A series from the News/Media Alliance

Watch the first episode of our Free Press Focus subseries of the News Take podcast, out now!

The News Take podcast is a series of interviews with thought leaders and other influencers in the news and magazine media space sharing insights and perspectives with News/Media Alliance staff on timely events topics of interest. Guests will share their “take” on the news about news and magazine media, exclusively for Alliance members!

Subscribe to the News Take podcast on Spotify, Apple, and YouTube Music.

Free Press Focus subseries:

Episode 1: Preventing Another Capital Gazette Shooting: Why We Need The Journalist Protection Act (Guests: Paul Gillespie, Capital Gazette and Dan Shelley, RTDNA)

Now available: Season 2:

Episode 201: News Nutrition Labels: How NewsGuard is Helping Fight Misinformation Online (Guest: Gordon Crovitz, NewsGuard)

Episode 202: How the American Press Institute is Inspiring Cultural Transformation in News Media (Guests: Samantha Ragland and Elite Truong, American Press Institute)

Episode 203: Pioneering Innovation at Legacy Magazine and News Media Brands (Guest: Lisa Hughes, The Philadelphia Inquirer)

Episode 204: Navigating the Digital Media Transition: Lessons from the Music Industry (Guest: Cherie Hu, Water & Music)

Send your suggestions for future News Take guests to Alliance Vice President, Research & Insights, Rebecca Frank at rebecca@newsmediaalliance.org.

Stream all 12 episodes of Season 1:

Episode 101: Local News: Understanding What Readers Want and How to Deliver it to Them (Guests: Jim Bernard, Star Tribune and Mike Orren, The Dallas Morning News)

Episode 102: Tech Trends: What Publishers Need to Know (Guest: Aram Zucker-Scharff, The Washington Post)

Episode 103: Leveraging Products to Connect with Your Audience (Guest: Kim Bui, Arizona Republic)

Episode 104: Encouraging and Sustaining Diversity in News Media (Guest: Mitra Kalita, URL Media)

Episode 105: Protecting Journalists Reporting on Russia’s War in Ukraine (Guest: Carlos Martinez de la Serna, Committee to Protect Journalists)

Episode 106: Tapping Into the Potential of Blockchain for News Publishers (Guest: Julien Genestoux, founder and CEO of Unlock)

Episode 107: Committing to Product Thinking in the News Industry: Putting Readers First (Guest: Feli Carrique, Executive Director, News Product Alliance)

Episode 108: Print, Logistics and Delivery in a Transitional Age (Guests: Gregg Fernandes, The Washington Post and Dan Schaub, McClatchy)

Episode 109: The State of Advertising and Local News (Guest: Gordon Borrell, Borrell Associates)

Episode 110: Update on News Deserts and Local News Trends (Guests: Penny Muse Abernathy and Tim Franklin, Medill Journalism School Local News Initiative at Northwestern University)

Episode 111: Outsmarting Google and Facebook: Helping Publishers Grow Their Audience Outside the Dominant Platforms (Guest: Rand Fishkin, SparkToro)

Episode 112: Lessons in Practicality from The Daily Memphian: “A Lot of People Don’t Know We’re a Nonprofit” (Guest: Eric Barnes, The Daily Memphian)

News Take Production Team:

Host and Executive Producer: Rebecca Frank, VP, Research & Insights, News/Media Alliance

Free Press Focus Subseries Host: Charlotte McBirney, Senior Counsel and Director, Public Policy, News/Media Alliance

Production Support, Editing & Distribution:

Georgi-Ann Clarke, Social Media & Content Manager, News/Media Alliance
Rachel Fox, Manager, Membership & Events, News/Media Alliance
Lindsey Loving, Director, Communications, News/Media Alliance

Audio & Video Engineer: Current Media Group

Back to top

The post News Take: Candid Conversations with Industry Leaders appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

News/Media Alliance president and CEO David Chavern recently talked with Gordon Borrell about the future of news publishing on the latest episode of the Local Marketing Trends podcast, hosted by Borrell and Corey Elliott.

