Arkansas Publisher Weekly: July 13, 2023

By Kevin Slimp

and State Since

ANF President Rusty Fraser looks to the future with optimism

The importance of developing a talented and well-trained staff is at the forefront of veteran Arkansas publisher Rusty Fraser’s concept of what it takes to be successful in a challenging newspaper landscape.

He believes that is true in the case of his Stone County Leader in Mountain View, and he knows it applies as well to other newspapers across the state.

That is the reason he has been committed to serving on the board of directors of the Arkansas Newspaper Foundation, whose principal goal is supporting the training of young journalists. Fraser has been president of the ANF for the past three years.

The Foundation selects three or four college students each summer to serve on

See Fraser Page 4

Speakers will inform, inspire during next week’s APA Convention

The APA Convention’s second day features a slate of speakers designed to inform you of industry innovation, better serve your community, inspire you and provide you with tools to help you do your job as a journalist.

Bridget Sibthorp-Moecker

Bridget Sibthorp-Moecker, director of audience at BLOX Digital, formerly known as TownNews, transforms subscription businesses by taking the guesswork out of conversion. Her career began at her hometown newspaper, the Herald & Review in Decatur, Illinois. Prior to joining BLOX, she worked for Lee Enterprises for 15 years, most recently

as the Corporate Director of Digital Subscriptions.

At Lee, she led digital sales and retention efforts across 80+ publications. She has participated in Meta Accelerator, the Google News Initiative, is a member of the International News Media Association and pursued independent executive education for marketing and product development. She has received numerous awards for innovation and was named one of the “Top 25 Under 35” by Editor & Publisher magazine. As the Director of Audience at BLOX Digital she oversees consumer revenue products for more than 2,000 partners.

“My true passion is helping local news organizations thrive,” said Sibthorp-Moecker. “One of my very best friends still works in the newsroom of my hometown paper. It’s different when you have a friend that’s in the trenches every day. It’s that personal for me.

See Speakers Page 2

Bridget Sibthorp-Moecker

Fraser in 2015 at the start of his term as APA President

Speakers

Continued from page 1

What I do here can help her, and others.”

Sibthorp-Moecker’s session, “The Trailblazer’s Guide to Digital Subscriptions: Mapping a Path to Success”, will be Friday, July 20, at 9:30 a.m.

Preston Tolliver and Katie Leath

Preston Tolliver is an Associate Director of Community Programs in the UAMS Office of Community Health and Research. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mass communication from the University of Central Arkansas, where he studied journalism and history. He has more than 10 years of experience in writing, editing and communicating messages and information among communities through his work with various publications, including The Madison County Record, The Courier in Russellville and the Log Cabin Democrat in Conway. Through his position with the Office of Community Health and Research, he manages a creative team dedicated to building public awareness of programs and resources available to populations facing health disparities so they can live healthier, longer and better lives.

Katie Leath is a passionate health communicator with nearly a decade of experience in making health information easy to read, understand and use. She

leads the team of health literacy and plain language experts at the UAMS Center for Health Literacy. She lends her health communication expertise to help create and edit health-related materials for patients and consumers at UAMS and beyond. Prior to joining the center she worked in various public health roles including administration, communications, and research and evaluation. Leath earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing from the University of Central Arkansas. She graduated with honors from UAMS with a master of public health degree and from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock with a master’s degree in applied communication studies. Their session, “Improving Healthcare in Arkansas Through Media and Medicine”, will be Friday at 10:45 a.m.

Janet Harris

Janet Harris serves as the executive director and CEO of The Winthrop Rockefeller Institute. She has been with the organization since 2016 when she was tapped to help build the Institute’s programs and bring clarity to the organization’s mission and method, and was was chosen to lead the Institute in 2022.

Harris is passionate about helping others create transformational change. Her achievements include aligning Institute operations to the mission, building staff capacity in professional meeting design, facilitating impactful dialogue and deliberation, and creating educational programs that draw on Winthrop Rockefeller’s legacy, including the Institute’s Walks with the Governor workshop.

