AAN News
Web Publishing Conference Early Registration Deadline Approaching
The early deadline is this Friday, Jan. 11; registration rates will increase by $50 the following day. The conference is slated for Jan. 30-Feb. 1 at the Hotel Kabuki in San Francisco, and will feature programming on topics ranging from online metrics to social networking. In addition, two separate open discussions, one for editors and the other for web-tech personnel, will be added to the program next week after AAN conducts a survey of registrants to determine when to schedule them. You can register online by clicking here.
AAN |
01-10-2008 12:45 pm |
Association News
Sale of Style Weekly Explored
As we noted yesterday, Landmark Communications, which owns both Style Weekly and Port Folio Weekly, has hired investment bankers to explore the possibility of selling the company's holdings, which include more than 100 publications and other properties, including The Weather Channel. "Although I was disappointed to hear the Battens were exploring a sale, our readers will continue to get the best of in-depth, local reporting on news, arts and culture," Style editor Jason Roop says in a press release. Publisher Lori Collier Waran concurs, noting that readers, advertisers and other business partners can expect business as usual. "We just celebrated our 25th anniversary, and we're still going strong."
(FULL STORY)
Style Weekly Press Release |
01-04-2008 11:33 am |
Press Releases
Port Folio Weekly & Style Weekly Parent Co. May Go Up for Salenew
Landmark Communications, which owns those two Virginia AAN member papers, has hired JP Morgan and Lehman Brothers to "to assist in exploring strategic alternatives, including the possible sale of the company's businesses," Landmark's vice chairman tells the Roanoke Times. The company's 2006 sales figures were $1.75 billion, and it employs about 12,000 people at more than 100 publications and other media properties including The Weather Channel, the Times reports.
The Roanoke Times |
01-03-2008 8:48 am |
Industry News
Colorado Springs Independent Dropped from Starbucksnew
Publisher John Weiss says he was asked a couple months ago by one area Starbucks store to pick up the Indy's news racks there. When he asked why the paper was being kicked out, the manager told him an individual had complained and the corporate office decided to pull the paper, KOAA-TV reports. "Starbucks has a non-solicitation policy and the standard operating procedure is to carry only the New York Times and the local paper, i.e. the Colorado Springs Gazette," the coffee giant says in a statement. Weiss says it sets a double standard: "Just allowing one newspaper, which is very, very conservative, into their stores, we don't think provides the balance this community needs." The Indy went through a similar ban eight years ago at King Soopers grocery stores, according to KOAA. The stores eventually brought the paper back after receiving multiple complaint letters and phone calls from customers.
KOAA-TV |
12-28-2007 8:36 am |
Industry News
Bay Area Papers Try to Combat Wave of Free Paper Theftnew
A recent surge in newspaper theft has a coalition of Bay Area newspapers -- including the East Bay Express and the San Francisco Bay Guardian -- asking local authorities to help pursue thieves both on the street and at the recycling businesses where they fence the stolen goods, according to the Berkeley Daily Planet. The Express is doing more than just asking cops for help, though. The Planet reports that after complaints to local police failed to result in the apprehension of a man repeatedly seen stealing papers, the alt-weekly hired a private investigator. On his first night out, the private eye caught the thief with more than 500 copies of the Express -- and nearly as many Bay Guardians -- in his truck. Express publisher Hal Brody says that stopping the thefts will take more than arresting street-level thieves -- rather, he thinks cops need to target the recycling businesses that accept the contraband. A meeting between Oakland police and local publishers to discuss how to stem the tide of theft is planned for the near future, the Planet reports.
Berkeley Daily Planet |
12-27-2007 8:26 am |
Industry News
Alleged Free Paper Thief Caught in Oaklandnew
Police say they caught an East Bay man loading piles of free papers -- including the East Bay Express -- into a vehicle early Wednesday morning, the Oakland Tribune reports. In California, taking more than 25 papers is a crime. A witness called police after following the suspect during repeated trips to a recycling center, where the suspect would turn in the papers for cash, according to a police source. No word on if this was the same thief featured on this site last month.
The Oakland Tribune |
12-21-2007 10:04 am |
Industry News
Two Veteran Staffers to Leave AAN
AAN director of sales and marketing Roxanne Cooper and her assistant,
Tiffany Kildale, resigned last week after accepting new positions with
different employers. Cooper will be leaving AAN in February to take over as
associate publisher of the Philadelphia City Paper, and Kildale departs next
month to assume the position of meeting coordinator at the Chemical
Producers & Distributors Association in Washington, D.C.