Listen now

The post Podcast: David Chavern on ‘What Does a Newspaper Company Look Like in 2032?’ appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

John Murray

Arlington, VA – The News Media Alliance has named The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead (North Dakota) (Small category), the Detroit Free Press (Medium category), the Honolulu Star-Advertiser (Medium Category) and Newsday (Long Island, NY) (Large category) as the recipients of the 2021 John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development.

A selection committee of Alliance and American Press Institute (API) staff members selected the four recipients (with a tie in the Medium category) for their exceptional innovation and sophistication in understanding content strategy as part of audience development. Their effective use of multiple platforms and formats for sharing content; development of thoughtful, responsive content and programs to help readers navigate important issues (e.g., Covid-19 vaccines, local crime, etc.); livestreaming sports and virtual events; and leveraging social media, video, and newsletter products to introduce their brands to new audiences resulted in measurable positive impacts on audience growth, subscription and advertiser revenue, and print and digital subscriptions.

All four news publishers successfully applied one or more of the seven ‘Table Stakes’ capacities of modern news publishing, which were developed as part of the Knight Lenfest Local News Transformation program.

Alliance President and CEO, David Chavern, stated, “We continue to be amazed at the innovation and creativity our members have shown year after year in their submissions for this Award. While we received many impressive nominations again this year, these four news organizations showed some amazing results in growing audience and revenue for their digital products and services that exemplify what is possible when news organizations listen to readers and what they need, and meet them where they are. I know John Murray would have been really excited and proud to see the hard work news publishers are putting in that is paying off in the form of new and engaged audiences.”

Michael Bolden, Executive Director and CEO of API, said, “The four winners of the John P. Murray Award demonstrated successful applications of the transformational thinking news organizations must put into practice in the digital age to better serve their communities. The winners can build on their success, while their work offers useful case studies that other publishers can follow in their own markets. Putting such peer learning into practice is one of the most powerful tools we have in journalism to help move the industry forward.”

This is the third year of the John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development, which was established in memory of former Vice President of Audience Development John Murray, who was with the organization for over 20 years before passing away in 2018. Murray was known across the news industry for helping Alliance member news publishers improve audience development and engagement, and for convening members to share best practices.

In response to being named a recipient of the 2021 John P. Murray Award:

• Stephanie Schroeder, Chief Customer & Marketing Officer at Forum Communications said, “The Forum is beyond honored to be chosen as one of the recipients of this prestigious award. We believe that our audience is our most valuable asset, so we are proud to be recognized for our efforts in trying to better serve them. Our work is not yet finished – and it likely never will be – but it’s work we feel privileged to do.”
• Brian Manzullo, Social, Search & Audience Editor at the Detroit Free Press stated, “On behalf of the Detroit Free Press, it’s an absolute honor to receive this award from the News Media Alliance in memory of John Murray. It’s a testament to the efforts by our entire newsroom in not just engaging our audiences, but involving them throughout the newsgathering process to empower our journalism and deliver meaningful impact in our communities. Thank you so much to the News Media Alliance for recognizing our work, and most of all thank you to our readers who help push us to become better at serving them.”
• Dennis Francis, Oahu Publications, Inc. President and Publisher said, “Innovative audience development allows the Honolulu Star-Advertiser to focus on its core mission of providing the community with local news, sports, commentary and entertainment while spurring public discussions on the critical issues affecting the lives of our readers and the communities they serve across the State.”
• Debby Krenek, Publisher of Newsday, said, “We could not be prouder of what the team has achieved for our organization with Newsday LIVE events. We’re incredibly honored that their work is being recognized by our peers at the News Media Alliance.” Melissa Carfero, Newsday’s manager of event strategy and development, added, “It’s a tremendous honor to receive this award and to be recognized by News Media Alliance, especially for excellence in audience development. The success Newsday LIVE has seen year over year is undoubtedly attributed to the expertise, determination and unwavering commitment our team shares in making each event more successful than the last.”

All four recipients will receive an award to display at their property; a check for $1,000 to put toward enhancing their audience development and engagement efforts; and will be invited to present their success stories an upcoming Alliance member best practices webinar. The Alliance will also add this year’s recipients to a plaque that is displayed at its headquarters.

