AAN News

Contest Entries for 2004 Set Record

Ruth Hammond  |  02-04-2004  11:31 am  |  Association News

Iowa State Students Concerned about Gannett Plan to Distribute Free Papers on Campusnew

Student government representatives are debating whether the Gannett Newspaper Readership Program is a threat to the student paper, the Iowa Daily State. Gannett is asking student government to approve distribution of four newspapers on campus—the Gannett-owned Des Moines Register and USA Today as well as the Chicago Tribune and New York Times. Funding would come from a student fee of about $5 per semester. Mark Witherspoon, the student paper's adviser, tells Daily reporter Luke Jennett that Gannett aims to increase circulation so it can boost advertising rates. "Gannett is asking students to pay $270,000 to hurt campus life—to injure themselves," Witherspoon says.
Iowa State Daily  |  02-02-2004  11:49 am  |  Industry News

Coast Weekly Writer Covers Battle for Hearts and Minds in Iraq

Andrew Scutro wanted to see how well American troops communicated with Iraqis when he went to the suffering Middle East nation but confronted some communication barriers of his own. He would have loved to accompany an Iraqi handyman to his neighborhood but was warned that being seen with an American could endanger the man. Freelance writer Whitney Joiner interviews Scutro about the weeks he spent embedded with a civil affairs unit. (FULL STORY)
Whitney Joiner  |  01-29-2004  3:01 pm  |  Industry News

Alt-Weeklies Position Their News Racks to Defend against Gannettnew

Daily papers have treated alternative newsweeklies with contempt, but it seems "that even that small share of local advertising revenue that is often a weekly paper's sole means of support is now coveted by the big boys," writes News Editor James Shannon in a MetroBEAT cover story. In February, Gannett's Greenville News will launch a youth-oriented weekly, The Link, to compete with the Greenville, S.C., alternative paper. Alt-weekly publishers in other cities tell Shannon how they dealt with the Gannett challenge. Boise Weekly Editor-in-Chief Bingo Barnes says he "spent the first month driving around and moving our racks and newsstands back into prime locations."
MetroBEAT  |  01-29-2004  11:20 am  |  Industry News

CityBeat Reporter to Honor Cincinnati City Council's Subpoenanew

CityBeat Editor/Co-Publisher John Fox got a lot of advice, both solicited and unsolicited, after reporter Leslie Blade was subpoenaed to testify before the council's Law and Public Safety Committee. It's only the second time in 10 years the council has issued a subpoena to anyone. Blade caught the council's attention with her Dec. 10 cover story on cops who double-billed the city and housing authority. In an editorial this week, Fox says Blade should be proud to discuss the expose with the council, but she won't be sharing names of sources or information not included in her story.
Cincinnati CityBeat  |  01-28-2004  7:09 pm  |  Industry News

Still the Buzz: Washington Post Writer Kicked at AAN Conventionnew

Reporters who kick butt can get their butt kicked, too. It happened to Richard Leiby at the 1994 AAN convention in Boston. Leiby's recent appointment as the Post's gossip columnist spurred Press Action editor Mark Hand to try to get to the bottom of the juicy story. Who put out the hit on Leiby? Who delivered the kick? What was the motive? Has all been forgiven? Leiby graciously tells Hand he would love to attend another AAN gathering, but "I'll be sure to pack my ass armor…just in case." The outfit he wore in Iraq might do.
Press Action  |  01-27-2004  6:58 pm  |  Industry News

New Haven Register to Launch Weekly for Younger Setnew

The New Haven Advocate becomes the latest AAN member to face a challenge from a daily with its eye on alternative weeklies' young readers. Play, which begins publishing March 3, will be "fun, informative and a little bit edgy," says its editor, Jonathan Cooper. The new tabloid, aimed at 18- to 34-year-olds, will also give New Haven advertisers "further access to a highly attractive audience," says Robert M. Jelenic, head of the Journal Register Company, which owns the Register and 22 other newspapers.
New Haven Register  |  01-27-2004  4:31 pm  |  Industry News

Three Alt-Weekly Journalists Win Arts Reporting Fellowshipsnew

All their hard work demystifying the arts is being rewarded. Village Voice art critic Kim Levin, Independent Weekly arts editor olufunke moses and L.A. Weekly film critic Ella Taylor are among the seven writers chosen to receive USC Annenberg/Getty Arts Journalism Fellowships this year. Nearly 100 mid-career arts and culture journalists from the United States and eight foreign countries applied.
USC Annenberg  |  01-20-2004  2:34 pm  |  Industry News

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