AAN News
Alt-Cartoonist Says the 'End Of Alternative Comic Strips' May Be Herenew
"Call me a pessimist, but I think relying on alternative weekly papers to sustain alternative comics after this week is a dream," says "Rehabilitating Mr. Wiggles" cartoonist Neil Swaab. He lays out three ways forward for working alt-cartoonists: a subscription-based model, more interactivity, and donations. UPDATE (Feb. 3, 1 pm): Swaab has removed the post due to what many saw as disparaging comments about web-based comic artists.
Rehabilitating Mr. Wiggles |
02-02-2009 1:12 pm |
Industry News
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Another Cartoonist is Dropped by Alt-Weekly Clientsnew
Lloyd Dangle reports that The Stranger and Metro Silicon Valley have cut his "Troubletown" cartoon. "[The papers] said that they might bring Troubletown back when things get better," Dangle writes, "but for newspapers, I don't know anybody who thinks it's going to get better." Meanwhile, Max Cannon of "Red Meat" has posted "an urgent message" on his website, saying "the alternative comics apocalypse has begun."
Troubletown Blog |
01-29-2009 2:58 pm |
Industry News
Ten AAN Members That Bucked the Trends and Grew in '08new
In the old days, when the media reported on problems in the newspaper industry, alternative newspapers weren't included. But alt-weeklies are immune no longer: In 2008, many AAN papers faced some of the same issues afflicting their mainstream brethren in the print media. However, you can still find alt-weeklies that had a pretty good year in 2008. That's just what AAN's editor Jon Whiten did, and he reports on 10 papers that increased revenue in a story published by Editor & Publisher.
Editor & Publisher |
01-28-2009 1:42 pm |
Industry News
Tags: Circulation, Classified Advertising, Design & Production, Editorial, Electronic Publishing, Financial, Management, Marketing, Retail Advertising, The Athens NEWS, Boulder Weekly, Illinois Times, Mountain Xpress, NUVO, Pacific Northwest Inlander, Portland Phoenix, San Luis Obispo New Times, Santa Fe Reporter, Seven Days
VVM Suspends Syndicated Cartoonsnew
Tom Tomorrow broke the news yesterday on his blog that the ailing economy is forcing Village Voice Media to suspend publication of syndicated cartoons "at least through the rest of the first quarter, and quite possibly beyond." City Pages editor Kevin Hoffman tells the Minnesota Independent he expects some reader backlash, but says the suspension is part of an effort to "trim where we can while inflicting the least damage -- realizing that we're already cutting bone." MORE: Syndicated cartoonists Jen Sorensen and Derf weigh in.
This Modern World | Minnesota Independent |
01-27-2009 4:10 pm |
Industry News
2009 AltWeekly Awards Deadline Approaches
Members have one week to submit entries for the contest. Entries must be registered through the contest website by 11:59 p.m. EST on Fri., Jan. 30.
Each entry must be registered online, regardless of whether the material itself is being entered in PDF or tearsheet format. Hard copies and payment must be received in the AAN office by 5 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 2.
(FULL STORY)
AAN |
01-23-2009 10:33 am |
Association News
Another Axed Editorial Cartoonist Finds a Home at an Alt-Weeklynew
Steve Greenberg, who drew editorial cartoons for the Ventura County Star until a few months ago, will now draw weekly cartoons for the Ventura County Reporter. In December, Brian Duffy made a similar jump in Des Moines, Iowa. "The Reporter is giving me a chance to restart and recharge," Greenberg writes. "Sometimes, when the roller-coaster stops working, you've gotta give the Ferris wheel a spin."
Ventura County Reporter |
01-23-2009 9:21 am |
Industry News
Salt Lake City Weekly Unveils Redesign
Introducing City Weekly's new layout and expanded editorial coverage -- City Weekly is completely redesigned.
(FULL STORY)
Salt Lake City Weekly Press Release |
01-22-2009 12:36 pm |
Press Releases
AAN Office Closed for MLK Day and Inauguration
AAN headquarters will be closed Monday and Tuesday in observance of the Federal holidays.