For more information about the John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development, click here.

###

Media Contact:
Lindsey Loving
Director, Communications
lindsey@newsmediaalliance.org

The News Media Alliance is a nonprofit organization representing more than 2,000 news organizations and their multiplatform businesses in the United States and globally. Alliance members include print, digital and mobile publishers of original news content. Headquartered just outside of Washington, D.C., the association focuses on ensuring the future of news media through communication, research, advocacy and innovation. Information about the News Media Alliance (formerly NAA) can be found at www.newsmediaalliance.org.

The post News Media Alliance Announces Recipients of 2021 John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

Guest: Mitra Kalita, co-founder and CEO, URL Media

“From a mission perspective, we did not want Black and Brown audiences to be only charitable endeavors. We see our people as a very important, vital, necessary market.” – Mitra Kalita, URL Media

You know you were meant to be a journalist when, as a pre-teen, you created a newspaper to protest your parents’ decision to move your family from Puerto Rico to New Jersey! That is exactly how Mitra Kalita, co-founder and CEO of URL Media, got her start in journalism.

On this episode of News Take, News Media Alliance President & CEO David Chavern and Kalita have a heartfelt discussion about her journey from being a busy CNN Digital executive to starting her own newsletter, Epicenter-NYC, and media company, URL  Media, in Jackson Heights, New York City amidst a pandemic and racial justice movement. During this light-hearted and honest talk, Kalita shares how she and her business partner were able to achieve instant scale, launching the URL Media network with seven million users, and how they’ve embraced a for-profit business model at a time when many similar groups were launching as nonprofits. In addition, she shares advice for improving diversity in content as well as in the newsroom, including ensuring changes to improve DE&I are lasting and become a part of the organization culture.

Listen or download the audio file to listen offline:

Don’t forget to subscribe to the News Take podcast by clicking “Follow” and selecting your preferred podcasting platform, or click on your preferred platform: Spotify, Apple, Google.

Watch with video:

Download closed captioning transcript

Speaker bio

Mitra Kalita is a veteran journalist, media executive, commentator and author of two books. She is the co-founder/ CEO of URL Media, a network of Black and Brown community news outlets that share content and revenue. URL Media works with mainstream newsrooms to syndicate content and partner on diversity initiatives in content, staffing and culture. She is co-founder and publisher of Epicenter-NYC, a newsletter designed to help New Yorkers get through the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as the newsletters The Unmuted and The Escape Home.

Previously, Mitra was Senior Vice President at CNN Digital, overseeing the national news, breaking news, programming, opinion and features teams. She also worked in leadership roles at the Los Angeles Times and Quartz. She sits on a number of journalism industry boards, most notably, the board of the News Media Alliance.

Related links

URL Media

Epicenter-NYC

Watch the next episode: Protecting Journalists Reporting on Russia’s War in Ukraine 

Watch the previous episode: Leveraging Products to Connect with Your Audience 

View all episodes

Send us your suggestions

Send your suggestions for future News Take guests to Alliance VP, Research & Insights Rebecca Frank at rebecca@newsmediaalliance.org.

Back to top

The post News Take Episode 104: Encouraging and Sustaining Diversity in News Media appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

Guest: Kim Bui, Director of Product & Audience Innovation, Arizona Republic

“The product side is a personal interest of mine in that it really is the ‘how’ – I love looking at how we can tell better stories, how we can integrate better with our audience’s lives, listen to them, become more useful, and really get away from the pedestal style journalism that has ended up with us not being trusted by a majority of people.” – Kim Bui, Arizona Republic

What comes first, the product or the user? How do we close the gap between the addressable market and market penetration? What are ways to use newsletters and text notifications to get personal with readers? How can we position ourselves now with younger readers and Gen Z readers as a useful news source? What are the “winners” in the news product space doing that we are not?

