May 2006 - Tennessee Press Association
Transcription
May 2006 - Tennessee Press Association
The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 TPA is parent to TPS, TPAF; supports industry CMYK BY GREG SHERRILL TPA executive director This is the first in a series of stories on our three companies, Tennessee Press Association, Tennessee Press Service and Tennessee Press Association Foundation. Sherrill Since I came to Tennessee Press in 1996 (that’s right, you’ve endured me for 10 years now), there has been enormous change within our industry as newspapers have hired new staff and changed hands or ownership. New papers have started, and many formerly independent newspapers have gone to group ownership, often led by personnel from outside our state or region. We eagerly welcome Tennessee’s newand-changing newspaper leadership, and we want to make sure they know and understand TPA, TPS and TPAF and make full use of the resources we bring to support our members. With each story in this series, I will highlight one company and attempt to show just how we are working for you. I encourage publishers, editors and other upper newspaper management to post or circulate these stories to all departments of your newspaper, and encourage staff to contact TPA if they ever have any questions or concerns —we’re here to help. Tennessee Press Association Inc. is the parent company to both TPS and TPAF. The association was formed 136 years ago in 1870-71 to support and advance the newspaper industry in our state. Today TPA is composed of 128 member newspapers, which include 28 daily and 100 non-daily papers. All of our newspaper members maintain certain criteria as outlined in the TPA Constitution and Bylaws, which include maintaining a minimum of 70 percent paid circulation, having been in continuous publication for one year, and publishing at least as frequently as once a week. TPA also has an associate class of members, which are vendors and suppliers to the newspaper industry who wish to maintain contact with our member papers. The association is governed by a 15member board of your peers, which meets at least three times a year to deliberate TPA business. TPA is supported through membership dues from newspapers and associate members, and from assistance from its related companies, Tennessee Press Service and the TPA Foundation. More on these entities in coming months. TPA and related companies provide an impressive list of member services to newspapers of all sizes. When a newspaper holds a TPA membership, it covers all employees of that paper in terms of attending TPA functions or making use of association benefits. Robyn Gentile, our member services manager, maintains a Member Services Guide which explains these in more detail. The guide can be viewed on our Web site at www.tnpress.com, or we can mail one at any time. Some TPA functions are very visible to newspapers; some occur behind the scenes. Perhaps one of the most important benefits we provide is not immediately visible to most newspaper staffers—lobbying for issues that could affect so many aspects of our operations or endanger the freedoms that we, as an industry, are charged with upholding. Tennessee started more than 30 years ago with one of the strongest open records and meeting laws in the country. Through the passage of time, these vital laws have been under constant attack, and TPA members, staff and TPA’s contract lobbyist have been hard at work trying to protect these laws so that news departments statewide and the public have the access to information they need to be informed. TPA is a primary supporter of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government (TCOG) and is currently working with that organization to strengthen open records and meetings laws. In addition to protecting the public’s right to know, TPA has convinced legislators that taxes on newspaper advertising and circulation are a bad idea. We issue press credentials for newspaper employees and have just this year offered color photo ID badges with digital signature for staffers. We offer blanket legal hotline coverage to all member newspapers, which can be a tremendous asset for staff members at all levels, from reporters who can’t get into that county commission meeting to ad reps who don’t want to say the wrong thing in a housing ad to publishers who are worried that they may be sued. Help is often just a phone call away. TPA holds several meetings each year that are open to all newspaper staff. These include our annual winter and summer conventions, as well as various board meetings and training sessions. The Winter Convention and Press Institute, our largest meeting, takes place each February in Nashville and includes a reception with state legislators, an address by the governor, and countless educational and training sessions covering all facets of newspaper operation from reporting to editing to technology and legal issues. Each spring, TPA holds an advertising and circulation conference especially for these vital revenue-producing newspaper departments. In addition to quality training by recognized industry leaders, it’s a great time for newspaper staff from all across the state to share ideas. The highlight of the conference is often the presentation of the annual Ideas Contest awards. Each year, newspapers from across the state submit entries in 27 advertising and circulation categories to compete against other papers for the best revenue-producing ideas. The contest is judged by newspaper professionals from a different state