure to close businesses.”

The governor is especially proud of his administration’s emphasis on education and taxation.

“I know our work to lower taxes has been very beneficial to all Arkansas taxpayers and our work in education, including computer science, has provided a new direction for many of our students,” he said.

“We now have a surplus and over $1.2 billion in state reserves, while still cutting taxes and having fewer government employees than when I took office. Our economy continues to remain diverse and robust. Since January 2015, the Arkansas unemployment rate has been below the national average almost 95% of the time. I think all of these things have left Arkansas in a better position for the future than it was in 2015.”

A long career in politics has given Gov. Hutchinson deep insight in political leadership, and he offers this advice to

Gov. Hutchinson honored for leadership, transparency during COVID-19 pandemic

Former President George W. Bush (right) appointed Hutchinson as the director of the Drug Enforcement Administration and then later as the Under Secretary for the Border and Transportation Security at the Department of Homeland Security. Hutchinson held the post from 2003 to 2005.

As governor, Hutchinson has signed countless bills into law. Education and tax relief legislation were some of his highlights.

those interested in public service.

“Don’t just listen to the loudest voices in the room and never hesitate to make your opinion heard. Ensure it is well-reasoned and thought out, but don’t let your age be the reason you sit on the sidelines. Also, education is incredibly important, and not just formal education in school. Take time to read, research and learn about the issues you have a passion for, and pay attention to those areas.”

Journalists who cover politics and government, he said, should “never forget how important your work is to your readers and always ask the tough questions. Make sure you are educated about the topics you cover. Report the facts with transparency, and make sure all sides of an issue are heard and heard correctly.”

“A free press,” he added, “is one of the tools the public uses to keep an eye on elected officials. FOIA laws and reporting by journalists require elected officials to act responsibly and honestly or face the consequences.”

The burden of political leadership can sometimes be heavy. Gov. Hutchinson recalled the day in 2020 when the state reported its first case of COVID-19.

“I immediately declared a public emergency and started my daily briefings. As we went out of my office to enter the conference room, Dr. Nate Smith called me to the side and said ‘Governor, tens of thousands of Arkansans will die from this.’

“I will never forget that moment.“

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Gov. Hutchinson honored for leadership, transparency during COVID-19 pandemic

Gov. Hutchinson (center) with First Lady Susan Burrell Hutchinson and family. The Hutchinsons have four children and seven grandchildren.

Gov. Hutchinson surveys the damage of the tornado that tore through Jonesboro on March 28, 2020.

Nat Lea ends term as president of America’s Newspapers; transitions to immediate past president role

U.S. Senator Pryor recipient of the 1989 Headliner of the Year Award

Nat Lea, president and CEO of WEHCO Media in Little Rock, became immediate past president of America’s Newspapers on October 18 as Cameron Nutting Williams, regional publisher and chief revenue officer of Ogden Newspapers in Wheeling, West Virginia was elected to be the next president. Members elected officers for 2022-23 during the Senior Leadership Conference in New Orleans this week.

Lea was the president of APA in 2016, and served for nine years on the APA board of directors.

America’s Newspapers was formed three years ago through the combination of the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association and the Inland Press Association. It is incorporated in Washington, D.C. and advocates for the industry and shares best practices to enhance newspaper growth in the United States For more information visit newspapers.org

THROWBACK THURSDAY

A R K A N S A S P R E S S A S S O C I A T I O N

Sixty judges needed for annual Wisconsin Newspaper Contest; sign up to volunteer

Volunteer judges are needed to review submissions in the Wisconsin Newspaper Association Foundation Better Newspaper Contest. All judging will be online, occurring between Nov. 14-30.

“As a standard practice in our profession, APA supports reciprocal judging of contest entries with press organizations in other states,” said APA Executive Director Ashley Kemp Wimberley. “It’s an excellent and often inspiring opportunity to review the best work of our peers from other areas. APA member newspapers are known nationwide for high-caliber journalism. As such, we have been asked to judge the Wisconsin Better Newspaper Contest.”

Volunteers to judge editorial and advertising entries across multiple categories are requested.

The deadline to volunteer to judge is Nov. 11. To sign up, visit: https://wnanews. formstack.com/forms/wna_contest_ judges

C A L L I N G A L L

J U D G E S

EDITORIAL CATEGORIES:

News and Feature Writing

Column Writing

Sports News and Photos

Headline Writing

Best Video

ADVERTISING CATEGORIES:

Restaurant, Grocery & Real Estate Promo and House ads

Best Special Section

Community Marketing ads

Layout and Design ads

To register, visit this link https://wnanews formstack com/forms/wna contest judges

Online Judging

Deadline to signup

NOVEMBER

ArkLaMiss Conference returns to Vicksburg this November

Now is the time to register for the 2022 ArkLaMiss Audience Development and Marketing Conference. The annual conference is presented by APA and the Mississippi Press Association

The conference is being held Nov. 17-18 at the Ameristar Hotel and Casino in Vicksburg, Mississippi.