AAN |
01-19-2009 8:16 am |
Association News
Alt-Weekly Cartoonists Losing Clients
Matt Bors and Tom Tomorrow both report that they have lost several papers in the last few months.
Bors Blog | This Modern World |
01-16-2009 11:09 am |
Industry News
New Report Offers 206 Revenue-Boosting and Cost-Cutting Tipsnew
Kim A. Mac Leod of Regional Media Advisors and Seija Goldstein of Seija Goldstein Associates recently interviewed more than 60 regional publishers of every stripe, from alt-weeklies to business journals to city magazines, to find out what they are doing to generate revenue and reduce expenses. The results, broken down into 12 categories, are now available on the Regional Media Advisors website.
Regional Media Advisors |
01-12-2009 11:38 am |
Industry News
Layoffs Reported at Four Additional AAN Papers
As part of company-wide cuts at Creative Loafing, Washington City Paper and Creative Loafing (Charlotte) have each reportedly laid off two employees. In addition, Mediabistro is reporting on an unspecified number of layoffs at L.A. Weekly, and the Valley Advocate says that last week associate publisher Do-Han Allen and circulation manager Jeffrey Owczarski became "the latest casualties of a series of year-end layoffs by our parent company." A few days after his paper laid off seven, Creative Loafing (Tampa) editor David Warner dedicates his editor's note to a list of "the Top 10 Reasons Layoffs Suck."
AAN News |
12-24-2008 9:17 am |
Industry News
Recent Newsweek Cover Looks Very Familiar to the Oklahoma Gazette
Last week, Gazette editor Rob Collins alerted AAN News to the striking similarities between Newsweek's Dec. 15 cover and one published by the alt-weekly on Feb. 5, 2004. The Gazette's image, which was designed by art director Chris Street and shot by photographer Shannon Cornman, was one of three Gazette entries that won a 2005 AltWeekly Award. "Is imitation the sincerest form of flattery? Sometimes, a picture is worth a thousand words," Collins says.
AAN News |
12-22-2008 11:25 am |
Industry News
Mountain XPress Implements Cost-Cutting Measuresnew
Employees of the Asheville, N.C., alt-weekly will see an across-the-board cut in pay of between 5 and 10 percent effective Jan. 1, owner and publisher Jeff Fobes announced Friday. The paper has suffered a recent decline in classified and retail advertising, and Fobes expects the slide to continue in 2009. "Our strategy is to share the pain, so we're instituting a company-wide pay cut," he says. "Everyone feels the pain; everyone should have input into what must be an evolving response to the economy." ALSO FROM THE XPRESS: The paper recently discussed its web operations in a feature story on how local publications are dealing with online journalism.
Mountain XPress |
12-22-2008 9:56 am |
Industry News
Judge Allows Ben Eason to Retain Control of Creative Loafingnew
The bankruptcy court judge refused to grant a motion by lender Atalaya to give it ownership of the company yesterday, Creative Loafing (Tampa) reports. Judge Caryl E. Delano ruled that CL's reorganization plan should proceed, and that it was too early into the case to say the plan won't work. On a second part of Atalaya's takeover motion, the judge scheduled the final evidentiary hearing for Jan. 21, and a Jan. 26 hearing has been set to review CL's proposed reorganization plan.
Creative Loafing (Tampa) |
12-19-2008 3:52 pm |
Industry News
Portland Mercury Spoof Cover Draws Letter from National Geographicnew
For the paper's Halloween issue, the Mercury ran a cover disguising itself as an issue of National Geographic, which has trademarked its yellow-banded cover design. This week editor Steve Humphrey says he received a letter from National Geographic's executive vice president that proves "not everybody in the world is a humorless dick." The letter said the magazine's first instinct in similar cases is to issue a cease-and-desist letter, but it recognized that the Mercury cover "was not malicious appropriation, but all in good fun." The letter also urged the Mercury to encourage its readers to buy subscriptions to National Geographic.
The Porland Mercury |
12-19-2008 2:54 pm |
Industry News