Harris earned her bachelor’s degree while playing varsity basketball for the University of Central Arkansas Sugar Bears. While working full-time, Harris completed her Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Arkansas Little Rock. She went on to work for the City of Little Rock, and then to serve in senior leadership roles in three state executive offices, including eight years as Arkansas Deputy Secretary of State.

She is an active alumna of the University of Central Arkansas, where she serves on the Dean’s advisory board for the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences. She is a graduate of the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce Leadership Arkansas Class XI and was named UCA Political Science Distinguished Alumna in 2016.

Harris will present the keynote at the noon Friday Luncheon.

Mark Humphrey

Nashville-based photojournalist Mark Humphrey recently retired from the Associated Press. In his 40 years with the AP, he photographed major news events, sports, entertainment, and people from all walks of life. These days reporters are called upon more and more to make pictures with smart phones and cameras they aren’t all that familiar with. Humphrey will share his tips and tricks for using the camera you have in your pocket – the one on your smartphone – to take better pictures than you have been.

His presentation, “Photojournalism via Smartphone,” is Friday at 2 p.m.

Preston Tolliver

Katie Leath

Janet Harris

Mark Humphrey

Fraser

Continued from page 1

the staff of various newspapers around the state. “They are paid interns who receive hands-on training in the job they are likely to be doing after graduation,” Fraser said. “It is a win-win situation for the newspapers and the students.”

The interns receive roughly $3,000 from the ANF, with the participating newspaper occasionally augmenting that amount. Funds are raised in a variety of ways, most notably now through the silent auction at the APA Convention and sponsorships and ticket sales at the annual Arkansas Press Freedom Gala, scheduled for Oct. 12 this year at Chenal Country Club in Little Rock.

“The inaugural Gala event last year was extremely successful,” Fraser said. Numerous college journalism programs from around the state have participated in the intern program. The goal is to provide a good match between each student’s career plans and the needs of individual newspapers.

An example of such a match occurred in 2022 when University of Arkansas - Little Rock student Joe Santana worked as a reporterphotographer over the summer at his hometown Dumas Clarion. He recently joined the staff of The Forum, his college newspaper, and is looking forward to a career in journalism after he graduates.

In a UALR article, Santana said, “I traveled around with my coworker, Clarion Editor Linna Jones, and went with her to cover town meetings and write feature stories. She showed me the ropes of how to be a journalist. The internship really showed me how to appreciate newspapers.”

“Joe was a great summer intern,” then-Publisher Rick Wright said, “and we enjoyed having him at the Dumas Clarion. Joe is an excellent writer and photographer and an excellent feature story writer. I see nothing but a great career in Joe’s future.”

Fraser heads a nine-member board committed to supporting young journalists such as Santana. Other members are Steve Listopad, Mary Fisher, Kim Christ, Frank Fellone, Jeanette Lightfoot, Steve Eddington, Rob Roedel and Skip Rutherford. He said the latter three members are new to the board and are

not directly involved in newspapers day-to-day.

“All three are making very good board members,” Fraser said. “I guess you could say one requirement is you need to like newspapers, and they do. They are very professional in their approach and are bringing a lot to the board.”

Fraser believes the future is bright for the ANF, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and its goal of serving newspapers through support of young journalists. Those who want to help in that effort are encouraged to contact him or any of the board members. Tax-deductible donations may also be mailed care of Arkansas Press Association, 411 South Victory St., Little Rock, Arkansas 72201.

Fraser, of course, has first-hand knowledge of the importance of a trained and talented staff through his amazing newspaper career that has spanned more than 50 years.

The highlight of that career has been his ownership of the Stone County Leader, one of the most honored weekly publications in the state in terms of both news and advertising awards.

He purchased the newspaper in 1985 from Rupert Phillips and has never looked back.

“I can truthfully say this is the best staff now I have ever had in my career,” Fraser said.