The group rate at the Ameristar Casino Hotel is $79 per night. Participants should book their rooms directly with the hotel by Nov. 1. Call 601-638-1000 and reference the group code S11MS22 to get the conference rate.

Bill Ostendorf of Creative Circle Media Solutions will lead a morning session on how and why print can still thrive, and an afternoon session on developing content that will drive readership. The conference will also include the traditional Hot Ideas Exchange and a round table for discussion of common issues and challenges at community newspapers.

Find registration and room block information at arklamissconference.com.

W I S C O N S I N N E W S P A P E R F O U N D A T I O N

B E T T E R N E W S P A P E R C O N T E S T

E D I T O R I A L • A D V E R T I S I N G • P H O T O G R A P H Y

Reminder: public notice house ads still need to run

Last month APA released a series of house ads drawing attention to the importance of public notice and the support they have among Arkansas residents. APA encourages member newspapers to publish the ads as often as possible between now and the end of the year, to reiterate the importance of transparency and printed public notice in Arkansas’s newspapers.

“Many APA member newspapers have been publishing the ads for several weeks, and we really appreciate that,” said APA Executive Director Ashley Kemp Wimberley. “As the legislative session nears, it is vital we communicate the importance of public notice in Arkansas newspapers.

“To inform your readers, and all Arkansas citizens, about the importance of government transparency and keeping public notice in newspapers, please rotate running these four APA house ads through the end of the calendar year. This will help lay the groundwork for our efforts starting in January 2023.”

The ads highlight data from a market study commissioned by APA earlier this year, in which overwhelming support for printed public notices in newspapers was reported.

The study found that almost 1.9 million active consumers — or 77% of Arkansas adults — read local print or digital newspapers, 70% read public notices in print or digital newspapers and 65% believe that publishing public notices in newspapers should be required by law.

In addition, 84% named local newspapers as their most trusted source of information for public notices, and 49% rely on local newspapers and newspaper websites for information about local government more than any other media.

The ads were sent by email to every member newspaper in September, but if you would like to request them again, or have any questions about the campaign, email ashley@arkansaspress.org

LET US KNOW

We want to know about your new hires, retires and promotions! Send your staffing changes to info@arkansaspress.org to be updated online and included in the Arkansas Publisher Weekly.

Arkansans Agree A NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC SHOULD REACH THE PUBLIC. 411 S. Victory | Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 501.374.1500 | info@arkansaspress.org | ArkansasPublicNotices.com Facebook: @ArkansasPressAssociation | Twitter: @ARPressAssoc

70% of Arkansas adults read public notices in newspapers*

*Based on a 2022 Statewide Study of Arkansas adults 18+ conducted by Coda Ventures.

Guest Column:

Go beyond ‘votes and quotes’ when delivering election results

By Jim Pumarlo

Newsrooms have toiled the past many weeks churning out stories to help voters make informed choices on Election Day. Now you’re ready to put the exclamation point on coverage.

“Votes and quotes” are the typical charge for delivering results by producing voting charts and soliciting quotes from winners and losers. Is that your best use of resources as the community’s clearinghouse of information? Is it enough to simply regurgitate standard information readily available on a variety of platforms?

In short, newspapers put incredible resources into laying the groundwork for elections, but then often fall short in translating what voters said. This is an excellent time to think how best to examine reporting the results.

Here is one checklist of items to consider when deploying resources on what is certain to be a hectic night:

Decide criteria for pursuing comments from winners and losers. Not all races necessitate the obligatory statements, especially if results were widely predicted. Be prepared for surprises. Was an especially popular incumbent ousted? Do races require an automatic recount?

Localize national and state stories. Explaining the hows and whys of local results should be your prime focus. In addition, a local twist can make statewide stories more meaningful. For example, does a local race have a statewide impact, such as affecting which party controls a particular legislative body? Without a local perspective – if newspapers simply use a statewide lead on a statewide story –many reports will go unread.

Scrutinize variety of factors. Were local legislative results part of a statewide or national wave? Did changing demographics have an impact? Were voters looking for fresh faces? Were some

candidates and campaigns simply more energized? Was there a common theme among the winning candidates, such as, “Hold the line on spending.” There are several ways to take a deeper look at outcomes.

Voter turnout is a made-to-order story. Compare local numbers with statewide patterns. Was turnout markedly up or down from the previous election? Did specific issues spur more voter interest?