On this episode of News Take, News Media Alliance President & CEO David Chavern chatted with Kim Bui, Director of Product and Audience Innovation at the Arizona Republic/AZCentral.com, about how to leverage the latest trends in digital products to connect with your audience and be useful to them, while at the same time building trust and emphasizing community-centered journalism. The conversation flows into a discussion of the evolving workplace and how Kim’s columns, “Sincerely, Leaders of Color” and “The Middles” reflect the importance of improving diversity in news media and providing education to those emerging leaders who are navigating unfamiliar management and leadership roles.

Listen now or download the audio file to listen offline:

Don’t forget to subscribe to the News Take podcast by clicking “Follow” and selecting your preferred podcasting platform, or click on your preferred platform: Spotify, Apple, Google.

Watch with video:

Download transcript

Speaker bio

Kim Bui is the director of product and audience innovation at the Arizona Republic. She’s focused her career on leading real-time news initiatives and creating new storytelling forms for digital, print and broadcast companies catering to local, national and global audiences. Prior, she was editor-at-large for NowThis News, focusing on original, social reporting and breaking news. She was also deputy managing editor for reported.ly, a digital media startup specializing in social journalism. She’s been a speaker, trainer and teacher on digital and social journalism at universities, conferences and gatherings worldwide. She writes a syndicated newsletter for emerging leaders and managers, The Middles.

Related reading

Sincerely, Leaders of Color

The Middles

The Key to Gen Z: Insights and Ideas to Build Lasting Relationships

Watch the next episode: Encouraging and Sustaining Diversity in News Media

Watch the previous episode: Tech Trends: What Publishers Need to Know

View all episodes

Send us your suggestions

Send your suggestions for future News Take guests to Alliance VP, Research & Insights Rebecca Frank at rebecca@newsmediaalliance.org.

Back to top

The post News Take Episode 103: Leveraging Products to Connect with Your Audience appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

Guests: Aram Zucker-Scharff, The Washington Post

“For the first time, we actually have the potential to create a real shift that benefits our users, our business, and our society, and that’s a win, win, win.” – Aram Zucker-Scharff on the shift to contextual-based targeting

Ad tech, Privacy and Performance, oh my! News publishers working to adapt to a privacy-first digital landscape before the inevitable end of the third-party cookie can easily become overwhelmed and may not even know where to start.

What does the shift towards privacy mean for news publishers and how they approach ad targeting? Is decreased reliance on third-party tracking a good thing for the industry? What are Core Web Vitals and why should news publishers care? How does my news site’s performance tie in to reader trust? What are things publishers can do right now to improve site performance? What is W3C and how can publishers take advantage to get their voices heard?

These questions and more will be discussed on this episode of News Take. News Media Alliance President & CEO David Chavern had an energizing conversation with Aram Zucker-Scharff, Engineering Lead for Privacy & Security Compliance at The Washington Post, that got in-the-weeds about the kitchen sink of ad tech topics, including site monetization; improving privacy and the user experience; optimizing site performance using Core Web Vitals; and more.

This episode was so full of interesting facts and actionable insights, we didn’t want it to end. The nuggets of wisdom will come faster than you can write them down, so it’s a good thing this conversation was recorded and you can re-watch it to your heart’s content!

Listen now or download the audio file to listen offline:

Don’t forget to subscribe to the News Take podcast by clicking “Follow” and selecting your preferred podcasting platform, or click on your preferred platform: Spotify, Apple, Google.

Watch with video:

Download closed captioning transcript

Speaker bio

Aram Zucker-Scharff is the Engineering Lead for Privacy & Security Compliance at The Washington Post, where he works with publishers to maximize site performance and revenue. He has also worked on The Post’s Ad Tech R&D and Big Data teams. Aram has developed open-source tools for publishers and consulted on content strategy and digital newsroom workflows. He was one of Folio Magazine’s 15 under 30 in the magazine media industry.

Related reading

“Why The Ad Industry Should Care About Core Web Vitals – And The Impact For Publishers Who Ignore The Dreaded ‘Layout Shift’” (AdExchanger) – by Amanda Hicks, director of product for The Washington Post’s Research, Experimentation & Development (RED) team.