At the top of that list is Editor Lori Freeze, who is now entering her 37th year at the newspaper. Fittingly, she started at her hometown Leader by working as a summer intern while attending Arkansas State University as a journalism major. Freeze also served as editor of The Herald, the student newspaper at ASU.

Freeze currently is completing a successful term as president of the Arkansas Press Association.

“Lori is just amazing,” Fraser said. “I am very proud of her. She is an extremely good editor, and she has ethics from here to yonder. She completely runs the show news-wise.”

The longevity of Fraser’s staff is remarkable, including business manager Pam Rider, now in her 30th year at the newspaper.

Members of the 2015 APA Board of Directors open the APA Convention Trade Show in July 2015.

From left: Jay Edwards, Bob Moore, Mary Fisher, Rusty Turner, Fraser and John Bland.

Fraser

Continued from page 4

Rider’s sisters, Karen Younger and Sharon Robinson, also are long-time members of the staff, working in circulation and bookkeeping respectively.

Covering school board meetings is Edie Sutterfield, who has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Lyon College and a master’s from Arkansas State. On the city council beat is veteran writer Lana Mason.

Fraser also has enjoyed the good fortune of adding veteran journalist Frank Wallace, who has experience at the Arkansas Gazette, Baxter Bulletin and Batesville Guard. He works three days a week.

Manning the advertising chair is the talented Ed Coates, who recently won 32 awards in the APA advertising contest, including 14 first place plaques.

Fraser’s wife, Neal Fraser, also has been involved in a variety of tasks over her 38 years at the Leader and currently works part-time as a proofreader.

In addition to overall management, Fraser handles some advertising sales and is involved in the police beat. “Since I’ve got such a great staff, I don’t have to work nearly as hard as I used to,” he said. “I guess you could say I’m a bit impervious to some of the problems, and I sure don’t get as upset as I used to.”

Fraser purchased the Leader after an interesting early period of his career that initially started in advertising sales at the Montgomery Advertiser in his home state of Alabama. Prior to that position, he earned a degree in biology from the University of Alabama and also served in the U.S. Air Force. He eventually spent 11 years of service with the Alabama National Guard.

It was at the Advertiser that Fraser began a connection to his mentor in the industry, Harold Martin.

Martin won a Pulitzer Prize at the Advertiser for exposing a scheme in which prison authorities were allowing pharmaceutical companies to conduct drug experiments on state inmates.

Martin hired Fraser in 1976 as publisher of the Baxter Bulletin in Mountain Home, where he stayed for seven years. He then spent two years at a newspaper owned by Martin’s company in Mineral Wells, Texas.

It was there that one day Martin walked into Fraser’s office accompanied by his friend, the legendary Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry. Martin ran in high circles for sure and was a member of the board of directors of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.

Fraser recalls another time when he called Martin for a weekly publisher report and was told his boss was on the phone with Alabama Gov. George Wallace. He was about to tell the secretary he would call back later when Martin suddenly broke in, saying he had put the governor on hold.

Fraser apologized for the interruption. “Harold proceeded to start talking to me about the weather and fishing,” Fraser said. “He told me he didn’t want to talk to the governor anyway.”

“I’ve never been so embarrassed in my life,” Fraser said.

“My biggest break in the industry was working for Harold Martin,” Fraser concluded.

The newspaper in Mineral Wells was sold to a publisher in Oklahoma after Fraser had been on the job for two years. During an initial telephone conversation, the new owner announced he wanted Fraser to sell sponsorships for the police news.

“I flat out refused,” Fraser said. “I told him I love selling advertising as much as anyone, but that is going too far.”

At the time, Fraser owned a house in Mineral Wells and another in Mountain Home.

The new owner asked if he would resign and move on if he (the owner) would purchase Fraser’s Texas house.

Fraser quickly agreed. “What he didn’t know was that I had a ‘golden parachute’ with the other company that gave me enough money to eventually buy the Mountain View paper,” Fraser said.

“I was beginning to think that maybe I could make a pretty good living getting run off from places,” he said with a laugh. So, Fraser loaded up his belongings in a U-Haul trailer and headed back to Arkansas for good.