Interview experts or have individuals write an analysis of election results. Network coverage of elections invariably includes “expert” commentary. Elder statesmen or high-ranking party officials frequently analyze vote totals. Community newspapers can have a panel of analysts, too. It might be a retired public official, an incumbent who chose not to seek reelection or a political science professor at an area university. Newspapers also might identify rank-and-file citizens who represent a cross-section of the community and have them weigh in on results.

How did the bellwether precincts perform?

Every political party – and polling experts, for that matter – identify and monitor key precincts. Returns from these representative districts often enable the experts to “call” elections. Were results consistent with previous elections?

Explore point/counterpoint columns for editorial page: Many communities have referendums on a variety of issues. You’ll likely seek comments from campaign chairs for the “Vote Yes” and “Vote No” committees for immediate reports. Go a step further and have the respective chairs write commentaries on why they think a referendum succeeded or failed. Publish them side-by-side, and you’ll likely generate letters to the editor. This is but one list of how you can delve deeper into election results. Invite your

entire newspaper family to brainstorm stories. You’re certain to come up with more ideas specific to your communities.

Newsrooms are shortchanging readers – and themselves – if they don’t make the effort to deliver substantive election reports. Readers deserve to know what the results really mean.

And remember, a deeper examination of what the voters said doesn’t have to be all rolled into the next day’s edition. Follow-up stories are excellent content for your newspaper in succeeding days and weeks.

The analysis also is a springboard for addressing the next election cycle. Recording and underscoring the hows and whys behind results will help newsrooms identify the strengths and weaknesses of their coverage and be better prepared.

If readers simply want to know who won and who lost, they can easily find that information by any number of platforms. And yet we all admire our election editions with the comprehensive and expansive coverage – and expect everyone to read the newspaper from front to back.

Newsrooms need to put just as much preparation into your post-election edition as you do in ongoing campaign coverage.

Jim Pumarlo is former editor of the Red Wing (Minn.) Republican Eagle. He writes, speaks and provides training on community newsroom success strategies. He is author of “Journalism Primer: A Guide to Community News Coverage,” “Votes and Quotes: A Guide to Outstanding Election Coverage” and “Bad News and Good Judgment: A Guide to Reporting on Sensitive Issues in SmallTown Newspapers.” He can be reached at www.pumarlo.com and welcomes comments and questions at jim@pumarlo. com.

17-18, 2022 • Vicksburg, MS

Agenda

Thursday, Nov. 17, 2022

Noon Lunch

1:00 p.m. Welcome and introductions

1:15 p.m. Is print dead or dying? Presented by Bill Ostendorf, Creative Circle Media Solutions

Should you roll back publication frequency? We’ll offer a different perspective about how and why print can still thrive. There has long been an assumption out there that print is a dead end but the facts simply don’t bear that out. We’ll discuss why print is declining, how to reverse it and dispel some myths about print readership. You are part of the solution and also part of the problem. And you don’t want to be the reason print fails in your market!

2:45 p.m. Break

3:00 p.m. Content that will drive your readership. Presented by Bill Ostendorf

What the pandemic taught us and how to create a more interesting and engaging newspaper in print and online. If we can create more stories readers want to read, we can increase engagement, which is the key to not only surviving but for thriving in today’s environment.

4:30 p.m. Break and check-in

5:30 p.m. Reception

Dinner on your own

Friday, Nov. 18, 2022

8:00 a.m. Continental breakfast

9:00 a.m. Ideas Exchange

Bring your best ideas for increasing readership and revenue, promotions, expense reductions, and making budget for a chance to win a share of cash prizes.

10:00 a.m. Break and check-out

10:30 a.m. Roundtable Discussion

A time to discuss common challenges and creative solutions with your peers.

Noon Adjourn

Hot Ideas Exchange

Ideas for making — and saving — money

Title of idea

Submitted by

Briefly describe your idea

Tell us the results of your effort

What was the revenue/benefit generated?

Use the back of this page for additional comments or ideas. Please enclose samples if available. Send this form and any samples or illustrations along with your conference registration to:

By Mail » ArkLaMiss, 371 Edgewood Terrace, Jackson, MS 39206. By email » mgilmer@mspress.org By fax » 601-981-3676

We will share each of the ideas submitted in a booklet to be presented at the conference.

LAST DAY TO SUBMIT IDEAS IS NOV. 11.

REGISTRATION

Or register online @ arklamissconference.com

November 17-18, 2022 AmeriStar Hotel & Casino, Vicksburg, MS Room rate: $79 • Call (601) 638-1000 Group code: S11MS22 • Hotel cutoff: Nov. 1, 2022