Watch the next episode: Leveraging Products to Connect with Your Audience

Watch the previous episode: Local News: Understanding What Readers Want and How to Deliver it to Them

View all episodes

Send us your suggestions

Send your suggestions for future News Take guests to Alliance VP, Research & Insights Rebecca Frank at rebecca@newsmediaalliance.org.

News Take Production Team:

Host and Executive Producer: Rebecca Frank, VP, Research & Insights, News/Media Alliance

Production Support, Editing & Distribution:

Georgi-Ann Clarke, Social Media & Content Manager, News/Media Alliance
Rachel Fox, Manager, Membership & Events, News/Media Alliance
Lindsey Loving, Director, Communications, News/Media Alliance

Audio & Video Engineer: Current Media Group

Back to top

The post News Take Episode 102: Tech Trends: What Publishers Need to Know appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

Guests: Jim Bernard, Star Tribune and Mike Orren, The Dallas Morning News

Is there such a thing as a typical reader or subscriber? What role does the e-Paper play in the transition to digital (and why did our speakers initially despise the product)? Do new storytelling formats such as podcasts and social media present viable business models, and how can news publishers successfully venture into this space? What are news publishers getting right on the tech side, and where do they still need to improve?

In this episode of News Take, News Media Alliance President & CEO David Chavern sits down with Jim Bernard, Senior Vice President for Digital at the Minneapolis-based Star Tribune and Mike Orren, Chief Product Officer at The Dallas Morning News for a candid conversation about the challenges and opportunities that arise from understanding your readers and subscribers and how to give them what they want (and when, where and how they want it) – all while prioritizing revenue (because at the end of the day, newspapers need to sell subscriptions). From the differences between print and digital subscribers and their desires, preferences, and behaviors, to why the e-Edition is a valuable product, to approaches to experimenting with new forms of storytelling (including audio and video), to their most exciting plans for 2022, Orren and Bernard draw from their leadership experience to offer insights on navigating the constantly changing news consumption landscape.

Listen now or download the audio file to listen offline:

Don’t forget to subscribe to the News Take podcast by clicking “Follow” and selecting your preferred podcasting platform, or click on your preferred platform: Spotify, Apple, Google.

Watch with video:

Speaker bios

Mike Orren is the Chief Product Officer at The Dallas Morning News, leading the teams responsible for all digital products, marketing, business intelligence, and digital audience. Prior to that, he was President at Belo Business Intelligence, where he leads marketing, analytics, product development, strategy and sales infrastructure for A.H. Belo Corporation, publisher of The Dallas Morning News. He founded Pegasus News, the largest single-market digital news pure-play in the US in 2005, eventually selling it to a publicly-traded broadcast company. Mike has served in senior roles at American Lawyer Media and D Magazine (where he launched the first city magazine website). His work has been recognized with awards from Editor & Publisher, The Dallas Press Club, the North Carolina Press Association and The Dallas Business Journal. Mike is a graduate of Duke University.

Jim Bernard is Star Tribune’s senior vice president for digital with responsibility for the company’s portfolio of digital properties and operations, including StarTribune.com – the state’s most-visited website with 7 million unique visitors each month. He also oversees dozens of other digital products, including Star Tribune mobile apps, print “replica” edition, CityPages.com and 19 Minnesota high school sports websites. Jim joined Star Tribune in 2010 from Dow Jones MarketWatch and prior to MarketWatch, he held a series of executive positions with Dow Jones. Jim earned his MBA from the University of Minnesota and a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Iowa.

Watch the next episode: Tech Trends: What Publishers Need to Know

View all episodes

Send us your suggestions

Send your suggestions for future News Take guests to Alliance VP, Research & Insights Rebecca Frank at rebecca@newsmediaalliance.org.

News Take Production Team:

Host and Executive Producer: Rebecca Frank, VP, Research & Insights, News/Media Alliance

Production Support, Editing & Distribution:

Georgi-Ann Clarke, Social Media & Content Manager, News/Media Alliance
Rachel Fox, Manager, Membership & Events, News/Media Alliance
Lindsey Loving, Director, Communications, News/Media Alliance

Audio & Video Engineer: Current Media Group

Back to top

The post News Take Episode 101: Local News: Understanding What Readers Want and How to Deliver it to Them appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

John Murray

The deadline for nominations has passed.

