FALL CONVENTION

2008 ARIZONA NEWSPAPERS ASSOCIATION 69TH ANNUAL MEETING AND OCTOBEr 10-11, 2008

program

2008 ANA FALL CONVENTION

Arizona Newspapers Association, Inc. ANA Advertising Services, Inc.

Board of Directors 2009

Dick Larson Adv. & Promo. Director

Western News&Info, Inc.

John Wolfe VP News Development

Independent Newspapers

Rick Schneider Publisher

Eastern Arizona Courier

Pam Mox Publisher

Green Valley News and Sun

Tom Arviso, Jr. Publisher

Navajo Times

Ginger Lamb VP & Publisher

Arizona Capitol Times

Don Rowley Publisher

Arizona Daily Sun

Teri Hayt Managing Editor

Arizona Daily Star

Elvira Espinoza Publisher

La Voz

Nicole Carroll Executive Editor

The Arizona Republic

Jody VandenHeuvel VP Mktg. & Bus. Dev.

East Valley Tribune

John Naughton Publisher

Payson Roundup

ANA FALL CONVENTION 2008

5 RETURN TO

THE FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION

As newsrooms across America continue to shrink, the only hope for traditional media is to let go of old models and embrace the potential of challenging multidisciplinary approaches.
By Chakris kussalanant Many are the pressures on traditional media these days, particularly on newspapers in the U.S. An example is a study released this summer by journalist Tyler Marshall and the Pew Research Centers Project for Excellence in Journalism, which describes the news industry as confused by the contradictory forces shaping newsrooms, namely financial pressures vs. the accelerated boost of digital tools online. The study based on 295 newspapers across America and in 15 cities paints a grim picture in which 85% of those surveyed with circulations over 100,000 have cut newsroom staff in the last three years. Recent announcements of further newsroom staff reductions at large papers, coupled with current economic conditions, suggest the decline of newspapers will accelerate greatly in the next two years. However, a problem that arises with many studies and critiques is that most are descriptive, not explanatory. We know that newspapers are shrinking, but we dont discuss why. We understand editors and publishers are anxious, but we never get down to the reasons why. Newspapers are shrinking because they are unable to engage a broad audience (namely people 35 and younger). Newspapers have now officially become the medium of audiences above 55, and as these audiences decline, newspapers shrink further. The situation can best be exemplified by observing young people walking on the Arizona State University (ASU) Tempe campus, which is one of the largest universities in the country with over 67,000 students. Nearly all students go around with an MP3 player or multimedia phone in hand, but few carry a newspaper. In other words, if young people are not investing in your product, you got no future. Moreover, compare a newspaper as a product to a multimedia phone, and well,

Chandler Square Mall on July 12: People waited in line for four hours just to get a chance to buy an Apple iPhone.

theres really no comparison. Newspapers havent changed much for the last 50 years, while digital technologies double their capacity every year and exponentially every five years. These are the true forces shrinking newsrooms across America. As for the ethical concerns many people have, they are mostly a dangerous distraction from the fundamental question journalism as a practice is meant to answer: How do we help people stay informed? Under the weight of this simple question, any proclamation by news industry leaders that journalisms future needs to be a multi-platform activity is nothing short of an afterthought to the Information Revolution. If

not the worst duh moment ever recorded in the industrys history In a world where anyone, from anywhere and at any time can be a reporter with the click of a button, reporting on whats happening can no longer be the focus of a newspaper. When the most iconic events of our time (9/11, the Southeast Asia Tsunami, Hurricane Katrina and the Iraq War) have been captured pristinely by passersby with a small camera or mobile phone, is no wonder the average editor in America feels a little anxious. The result: newspapers get all tied-up in knots because they cant fathom the idea that regular people could be generating the content of their newspapers, but technology has