Fraser knew the Leader was for sale and immediately began negotiations to purchase. “I just really liked Mountain View,” he said. “I enjoyed playing music (guitar and mandolin) on the square. It was a neat place, and the paper was affordable.”

Despite a challenging newspaper environment, the Leader has maintained a strong circulation of about 3,500 and regularly publishes 20 pages or more. A glossy regional magazine and a visitors guide are each published twice a year. Numerous special sections and promotions help in the revenue department.

This pattern of success has continued despite what Fraser says is a rather stagnant local market. “In the last census we had grown by 64 people,” he said.

Neal and Rusty Fraser

Telling the Story of Giving in Arkansas

AtArkansas Community Foundation we engage people, connect resources and inspire solutions that help build local communities. We’ve partnered with newspapers for 45 years to spread the word about grants and programs available to nonprofits in all corners of our state.

Thank you for helping tell the story of local giving that helps meet community needs forever.

Since 1976, the Foundation has provided more than $318 million in grants and partnered with thousands ofArkansans to help them improve our neighborhoods, our towns and our entire state. We want to help you tell your readers how smart giving can improve communities.

Jessica Ford Chief Communications Officer jford@arcf.org

Fraser

Continued from page 6

“It’s a tough go, but I don’t want to sound like I’m whining because we are still doing better than many other papers,” he said. Fraser cited three reasons for continuing success:

1. Free classifieds for subscribers. There was limited classified revenue to begin with and this provides great readership interest. The classifieds normally run about five pages. “We’ve been doing this for 35 years,” he said.

2. Exceptional dispatch involves delivering the newspaper directly to rural post offices to avoid delays of several days in readers receiving the product. “Country postmasters will work with you on this,” he said.

3. News is 100 percent local. Fraser regrettably recalls an early editor who wanted to use news services for an eight-page paper. The Leader now has all local news in 20-24 pages. “Define news,” Fraser said. “I’ll be happy to put a photo of an eight-pound turnip in our paper.”

Fraser believes smaller newspapers can remain successful with the all-local philosophy and publishing a quality product with a talented staff. “If we stick to the fundamentals and recognize that we have the exclusivity of local coverage, we can survive,” he said. “Of course, we also have the continuing challenge of trying to find new ways to generate revenue.”

He does think technology has helped small newspapers. “I used to spend a fortune on film and chemistry,” remembering a photographer who once shot and developed 34 rolls of film at the Ozark Folk Festival and used six photos in the newspaper.”

“We’ve got to make some rules on this!” he said at the time.

“Looking back at the old ways of doing things, I sometimes wonder how we ever got a paper out,” he said.

Fraser began his association with the Arkansas Press Association in 1976 and served as president in 2015, during a period in which he was being treated for colon cancer. He thankfully is now cancer-free.

He cherishes his connection with the organization, remembering his relationships with such legendary publishers as Fred Wulfekuhler and Jay Jackson. “I learned a lot from my newspaper friends, and they were all like a second family to me,” he said.

Fraser said the recent Arkansas legislative session was one of the most challenging in history, with repeated threats to legal advertising in newspapers and to the Freedom of Information Act. He praised the work of APA executive director Ashley Kemp Wimberley and her staff. “They thought we would lose them all, and we won them all,” he said, while noting such challenges will continue in future sessions.

He was involved in such a fight earlier in his career at Mountain Home when he won an FOIA case before the Arkansas Supreme Court involving access to records at the publicly owned hospital in that community.

Fraser recently underwent corrective eye surgery and the nurse looked at his age and assumed he is retired.

“Why would I be retired?” he asked. “I’m only 81.”

“I love what I do, and I look forward to coming to work every day,” Fraser said. “It’s exciting and it’s still a lot of fun.”

Fraser plays a little golf and is involved in some gardening. But essentially, he has been and continues to be – a proud old-style newspaperman through and through.

Montgomery Advertiser Journal Classified Manager Bill Backvold, left, and Pulitzer Prize-winning Publisher Harold Martin, right, present Fraser, center, with an engraved pen for top sales and five years of service.