each year. The annual Summer Convention, held in mid-June, rotates yearly to each of the state’s three grand divisions. This year’s convention in Chattanooga will have more training opportunities than ever before as we partner with Southern Newspaper Publishers Association (SNPA) for a joint convention and SNPA Traveling Campus program. The summer convention also includes installation of TPA officers, a golf tournament and opportunities for family and staff outings to experience some of Tennessee’s many attractions. The State Press Contests are held each year to spotlight the “best of the best” publishing efforts in editorial, sports, service, promotion, photography, advertising and appearance. TPA members submit more than 1,000 entries, which are assembled by TPA staff and transported to another state for judging by newspaper professionals. From this, we award first through sixth place in 20 categories at an annual awards luncheon held in July in Nashville. This year’s contests recognize material that was published during the 2005 calendar year. I have traveled to newspaper offices across the state and seen many of the unique in-laid tile plaques for first place prominently displayed in halls, reception areas and offices. TPA partners with the University of Tennessee, which provides tremendous financial and administrative support for this immense project. Over the past two decades, nothing has changed the newspaper industry more than the incredible advances of technology. TPA is proud to be recognized as a national leader in technology and has helped so many member newspapers make the jump from total paste-up to complete electronic pagination. Most of our technology assistance is handled by TPS and will be covered next month, but one important overlap is our Web site, www.tnpress.com. This site becomes more heavily used each month as we add features and member services. Newspaper staff can now register for upcoming TPA events, print contests entry information, browse resumes for possible hires, list openings at their papers, download serial stories for publication, read The Tennessee Press, and more, all at one place. I encourage all newspaper staff to take a look at what TPA offers. We appreciate each of our member newspapers and want to make sure you receive the full benefits of your membership. Should you have any questions about TPA, please contact a staff member at any time. You can send us an e-mail 24 hours a day from the “Contact Us” section of www.tnpress.com. Next month: Tennessee Press Service Inc., the business arm of TPA, brings advertising revenue and many more services to your newspaper. Watch for the gold! State Press, AP awards events set July 21 C M Y K Awards in the State Press Contests covering 2005 will be presented at a luncheon at noon on Friday, July 21. At 11:00, Tennessee Associated Press Managing Editors Stokes awards for writing and photography will be presented. Both events will be at the Sheraton Music City in east Nashville. Louisiana Press Association has judged the State Yeomans Press Contests, which cover many aspects of newspaper work. Charles Primm, representing the University of Tennessee, is handling preparation of plaques and certificates, as well as a PowerPoint presentation of winners. An official of UT will present the awards. W h i l e aw a rd s b e l o n g t o t h e newspapers, starting this year, duplicate certificates can be provided to individual staff members contributing to the winning entries. TPA Vice President Henry Stokes, The Germantown Appeal, is chairman of the Contests Committee. The awards program began in the 1940s with just a few categories, but now, there are 20. Adam Yeomans, AP bureau chief for Tennessee, is coordinating the TAPME ceremony. Proceeds of the State Press Contests go to the Edward J. Meeman Fund at UT. Meeman Awards, named for a former Memphis Press-Scimitar editor, are awarded in editorials and public service. See other sections This issue of The Tennessee Press includes two special pull-out sections. One reports on the April 6 to 8 TPA Advertising/Circulation Conference and Ideas Contest. The other previews the 137th Annual TPA Summer Convention. First place winners in the 2006 UT-TPA State Press Contests will be notified by mail in a gold envelope. Letters to all winners will be mailed by May 15. The 2006 Awards Luncheon will be held July 21 in Nashville. Kudos STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN (Left photo) Evan Jones, publisher of The Lake County Banner, Tiptonville, sits in his office, which is full of memorabilia. Lori Long, an employee at the Banner, shows almost baseball-size hail that fell April 2. TPA President Steve Lake and Executive Director Greg Sherrill visited the newspaper on April 6. No. 11 MAY 2006 Vol. 69 Tom Griscom and the Chattanooga Times Free Press staff were the first to register for the summer convention. Hotel ROBYN GENTILE | TPA TENNESSEE STATE PARKS RIVERBEND FESTIVAL Convention headquarters is the Chattanooga Choo Choo The traditional Summer Convention Holiday Inn in the heart of Tennessee’s fourth largest Golf Tournament will be held at the BearTrace golf course designed by Jack city. Nicklaus. It is at Harrison Bay State Park north of Chattanooga. A Riverbend poster and the festival during fireworks. The festival began in 1978. Chatta’new’ga: Here we come! BY ELENORA E. EDWARDS Managing editor Train, plane or car—grab one and head for Chattanooga in June for the Tennessee Press Association 137 th Anniversary Summer Convention. The Convention