The News Media Alliance is excited to announce that we are now accepting nominations for the 2021 John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development.

Established in 2019 in memory of the Alliance’s long-time colleague, the John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development recognizes three Alliance member news organizations each year that have demonstrated exceptional innovation and sophistication in understanding content strategy as part of audience development.

The 2020 recipients, announced in May 2021, included #ThisIsTucson/Arizona Daily Star, The Keene Sentinel, and McClatchy. Click here to view the John Murray 2020 Audience Development Best Practices Webinar with the 2020 recipients for more background (member login required).

We received so many great nominations last year and unfortunately, it was not possible to select them all. If you submitted a nomination last year and weren’t selected, we encourage you to submit again. Tell us what has happened in the last year to move the program forward.

Click here to submit your nomination.

What to submit?

There has been no shortage of news this year around which to implement innovative audience development and engagement strategies. We’ve seen continued, daily developments around the coronavirus; historic change as part of the movement for greater racial equality and the end of systemic racism; a new President in the White House; and coverage of the January 6 Capitol riots – which are still the subject of ongoing investigation – all driving reader interest in and consumption of local news to understand how it all impacts them, their families, and their communities. As Americans have gotten vaccinated against COVID-19, we’ve endeavored to return to normal routines. But it has not been without challenges, and we continue to look to our local news outlets to tell us how to navigate the constantly changing landscape.

While your nominations can center around any audience development efforts you undertook in the last year, these major events of 2021 represent obvious areas for possible focus, as they likely prompted last-minute changes to your existing strategies and/or the development of new strategies.

For example:

• How did you engage with your audience on these news events, and on which platforms (e.g., social media, video streaming, etc.)?
• What new products did you introduce to grow audience, engagement, and/or subscriptions (e.g., email newsletters, new print/online verticals, etc.)?
• What content formats (e.g., audio, video, text messaging, etc.) did you use to maximize engagement?
• How have you leveraged virtual and live events to grow audience?
• How did you get your readers involved in the editorial process?
• What was the impact on subscriptions (digital and print)?

How it works

Alliance members can nominate themselves or other Alliance member news organizations for consideration for the award. Each nomination should be for an individual newspaper title – newspaper publishing groups should specify which newspaper they are nominating (see Rules below). Nominations will be accepted through Friday, February 18, 2022. The deadline for nominations has passed. The three recipients, one in each newspaper size category (small = 50 or fewer employees, medium = 51-250 employees, and large = more than 250 employees), will be announced in the Spring of 2022.

Cash Prize: This year, the recipient(s) will each receive a $1,000 cash prize to put toward enhancing their audience development and engagement efforts.

Nominations should be submitted through completing the form here or below.

Selecting the recipients

Once again, the 2021 award recipients will be selected by a group of Alliance and American Press Institute (API) executives. The selection panel will be looking for deep insight into “on and off platform” audience behavior and intelligent use of social and search analytics. As a benchmark of nominees’ success, the panel will use the seven Table Stakes capacities of modern news publishing, which were developed as part of the Knight Lenfest Local News Transformation program, now managed by API.

The recipients of this year’s John P. Murray Award will be announced via a press release; invited to co-host an Alliance member webinar to share best practices; and receive an award to display at their property. The Alliance will also add the 2021 recipients’ names to the John P. Murray Award plaque on display at our headquarters.

Rules

1. The John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development will be awarded to three newsrooms annually – one in each size category (small – 50 or fewer employees; medium – between 51 and 250 employees; and large – more than 250 employees).
2. The recipients will be selected by a panel of Alliance and API executives from the nominees and will be evaluated using the seven ‘table stakes’ capacities of modern news publishing, which were developed as part of the Knight Lenfest Local News Transformation program, now managed by API.
3. Alliance newspaper members may submit nominations here or using the form below by the designated deadline for consideration. They may nominate themselves or another Alliance newspaper member, and they may submit more than one nomination. Note: Each nomination should be for an individual newspaper title – publishing groups should specify which newspaper they are nominating. Nominations for publishing groups not listing an individual newspaper will not be considered. Non-Alliance member newspaper nominations will not be considered.
4. Should there be a lack of qualifying nominations for any category, the selection panel may contribute nominations and/or designate a recipient of its choice.
5. The Alliance will notify the recipients that they have been selected and they will have the option to accept or decline the award.
6. Confirmed recipients will be announced via a News Media Alliance press release.