Fraser and Jimmy Driftwood on stage at the Driftwood Barn in Mountain View where Fraser was, in his own words, “dumb enough to get on stage and pass himself off as a musician.”

WE DELIVER THE POWER THAT DRIVES THE POWER OF THE PRESS.

Many of our 17 Distribution Partners deliver power to the printing facilities that deliver news to communities just like yours around the state. Anchored by proven natural gas plants as a stable, reliable baseload resource—and balanced with our coal, wind, hydro, solar and biomass energy sources—we’re able to effectively and responsibly deliver affordable power for our 1.2 million cooperative members statewide.

DISTRIBUTION COOPERATIVES

Arkansas Valley Electric Cooperative

Ashley-Chicot Cooperative

C&L Electric Cooperative

Carroll Electric Cooperative

Clay County Electric Cooperative...........................

Craighead Electric Cooperative ..............................

Farmers Electric Cooperative

First Electric Cooperative .......................................

Mississippi County Electric Cooperative

North Arkansas Electric Cooperative.....................

Ouachita Electric Cooperative

Ozarks Electric Cooperative

Petit Jean Electric Cooperative

Rich Mountain Electric Cooperative

South Central Arkansas Electric Cooperative

479-667-2176

870-853-5212

870-628-4221

870-423-2161

870-857-3521

870-932-8301

870-523-3691

800-489-7405

870-763-4563

870-895-3221

877-252-4538

800-521-6144

501-745-2493

479-394-4140

870-246-6701

Southwest Arkansas Electric Cooperative..............870-772-2743

Woodruff Electric Cooperative

870-633-2262

CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS

Sandra Byrd, Vice President 501-570-2627

sbyrd@aecc.com

Rob Roedel, Director 501-570-2296 rob.roedel@aeci.com 1

Fisher portrait honoring late journalist Griffee donated to Dennis and Jan Schick Newspaper Museum for display

A George Fisher portrait of veteran journalist Carol M. Griffee has been donated by her family to the Dennis and Jan Schick Newspaper Museum, housed at the offices of the Arkansas Press Association in Little Rock.

Griffee’s nephew John F. Griffee III, along with his wife Char Griffee and Little Rock-based public relations consultant Jessica Szenher, who helped facilitate the donation, presented the portrait to APA in late June.

Griffee was well-known as a powerhouse in Arkansas journalism. She was born December 30, 1937, in Washington, D.C., and moved with her family to Fort Smith in 1946 after the death of her father. She graduated from high school in 1955 and immediately began her first full-time journalism job as a reporter for the Fort Smith Times-Record. She graduated with honors Phi Gamma Kappa (now Phi Beta Kappa) in journalismhistory/political science from the University of Tulsa in 1959 and received her masters degree in history/ political science from that institution in 1966. She was a member of Mortar Board; Phi Alpha Theta (history); Pi Gamma Mu (social sciences); Phi Delta Epsilon and Pi Alpha Mu (journalism); was president of Epsilon Gamma Chapter of Phi Mu sorority and of Lottie Jane Mabee Hall for Women; and was chosen three consecutive years for

Who’s Who Among

Students in American Universities and Colleges, among other honors. She also worked full-time during college as a Tulsa World reporter.

She returned to the Washington, D.C. area in 1961 and was a reporter/photographer/editor for two Fairfax County, Virginia weekly newspapers before joining the Washington Star from 1963-66, followed by a stint as city and then executive editor of the Arlington-based daily, the Northern Virginia Sun, until 1972.

Griffee became a reporter for the Arkansas Gazette in 1973, where she became known primarily for environmental, investigative, and political coverage and for being a fierce protector of the Freedom of Information Act. She resigned from the Gazette in 1985 to become an independent journalist and author, and wrote

several histories, including those of the Little Rock Wastewater Utility, the Arkansas Conservation Sales Tax, and the Bayou Meto Wildlife Management Area.