ANA FALL CONVENTION 2008

Foundation awards scholarship recipients

The Arizona Newspapers Foundation is pleased to announce that Maria Konopken and Candace Begody are the two recipients of its 2008 scholarship program. Each budding journalist received a $1,000 award for tuition and books. Maria Konopken is a junior at Arizona State University majoring in Digital Journalism. She began her college career studying business, but was inspired by the immigration marches in downtown Phoenix last year. Konopken is very positive about the future of the news industry. She loves storytelling, whether shes writing or photographing the story, and is continually honing her multimedia skills. She is a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and Toastmasters International. Konopken has interned at Latino Perspectives Magazine. Her dream? I want to shed light on issues that affect people and the environment we live in, she says in her application essay. Candace Begody is a senior at the University of Arizona majoring in Journalism and minoring in Indian Studies. She has worked for the Detroit News as a metro reporter and is a freelance writer for The Navajo Times and RezNetNews.org. Prior to that, Begody interned at the Tucson Citizen and the Missoulian. Begody is a founding member of the Native American Journalists Association student chapter at UA and its former president. In addition to her journalism pursuits, she regularly helps coordinate student activities at the Office of Native American Student Affairs on campus. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the UA B.P. Campbell Award for Outstanding Junior. As a first-generation college student, she is honored by her awards, both scholastic and professional, but feels awards are merely a sign that I am on the right path in journalism. Both Konopken and Begody show remarkable talent and potential in the journalism field, and are a true asset to their communities. ANF sincerely thanks the following newspapers for their contributions to the future of Arizona journalism: Arizona Capitol Times, Arizona Jewish Post, Eastern Arizona Courier, Fountain Hill Times, Green Valley News and Sun, Inside Tucson Business, Navajo Times, Nogales International, Payson Roundup, Sahuarita Sun, Sierra Vista Herald, Tucson Weekly and the Vail Sun.

Maria Konopken

Candace Begody

Arizona Newspapers Foundation

- PLEDGE CARD Your pledge will fund scholarships as well as provide resources to train Arizonas next generation of journalists. This is my pledge for the 2009 campaign.

3 cents per subscriber, circulation:__________ x .03 = $__________

This is the target amount recommended by the foundation board. We hope youll consider this amount but feel free to choose one of these alternatives:

5 cents per subscriber, circulation: _________ x .05 = $___________ 7 cents per subscriber, circulation: _________ x .07 = $___________ Other - $__________________ Check enclosed. Bill Me. Charge to: VISA MasterCard AMEX Discover Card No._________________________________________ Exp. Date________
Your name________________________________________Signature__________________________Date___________ Newspaper/Organization_____________________________ Address___________________________________________

T USt M Lis
Must have: Audacity What is it: Digital audio editor software Where to nd it: www.audacity.com MSRP: FREE! Audacity is a cross-platform audio editor that won the SourceForge.net 2007 Community Choice Award for Best Project for Multimedia. It allows you to remove noise, mix tracks, adjust speed and pitch and even provides a large array of digital effects. Tutorials are posted on the Web site at no charge to the user. And at this price...How can you not take advantage of what Audacity has to offer?

he T

2008 ANA FALL CONVENTION

Welcome to the Digital Age, where todays publishers are facing enormous challenges. Here are four inexpensive tools your newsroom MUST have in this changing media climate.
Must have: zoom H2 Handy recorder What is it: Digital sound recorder Where to nd it: www.amazon.com MSRP: $199 Going out to cover the county commission meeting? As exciting as they can be, its possible to miss a thing or two. Thats where the Zoom H2 Handy Recorder comes in. The Zoom records in brilliant stereo on a memory card in .mp3 or .wav formats. Just copy the files from the card onto your computer and you have sound. Its also great for recording your daily podcast. Must have: The Flip Ultra What is it: Digital camcorder Where to nd it: www.theip.com MSRP: $150 Its compact size, built-in USB port and software, plus high-quality video makes The Flip a must-have! While it is a stripped down version of a digital camcorder, its simplicity and price has managed to capture 13 percent of the video recorder market in just one year.

Must have: Soundslides What is it: Slideshow editing software Where to nd it: www.soundslides.com MSRP: $40 Soundslides, which has both Mac and Windows versions, uses a very simple drag and drop interface to arrange your image files along a timeline. Images can be arranged by simply reshuing them into the order you wish them to play, with an intuitive click and drag. Each image can be expanded or contracted along the timeline so that your visuals are in perfect sync with the audio file you have added to the presentation. It is possible to drag these slide durations in real time as you play through the audio track, so that it takes little more than a few minutes to put together a polished presentation.

ANA FALL CONVENTION 2008

The Next ANA President

11

Dick Larson
HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER

The Daily Courier

HIS PET PrOJECT HOBBIES

ANA Marketing Committee Home projects, exercise and reading Why he values his association With the support of member newspapers, the association is a unied, powerful voice in support of newspapers, the public, our readers and advertisers. The association has inuence that cant be equaled by individual newspapers. The road to the presidency I was an independent contractor at age 13. I cut lawns and pulled weeds. The future of the newspaper industry Were changing therefore, we wont die. Though the form may change, the printed page will always have an important role. Im most excited that our industry has people with great knowledge, skills and dedication. We have what it takes to be great. Double threat? Readers arent just readers anymore. Theyre unique visitors, too. Coming up in 2009 ANA will continue a process of re-assessing and re-positioning itself for the future and even greater service to members. I think there will be change and new directions within the association.

A special thanks to our convention sponsors: Gold Sponsors:

W
Silver:

estern news&info, inc.

Bronze:

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