(FULL STORY)
AAN |
12-17-2007 5:28 pm |
Association News
Ben Eason Weighs in on the State of Creative Loafingnew
"While it is easy to blame mean and nasty CEOs for trimming budgets, the fact is that our journalism, advertising and our content needs to be and are being re-conceived," Creative Loafing CEO Ben Eason says in a memo to employees leaked to Poynter's Jim Romenesko. In the memo, Eason tells his employees that most of the post-merger integration -- including staffing decisions -- of the Chicago Reader and Washington City Paper into the CL family is complete. "I'm very pleased with how the new company has come together," he says. "We are positioned well to take advantage of the future."
Romenesko Memos |
12-17-2007 10:08 am |
Industry News
Oklahoma Gazette Loses Power, Publishes With Help of Generator
The paper lost electricity early on Monday, Dec. 10, just hours before the always-hectic press day. But this week's issue still came out, thanks to the hard work of Gazette employees ... and a generator. "We were first in line for a [generator] rental but weren't fully functional until nine hours later," associate publisher Jeffri-Lynn Dyer says. "We aren't returning it, though. With the next storm coming, we might need it next press day!" According to the latest forecast, a new storm is expected to bring two to four inches of snow heading into this weekend. The Gazette's rented generator is on standby in the paper's parking lot.
(FULL STORY)
Oklahoma Gazette Press Release |
12-14-2007 4:30 pm |
Industry News
Membership of Five Papers Up for Review in 2008
Due to a 2004 change in the association's bylaws, five papers that have taken on new majority owners in the past two years will have their AAN membership reviewed in 2008. The Membership Committee will evaluate The Other Paper, Boston's Weekly Dig, East Bay Express, Metro Pulse, and Cityview, and will issue a report to members a week before the 2007 annual convention. To retain their membership, each paper must be affirmed by at least one-third of the members voting at the annual meeting in Philadelphia, which is tentatively scheduled for June 7.
(FULL STORY)
AAN |
12-12-2007 11:46 am |
Association News
Tribune Co. Daily Sells Valley Advocatenew
The Hartford Courant announced plans Tuesday to sell the Valley Advocate, an alt-weekly covering western Massachusetts, to Newspapers of New England Inc., which owns newspapers in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Editor & Publisher reports that the sale lets the Courant focus its attention on its properties in Connecticut. The Advocate will continue to share content and do cross-market sales with the remaining alt-weeklies the Courant purchased in 1999 from New Mass. Media: the Hartford Advocate, the New Haven Advocate and Fairfield County Weekly. The sale is expected to close later this month; terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Hartford Courant | Editor & Publisher |
12-12-2007 8:14 am |
Industry News
Seven Creative Loafing Employees Laid Offnew
"Friday was a rough day at the Loaf, perhaps even rougher at our new brethren papers in Washington and Chicago," writes Creative Loafing (Atlanta) editor-in-chief Ken Edelstein. "In Atlanta, we laid off four sales people, a marketing assistant, a sales assistant and our wonderful assistant distribution manager." He adds that the six-paper company is going through the same sort of difficult transition that's hitting other media companies, before noting that his paper's online readership continues to grow. "How that audience growth translates into ad dollars is the business question that [CEO] Ben [Eason] and the folks on the sales side of our business are going to have to grapple with for a long time -- and continuously."
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
12-10-2007 1:16 pm |
Industry News
Early Registration Deadline for AAN West is Tomorrow
This Friday is the deadline for early registration for this year's AAN West conference, to be held in San Francisco Feb. 1-2. For AAN members, early registration is $75 per person (non-members pay $150). After Friday, both of those rates go up $25 per person. You can register online here. In addition to the four streams of programming (Business, Design & Production, Editorial, and Sales), the AAN West Planning Committee has some parties planned that are sure to please. On Friday night, the North Coast Journal will host a cocktail reception featuring the best in Northern California wine, cheese, and beer. On Saturday night, the San Francisco Bay Guardian will throw down at Element Lounge. Be sure to check the AAN West website for full details on events and programming, as well as updates as we get closer to February. The registration deadline for the Web Publishing Conference is Jan. 4.
AAN |
12-06-2007 8:58 am |
Association News
Shepherd Express Surpasses 250,000 Monthly Readers
Alt-weekly Celebrates Milestone with 17th Annual Best Of Milwaukee Event
(FULL STORY)
Shepherd Express Press Release |
12-04-2007 9:00 am |
Press Releases
Chicago Council Moves To Void Accidental Ban On Free Papersnew
The Chicago City Council's License Committee unanimously passed a new version of the litter and door-to-door distribution law that no longer includes the language banning the distribution of free papers in open stacks, Editor & Publisher reports. The new law now heads to the full Council for a vote.
Editor & Publisher |
12-03-2007 11:11 am |
Legal News
Tags: Circulation, Management