Griffee was a former president of Arkansas Press Women Association, a former board member of the National Federation of Press Women, and had been active in the Arkansas Professional Chapter, The Society of Professional Journalists, which gave her a Lifetime Achievement Award, October 20, 2010. Among other honors, she was the Arkansas Wildlife Federation’s 1985 Conservationist of the Year; 1996 Arkansas Journalist from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock; received APA’s Freedom of Information Award in 1997; was inducted into the Arkansas Outdoor Hall of Fame 1999, and received the Ernie Deane Award for valor in journalism in 2004. She died in January 2011 at age 74.

Beebe native Fisher was well-known political cartoonist whose work influenced and helped define Arkansas politics for a generation. He created a series of visual metaphors and themes that were widely associated with the politicians he caricatured and became a part of Arkansas political folklore.

Born in 1925, Fisher had his first cartoon, lampooning Gov. Homer Martin Adkins for claiming credit for wartime factory construction in Arkansas, published in 1944. His first cartooning position was with the West Memphis News in 1946. When the newspaper closed in 1949, Fisher offered his services to the North Little Rock Times. An instant success, his cartoons also ran in the Pine Bluff Commercial and Arkansas Gazette. In 1976, Fisher was hired as the Gazette’s fulltime editorial cartoonist, where his work became a daily mustread.

Fisher worked for the Gazette until 1991, after which he drew cartoons for the then-weekly Arkansas Times. He died in December 2003 at age 80.

An open house at the APA Headquarters, including a tour of the Dennis and Jan Schick Newspaper Museum, will be held on Thursday, July 20 as the kickoff of the 2023 APA Convention.

Char Griffee, John F. Griffee III and Jessica Szenher at the APA Headquarters on June 26.

Panels to feature 12 APA members

No one knows the business of Arkansas newspapering better than those who work for Arkansas newspapers. The 2023 APA Convention will host three panel discussions featuring reporters, editors, publishers and advertising managers from newspapers across the state.

Each session is designed to include ideas for news outlets of all sizes and all budgets. If you work in a small newsroom with just a few people on the team, you will leave the panels with just as many ideas as the people attending who work for larger outlets.

On Friday, July 21 at 3:30 p.m., outgoing APA President Lori Freeze, editor of the Stone County Leader in Mountain View, will moderate the first panel discussion of the convention, “Maximizing Operational Efficiencies.” Panelists include Tom White, publisher of the Advance-Monticellonian in Monticello and the Eagle-Democrat in Warren; Rusty Fraser, publisher of the Stone County Leader; Jim Holland, publisher and ad manager of the Harrison Daily Times and the Newton County Times and publisher of the Baxter Bulletin in Mountain Home; and Rhonda Overbey, regional publisher of The Saline Courier in

Benton, the Malvern Daily Record and other Horizon Media publications.

“Breaking Stories Using FOIA” featuring panelists Tamara Johnson, publisher and managing editor of the Times-Herald in Forrest City; Ellen Kreth, publisher of the Madison County Record in Huntsville; Andrew Bagley, co-publisher of the Helena Daily World and the Monroe County Argus in Brinkley and Chris Fulton, publisher and reporter at the Mountain Home Observer will be held Saturday morning, July 22, at 9 a.m. This session will be moderated by Sonny Albarado, editor-in-chief of the Arkansas Advocate and 13year member of the Arkansas FOIA Coalition. Following a short break, the final panel discussion of the convention, “Investigative reporting” will be held at 10:30 a.m. Featured panelists for this discussion are reporters Hunter Field of the Arkansas Advocate, Tony Holt of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and Rick Kron of The Leader in Jacksonville. Albarado will again moderate.

You won’t want to miss any of these informative discussions. To register, visit www. arkansaspress.org/convention/

Support the future of Arkansas Journalism through the Arkansas Newspaper Foundation.

Your donation will help:

• Promote the welfare of the community newspaper industry.

• Fund legislative efforts to protect transparency in state government.

• Cultivate educational opportunities for future journalists.

• Ensure the viability of the newspaper industry for years to come.