Submit Your Nomination

The deadline for nominations has passed.

Complete the form below and submit (make sure you click the “Submit” button), or click here.

Back to top

The post Call for Nominations: 2021 John P. Murray Audience Development Award appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

John Murray

Arlington, VA – The News Media Alliance has named the Arizona Daily Star’s #ThisIsTucson (Small category), The Keene Sentinel (Keene, NH) (Medium category), and McClatchy (Large category) as the recipients of the 2020 John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development.

A selection committee of Alliance and American Press Institute (API) executives selected the three recipients for their exceptional innovation and sophistication in understanding content strategy as part of audience development. Their effective use of multiple platforms and formats for sharing content; thoughtful content and programs to help readers navigate the events of 2020, including the coronavirus pandemic, protests against systemic racism, and the 2020 presidential election; and registration programs to introduce their brands to new audiences, among other major undertakings, resulted in measurable positive impacts on audience growth, subscription and circulation revenue, and print and digital subscriptions.

All three news publishers successfully applied one or more of the seven ‘Table Stakes’ capacities of modern news publishing, which were developed as part of the Knight Lenfest Local News Transformation program.

Alliance President and CEO, David Chavern, stated, “We have been really pleased with the response from our members to this award. Even in the midst of a global pandemic that threatened the livelihoods of many local news publishers, our members were able to show incredible growth.

Chavern continued, “While we received several impressive nominations again this year, these three organizations showed some amazing results that really demonstrate how far the industry has come, and how news publishers have innovated and are seeing great success in growing audience and revenue for their digital products and services. I know John Murray would have been really excited and proud to see the hard work news publishers are putting in that is paying off in the form of new and engaged audiences.”

Jeff Sonderman, Deputy Executive Director and Executive Vice President at API, stated, “As the United States and the world were rocked this past year by crises and major events, it became more important than ever that news organizations center their audiences’ needs in their reporting and expand to serve all types of people. This year’s award recipients provide inspiring examples of how growth is possible through refining content strategies to appeal to more people while improving business practices to grow reader revenue. It’s a pleasure to congratulate the winners and to know that the work they carry on serves the legacy of John Murray so well.”

This is the second year of the John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development, which was established in memory of former Vice President of Audience Development John Murray, who was with the organization for over 20 years before passing away in 2018. Murray was known across the news industry for helping Alliance member news publishers improve audience development and engagement, and for convening members to share best practices.

In response to being named a recipient of the 2020 John P. Murray Award:

• Irene McKisson, #ThisIsTucson team leader, said, “We’re honored that our team was chosen as an example of how a small team can make innovation and content strategy a central part of audience development.”
• Terrence Williams, President and Chief Operating Officer of The Keene Sentinel, stated, “We are delighted to receive a John P. Murray Award and be among the many prestigious past and current recipients. It’s been a total company effort to grow our digital audience while doing all we can to hold onto print subscribers, too. Being part of the Table Stakes program at Poynter in 2019-2020 provided us invaluable guidance and practices, and we continue to work at those daily. My praise goes to our staff members who have committed to this effort and to our readers for their support of our journalism.”
• Abby Reimer, Director of Consumer Product & Research at McClatchy, stated, “The success of McClatchy’s registered user strategy shows the impact of collaborative work, thoughtful design, and listening to research. We leaned on data analysis, and A/B testing to implement a holistic mid-funnel experience that has so far led to more than 1.75 million registered users and more than 20,000 new subscribers. We’re excited to continue this important work, which sustains local, essential journalism in our communities.”

All three recipients will receive an award to display at their property; a check for $500 to put toward enhancing their audience development and engagement efforts; and will be invited to present their success stories an upcoming Alliance member best practices webinar. The Alliance will also add this year’s recipients to a plaque that is displayed at its headquarters.