Committee, headed by Kevin Burcham, publisher of The News-Herald, Lenoir City, has put together a schedule somewhat different from those of the past—one that’s sure to please. For one thing, the convention will start a day earlier than usual—on Wednesday. And it will run three whole days. It’ll be June 14 through 16, with headquarters at the Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn. Another difference is that the entire first day will be one of training, and training opportunities will continue the next two days. TPA is being joined by the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association Traveling Campus, which will provide most of the training. The deadline for making reservations is the end of the day Wednesday, May 24. One should call the inn at 1-800-872-2529 or (423) 266-5000 to reserve a room. A standard room is $92 plus tax per night, while a rail car room will cost $142 plus tax per night. The Riverbend Festival will be in full swing at that time, so TPA recommends members not delay in seeing to reservations. The fact that the festival is under way Burcham is a good thing for TPA, since conventioneers will take it in on Thursday night. They will be treated to VIP seating and refreshments, thanks to the host newspaper, the Chattanooga Times Free Press. Another important event will be the passing of the presidential gavel from Steve Lake, publisher of the Pulaski Citizen, to Henry Stokes, publisher of The Germantown Appeal and former managing editor of The Commercial Appeal, Memphis. That will take place at the Summer Banquet on Friday night. Burcham said the committee is pleased that TPA can take advantage of the excellent training opportunities SNPA is offering. There will be learning as well as a lot of fun activities connected with the Riverbend Festival, he noted. “There’s something for everybody. Take advantage of everything the DETAILS Who: Newspaper staff members What: TPA Summer Convention When: Wednesday-Friday, June 14-16 Where: Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn Deadline: End of day Wednesday, May 24 TPA has arranged as well as the SNPA program,” he said. A s t h e S u m m e r C o nve n t i o n Committee finalizes details, further information will be posted on the TPA Web site, www.tnpress.com. TPAers will receive a packet containing registration information and various sites of interest in the Chattanooga area. See the special section in the center of this newspaper for information on various aspects of the convention. The schedule is as follows. Wednesday, June 14 SNPA will provide the Traveling Campus training program. 9:30 a.m. Session A: SNPA 9:30 a.m. Session B: SNPA 1:30 p.m. Session C: SNPA 1:30 p.m. Session D: SNPA Thursday, June 15 8:30 a.m. TPA registration opens 9:00 a.m. Session A—Introduction to Adobe InDesign for Newspapers—Kevin Slimp Session B: SNPA 12:00 p.m. Lunch on your own 1:30 p.m. Ice Cream Reception sponsored by Mayfield Dairy 2:00 p.m. TPA Board of Directors; TPA Business Session; TPS Stockholders; TPAF Board of Trustees 2:00 p.m. Session C—Using InDesign/ InCopy LiveEdit Workflow— Kevin Slimp Session D—SNPA 5:00 p.m. Take free shuttles to Riverbend Festival 6:00 p.m. Riverbend Festival VIP event sponsored by the Chattanooga Times Free Press. Return on one’s own. SEE CONVENTION, PAGE 3 INSIDE HINES PROFILE 4 4 GIBSON-TCOG GENTRY ANNIVERSARY 5 6 HENNINGER NIE-LITERACY 7 OBITS 8 SLIMP 9 11 IN CONTACT Phone: (865) 584-5761 Fax: (865) 558-8687 Online: www.tnpress.com CMYK 12 MAY 2006 From Memphis to Mountain City (USPS 616-460) Published monthly by the TENNESSEE PRESS SERVICE, INC. for the TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION, INC. 435 Montbrook Lane Knoxville, Tennessee 37919 Telephone (865) 584-5761/Fax (865) 558-8687/www.tnpress.com Subscriptions: $6 annually Periodicals Postage Paid At Knoxville,TN POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Tennessee Press, 435 Montbrook Lane, Knoxville,TN 37919. The Tennessee Press is printed by The Standard Banner, Jefferson City. Greg M. Sherrill.....................................................Editor Elenora E. Edwards.............................Managing Editor Robyn Gentile..........................Production Coordinator Angelique Dunn...............................................Assistant 20 Member 06 Tennessee Press Association The Tennessee Press is printed on recycled paper and is recyclable. www.tnpress.com The Tennessee Press can be read online at: CMYK OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF THE TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION Steve Lake, Pulaski Citizen/The Giles Free Press................................President Henry Stokes, The Germantown Appeal......................................Vice President Pauline Sherrer, Crossville Chronicle..........................................Vice President Bill Willliams, The Paris Post-Intelligencer...........................................Treasurer Greg M. Sherrill, Knoxville....................................................Executive Director DIRECTORS Keith Wilson, Kingsport Times-News...................................................District 1 Kevin Burcham, The News-Herald, Lenoir City....................................District 2 Tom Overton III, Advocate and Democrat, Sweetwater......................District 3 Bill Shuster, Herald-Citizen, Cookeville................................................District 4 Dennis Stanley, Smithville Review.......................................................District 5 Hulon