To donate, mail a check to: Arkansas Newspaper Foundation 411 S. Victory St., Little Rock, AR 72201

The Arkansas Newspaper Foundation is a 501c(3) organization. All donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowable under law.

Duo Brooke & Mike, harpist Coffey to perform during convention

One expects events such as sessions, panel discussions and the trade show at the annual APA Convention. But, in addition to those educational opportunities, attendees can also enjoy live music.

The convention will kick off Thursday evening with a cocktail hour at the APA Headquar ters in Little Rock, immediately followed by dinner at Cotham’s in the City restaurant. A feature of the dinner will be live music by event musicians

Brooke & Mike

Brooke & Mike are a married acoustic duo with an extensive repertoire who specialize in making every song their own. “We play almost ever ything, from country to R&B, classic rock to soul, jazz to indie folk, Top 40 to disco,” Brooke said. “We both play many instruments and there is no limit to our harmony! We love all music and believe that each genre has something special for everyone, and also firmly believe in the art that is making songs your own,

which is definitely something that sets us apart from the rest.”

Alisa Coffey, principal harpist for the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, will perform during the Honorees’ Reception prior to the Honors Banquet on Friday evening.

In addition to the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, Coffey has performed regularly with Iris Orchestra and Symphony of Nor thwest

Arkansas, as well as Shreveport Symphony and Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra. While in Philadelphia Coffey performed with ensembles such as Symphony in C, the National Philharmonic, Philly Pops and the Philadelphia Orchestra. As a soloist, she received recognition in the 2011 Lyon and Healy Awards as well as the 2011 American Harp Society National Competition.

Registration and convention information is at arkansaspress.org/ convention/

Ten reasons to attend the APA Convention next week

Next week is the 2023 APA Convention! If you have attended an APA Convention before, you know that a good time is in store for you. Never attended before? Here are some excellent reasons why this year ’s convention should be your first!

1. To learn something new. The APA Convention will offer a variety of breakout session topics. Planned topics for this year include Digital and Paywall Strategies, Improving Healthcare in Arkansas Through Media & Medicine, Photojournalism via Smartphone, Maximizing Operational Efficiencies, Breaking Stories Using FOIA and more.

2. To step out of the bubble. It’s so easy to get comfortable just covering your community…the same people, the same schedules, the same beats Conventions provide you and your staff ways to get out of a rut and shake things up a bit.

3. For the opportunity to travel. What’s better than learning new best practices? Doing it in a new place, of course! Full of natural beauty, interesting history, landmarks, museums, shopping and more, Arkansas’s capital city is well worth a visit.

4. To socialize. Don’t think for a moment that the convention will be all work and no play. With luncheons, dinners, receptions

and social hours all on the schedule, there will be plenty of opportunities for mak ing new acquaintances as well as for catching up with old friends.

5. To connect with other journalists. Conventions are not just about attending sessions for ideas for your own projects and practical tips and tools, they are also about the conversations you have during coffee breaks and over after-event drinks. Your fellow attendees can inspire ideas and spark new connections. The convention will bring people together to exchange ideas, share the struggles and keep the passion for journalism alive. We can only imagine what great ideas will come alive in your newspapers after meeting other reporters, publishers and editors.

6. To get inspired. Janet Harris, Executive Director/CEO of the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute, will be the keynote speaker on Friday. In addition, a wide variety of vendors will be participating in the trade show that day, so visit the booths and vendors to learn about new technologies in the industr y and also what Ark ansas stories are waiting to be told.

7. To bond as a staff. There’s nothing that will bring a staff together more than a

good road trip and hotel stay together. If you’re bringing a convention veteran, have them par tner up with a newer staffer so they can learn more about one another and share their travel and convention excitement!

8. To celebrate! Friday night’s Honors Banquet will see the installation of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Publisher Eliza Gaines as APA President, and the presentation of the Journalism Educator of the Year award to Dr. David Keith of the University of Central Arkansas and Golden 50 Service Awards to Wanda Williams and Ron Wylie of The Johnson County Graphic in Clarksville

9: For bragging rights. On Saturday at the awards luncheon, the first-ever winner of the Ernie Deane-Brenda Blagg Award for excellence in column writing and the winners of the Better Newspaper Editorial Contest will be announced.