For more information about the John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development, click here.

###

Media Contact:
Lindsey Loving
Director, Communications
571.366.1009
lindsey@newsmediaalliance.org

The News Media Alliance is a nonprofit organization representing more than 2,000 news organizations and their multiplatform businesses in the United States and globally. Alliance members include print, digital and mobile publishers of original news content. Headquartered just outside of Washington, D.C., the association focuses on ensuring the future of news media through communication, research, advocacy and innovation. Information about the News Media Alliance (formerly NAA) can be found at www.newsmediaalliance.org.

The post News Media Alliance Announces Recipients of 2020 John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development appeared first on News/Media Alliance.

Three newsrooms honored for innovation in improving audience engagement, growing digital subscriptions

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Arlington, VA – The News Media Alliance has named the (Fort Collins) Coloradoan, The Post and Courier (Charleston, SC) and the Chicago Tribune as the recipients of the 2019 John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development.

A selection committee of Alliance and American Press Institute (API) executives selected the Coloradoan (Small category), The Post and Courier (Medium category), and the Chicago Tribune (Large category) for their exceptional innovation and sophistication in understanding content strategy as part of audience development; their effective relationships with their editorial staff; and the measurable impact on business performance. In addition, all three news publishers successfully applied one or more of the seven ‘Table Stakes’ capacities of modern news publishing, which were developed as part of the Knight Lenfest Local News Transformation program.

The Alliance announced the creation of the John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development in October 2019, in memory of former Vice President of Audience Development John Murray, who was with the organization for 20 years before passing away in 2018. Murray was known across the news industry for helping Alliance member news publishers improve audience development and engagement, and for convening members to share best practices.

“We were very impressed with all of the nominations we received this year. However, these three newsrooms stood out for the innovative strategies employed and the amazing results achieved, including significant digital subscriber growth,” stated Alliance President and CEO David Chavern. “John would have been really proud of the amazing strides news publishers are making in audience development and retention.”

In response to being named a recipient of the 2019 John P. Murray Award:

• Jennifer Hefty, content strategist with the Coloradoan, said, “For the past year and a half, our team has worked hard to reorganize and change the way we think about our audience. We have really rallied around the shared goal of being a self-sustaining newsroom, working to ensure the future of local news in our community through reader revenue. It’s amazing to be part of a team that is committed to a common vision and is never afraid to experiment. We are grateful for and honored by the recognition.”
• P.J. Browning, publisher of The Post and Courier, stated, “We are honored to receive this award. Our team has been on a steep learning curve after participating in Poynter Table Stakes and the Google News Subscriptions Lab. We feel like we’ve been running at a fast pace for the last year. We have a daily focus on audience growth and it is rewarding to see the results and have confidence in supporting the future of our news organization.”
• Christine Taylor, managing editor of audience at the Chicago Tribune, stated, “We are excited to receive this award and honor John’s legacy of audience development. We are very proud of the work the Chicago Tribune newsroom has done in the last year to grow our local reach and digital subscribers. We’ve been able to do this with increased focus on mobile storytelling, improving collaboration in the newsroom and evolving how we think about audience data.”

All three recipients will receive an award to display at their property and will be invited to co-host an upcoming Alliance member webinar to share their best practices with fellow members. The Alliance will also have a larger plaque at its headquarters, to which it will add the names of the recipients for each year.

###

Media Contact:
Lindsey Loving
Director, Communications
571.366.1009
lindsey@newsmediaalliance.org

The News Media Alliance is a nonprofit organization representing more than 2,000 news organizations and their multiplatform businesses in the United States and globally. Alliance members include print, digital and mobile publishers of original news content. Headquartered near Washington, D.C., in Arlington, Va., the association focuses on ensuring the future of news media through communication, research, advocacy and innovation. Information about the News Media Alliance (formerly NAA) can be found at www.newsmediaalliance.org.

The post News Media Alliance Announces Recipients of John P. Murray Award for Excellence in Audience Development appeared first on News/Media Alliance.