AAN News
New Voice Editor's Early Take on the Alternative Press
In an article appearing in the Oct. 17, 1979 issue of the Wall Street Journal, David Blum exhibited an early fascination with the alt-weekly format. Blum, who was recently named editor of the Village Voice, wrote: "Some newspapers do a lot of strange things. Take the Chicago Reader." In addition to exploring the Reader's free-classifieds strategy and its strong hold on both readers and advertisers, Blum questioned the paper's lack of political coverage: "[Co-owner Robert] Roth dates the paper's first issue, that of October 1971, as 'five months after the Kent State Shootings' -- which would seem hardly the time for an alternative paper to concentrate on suggesting what to do on a Saturday night." Blum's article is available for $4.95 in the Wall Street Journal archives.
08-17-2006 11:03 am |
Industry News
As Classified Moves to Web, 'Chicago Reader' Takes New Shapenew
Editor & Publisher |
08-16-2006 9:26 am |
Industry News
Chicago Reader's PD: 'It's Time to Move On' After 29 Years
David Jones (pictured) tells AAN News that after "doing this particular job in this particular (very special) place" for such a long time, he plans to return to writing and possibly teaching. While he won't miss "squidging things around a (computer) screen," that doesn't mean it isn't difficult for him to leave the Reader. "We still do some amazing things here, every week, of course, and I'll feel strange not having my hands on any of it anymore," he says.
(FULL STORY)
04-21-2006 11:39 am |
Letters to the Editor
Alt-Weeklies Ambivalent About Craigslist Lawsuitnew
Most of the ads cited in the fair-housing lawsuit recently filed against the free-classifieds juggernaut "would not strike an ordinary person as discriminatory," says Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster. Nevertheless, newspapers have lived with the "persnickety" Fair Housing Act for many years now, writes the Chicago Reader's Michael Miner after hearing from several AAN classified directors who vigilantly scour their housing ads to ensure compliance. But that doesn't mean alt-weeklies should be thrilled by the suit. "We have two dogs in this fight," says Chicago Reader Executive Editor Mike Lenehan. "(W)e shouldn't be too eager for them to lose this suit, because we're all in the online business too."
Chicago Reader |
03-09-2006 2:57 pm |
Industry News
Circulation Software Makes Life Easier at Alt-Weeklies
A recent survey of AAN papers revealed that the applications alt-weeklies are using to track circulation are as diverse as the newspapers themselves. A few papers rely on their in-house wiz for a custom-made program, but for the rest of the industry, a commercial package is the only sophisticated option. Alt-weekly circulation insiders describe their woes, successes, and dreams of better uses for the numbers.
(FULL STORY)
Isaiah Thompson |
03-06-2006 10:53 am |
Association News
Chicago Reader Column Becomes Blogosphere Target
The Reader's Executive Editor, Michael Lenehan, penned a Swiftian proposal for a "Year Without Journalism" in the Dec. 30 issue (available here as a PDF). Lenehan wrote, "With no news to aggregate, no facts to ruminate, the algorithms and the bedroom pundits will turn on each other like mirrors, producing a perfect regression of narcissistic self-reflection, repeating endlessly." The story immediately became an object of insult among offended bloggers such as Rambling Rhodes and Wonkette, who was mentioned in Lenehan's piece. Lenehan says, "Did it get the reaction I hoped for? Of course not. The reaction I hoped for -- the reaction I always hope for -- is widespread and universal acclaim. Instead I received kind words from all the old-school journalists I heard from and vilification from almost every blogger who read the piece -- and, of course, from many bloggers who saw it blogged somewhere else and didn't bother to read it. I was surprised by how literal and humorless the bloggers are. I guess they like to think they are being attacked by print journalists, it reassures them that they are effectual."