10. To remember you are not alone Arkansas is full of dedicated journalists telling the stories of their communities. We are sure you will leave the convention with a newfound love for community journalism and full of inspiration and ideas. Register today at arkansaspress.org/ convention/

Brooke & Mike Alisa Coffey

As I listen to the July 4 fireworks outside my window, my thoughts revolve around the newspaper colleagues I’ve met over the past few weeks and the lessons I’ve learned. Having finished several major redesign projects in June, I’ve recently traveled to speak at several newspaper conventions and visit some newspapers on-site.

In Alabama, I spoke about my vision for newspapers. I told stories of things I’ve seen in the past that had both negative and positive effects on our industry. I shared about newspapers that are growing, as well as newspaper colleagues who are starting new papers across the U.S. Following my presentation, I visited with several publishers individually to discuss their papers. My enthusiasm about the state of our industry was once again renewed while visiting with Tommy and Dee Ann Campbell.

Just three years ago, Tommy left his publisher’s position in Tennessee after he and Dee Ann purchased the Linden, Alabama, newspaper. The circulation had fallen to 133. While Dee Ann continued to serve as publisher of the newspaper in Gilbertown, Alabama, Tommy took over as publisher of the Linden newspaper, newly named The Leader. Today, The Leader has more than 1,500 subscribers.

In Kansas, I was able to visit with my friend Joey Young. I’ve written about Joey and the success he, Lindsey Young, and their team have enjoyed several times

Guest Column: Sharing the Good News of Newspapers

Everywhere I turn, I see healthy, growing newspapers

By Kevin Slimp

in previous columns. While in Wichita, I sat in while Teri Finneman interviewed Joey and Lindsey about new things they’ve initiated over the past year at their newspapers.

Once, several years ago, Joey asked me why I was working so hard to make him famous. I explained that I wasn’t doing anything to make him famous. I just liked telling my newspaper friends about this young man in his late 20s and the success he and his wife had found beginning new newspapers in Kansas. A few years have passed, and I still beam with pride when I see Joey and Lindsey speaking in front of audiences at newspaper conventions. Joey didn’t need me to make him famous. The work he and Lindsey were doing spoke for itself.

If you are a regular reader of my column, you’ve heard me mention Dale Gentry and his staff at the Jefferson City (Tennessee) Standard Banner several times. Dale and his team continue to make improvements at their ever-growing newspaper, discovering new ways to meet the demands of their readers. I love the newspapers Dale’s staff publishes for each school in the area. Stories written by the students are featured in these papers, printed on broadsheets, distributed to the schools, and inserted into The Standard Banner. Is it any wonder that after 96 years, The Standard Banner continues to grow? Having just finished several months of work with Dale’s staff, we’ll soon focus

on creating a new publication. Like other growing newspapers, The Standard Banner has learned that cutting to grow doesn’t work. Investing in future growth does.

While preparing to speak in Alabama, I contacted North Dakota publisher Jill Friesz to ask how things were going with her ever-growing group of community papers in North Dakota. It seems that Jill has been quite successful at creating new papers – or reviving former papers – in communities where newspapers have been closed. I was thrilled to hear things were going great at her papers, not just because that allowed me to include her example in my Alabama keynote. I was also excited to hear that Jill has recently revived another community paper in the state.

I plan to take some time to relax, maybe two or three days, before jumping into several redesigns in July and August. I’ll also visit on-site with a few newspapers from Knoxville to Chicago. I may sound like a broken record, but I don’t make this stuff up. I run into healthy, growing community papers everywhere I look and wherever I go. That’s one reason I love working with newspapers so much.

Kevin Slimp is former director of The University of Tennessee Newspaper Institute and founder of NewspaperAcademy.com. Contact him at kevin@kevinslimp.com