01-10-2006 1:23 pm |
Industry News
Staff Writer at Chicago Reader Wins Alicia Patterson Journalism Fellowship
Tori Marlan is one of eight journalists chosen this year to receive a grant from the Alicia Patterson Foundation. Marlan's $17,500 six-month grant will enable her to take a leave of absence from the Reader and immerse herself in her topic, which she describes as "the plight of unaccompanied minors--kids from all over the world who come to the U.S. without parents or guardians and seek asylum. The government detains more than 5,000 of them each year." Marlan hopes her work "will appeal to a national and international readership."
12-20-2005 4:22 pm |
Industry News
Ben Joravsky: Covering City Hall From the Outside
Throughout his career, Ben Joravsky has worked to illuminate issues affecting Chicagoans. In his award-winning political column for the Chicago Reader, The Works, he explains how the city treats certain individuals, shedding light on the larger schemes of government. This is the 27th in a "How I Got That Story" series highlighting the AltWeekly Awards' first-place winners.
(FULL STORY)
Charlie Deitch |
12-15-2005 6:31 pm |
Association News
Steve Bogira: Presenting Court Cases for Readers to Judge
Steve Bogira of the Chicago Reader writes primarily about urban poverty. One place where poor people's stories are told again and again, with unexpected nuances, is in the courtroom. Bogira's award-winning column, Courtside, recounts these stories, as does his recent book, Courtroom 302. This is the 16th in a "How I Got That Story" series highlighting the AltWeekly Awards' first-place winners.
(FULL STORY)
Isaiah Thompson |
11-17-2005 9:03 pm |
Association News
The First Art Exhibit Inspired by Classified Advertising?
We don't know enough about art or classified advertising to answer that question definitively, but the School of the Art Institute of Chicago's upcoming "I Saw You" exhibition certainly qualifies as rare and unusual. The exhibition, which opens Nov. 4, features work by SAIC students "inspired by the Chicago Reader's I Saw You classifieds," according to the school's Web site.
10-26-2005 4:16 pm |
Industry News
Former Contributor Gives Chicago Reader a Shout-Out in Basketball Book
In her collection of essays, "She's Got Next," Melissa King recalls the Reader as "the forefront of the possibility trade." As this review explains, King's stint in Chicago "launched her on a yearslong search for life's meaning within the confines of a basketball court."
07-11-2005 11:22 am |
Industry News
Tags: Chicago Reader
Reader Declines to Join Miller-Cooper Amicus Briefnew
Chicago Reader |
05-13-2005 5:32 pm |
Industry News
Tags: Chicago Reader
Reader Writer Reaps Rave Reviewsnew
Chicago Reader staff writer Steve Bogira's book, "Courtroom 302: A Year Behind the Scenes in an American Criminal Courthouse," was published this month by Alfred A. Knopf. By detailing the happenings at Chicago's Cook County Criminal Courthouse over the course of one calendar year, the book shows how the war on drugs is overloading the justice system and threatening the integrity of due process. A review in The Economist calls it "a brilliant piece of journalism and a genuine eye-opener" that "provides the context, both locally and nationally, for understanding what is going on."
The Economist |
04-04-2005 12:34 pm |
Industry News
Retail Crackdowns, News Box Limitations Hinder Reader Circulationnew
The Chicago Reader's 2004 circulation of 119,486 was down from 129,437 in 2003, reports Chicago Business. According to the report, Reader executives attribute the dip to chain retailers limiting or removing papers from their stores in an attempt to reduce clutter, and to new restrictions on the size of sidewalk news boxes.
Chicago Business |
03-23-2005 10:49 am |
Industry News
Tags: Circulation, Chicago Reader
Time Out Chicago Launchesnew
Competition in the Windy City stiffened today with the entrance of the weekly listings magazine into an already-crowded marketplace. The Daily Herald reports: "Critics at rival publications point out that Chicagoans are accustomed to getting their entertainment listings and coverage for less than Time Out Chicago's price tag, $2.50 an issue." Chicago Reader Editor Alison True tells the paper that Time Out will be "perfect for people who want second-rate listings and want to pay for them."
Daily Herald |
03-03-2005 5:11 pm |
Industry News
Tags: Editorial, Chicago Reader