Dunn, Lewis County Herald, Hohenwald..................................District 7 Dennis Richardson, Carroll County News-Leader, Huntingdon.........District 8 Victor Parkins, The Milan Mirror-Exchange...........................................District 9 Jay Albrecht, The Covington Leader....................................................District 10 Mike Fishman, Citizen Tribune, Morristown...........................................At large TENNESSEE PRESS SERVICE Bob Parkins, The Milan Mirror-Exchange.............................................President Dale C. Gentry, The Standard Banner, Jefferson City.................Vice President W. R. (Ron) Fryar, McMinnville..............................................................Director Mike Pirtle, Murfreesboro.......................................................................Director Pauline Sherrer, Crossville Chronicle.....................................................Director Michael Williams, The Paris Post-Intelligencer......................................Director Greg M. Sherrill............................................................Executive Vice President TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION FOUNDATION W.R. (Ron) Fryar, McMinnville.............................................................President Larry K. Smith, LaFollette.............................................................Vice President Richard L. Hollow, Knoxville....................................................General Counsel Greg M. Sherrill....................................................................Secretary-Treasurer CONTACT THE MANAGING EDITOR TPAers with suggestions, questions or comments about items inTheTennessee Press are welcome to contact the managing editor. Call Elenora E. Edwards, (865) 457-5459; send a note to P.O. Box 502, Clinton, TN 37717-0502; or e-mail ElenoraEdwards@comcast.net. The June issue deadline is May 8. Former TPA President Mike Pirtle recently Believe it or not, my journey begins in Memphis retired as editor from The Daily News Journal, with incoming TPA President Henry Stokes and Murfreesboro. The Commercial Appeal. At the time they were My good friend, and up to this point TPA board busy looking for a publisher. They’ve long since member, Clint Brewer recently left The Lebanon hired Joseph Pepe and even decentralized their Democrat. The Democrat suffered an enormous loss operation, as Henry now runs The Germantown & recently with the death of renowned staff reporter Collierville Appeal. Brooks Franklin, who succumbed to cancer at 47. I’ve been asked at a number of stops along the A number of papers in this state are thinking way what I hope to accomplish visiting newspapers outside the box and doing some extraordinary things throughout the state, something legendary TPA to make that bottom line. The one that blew me away President Carl A. Jones Jr. of the Johnson City Press YOUR did in his term of 1956-57 and Larry Smith of The PRESIDING like no other is the arrangement Publisher Lynn Richardson of the Herald and Tribune, JonesborLaFollette Press repeated in his of 1977-78. Truth be known, as I’m sure it was to some extent REPORTER ough, has with her city: 100 percent saturation as the city pays for all residents to have a subscription to these two predecessors, my aim is both selfish and to the paper, all in return for extensive, full coverage selfless. The way I look at it, it’s a good excuse to get Steve Lake out from behind my desk, enjoy some sunshine and a little of civic boards, with the understanding that government extra time with my wife and 9-month-old daughter, who have employees receive no special treatment or favors in the joined me for a good portion, and see our great state, many paper—sounds like a dream setup for both parties. During my Sandusky circuit in the eastern corner of places of which I’ve never seen before. It’s a great opportunity to put names with papers and their the state, Keith Wilson, TPA board member and publisher settings, enjoy a little camaraderie, and see how others oper- extraordinaire of the Kingsport Times–News, ran through a ate, perhaps bringing something home of use to myself and laundry list of innovative ideas his paper is pursuing. Keith other members, find out what TPA is doing right and where is one of the most brilliant people I’ve ever met, with just a it may go wrong, see where we can make improvements and touch of madness, necessary for any creative genius. He’s how we can be of better service to our members, educate them hired genuine artists for composing positions and made them about various TPA offerings, and encourage members to get part of the advertising department; has made a small fortune in sales on a photo book with pictures brought in by readers more involved in our organization. If there is one observation I’ve made thus far in my visits of the paper, his angle being photos that tell a story and the to approximately two-fifths of our member publications story behind the photos, with local sponsorship basically across the state (should be much more by the time you read offsetting production costs; and is in the process of creating this), it’s that newspapers are as diverse as the people and a community Web site of high-interest silos, allowing readers to contribute news. He mentions as an example here he’ll areas they cover. Most operate on a shoestring with a very tight, limited staff, get a call asking him to cover Little League. Keith tells the with employees of smaller papers forced to wear many hats, caller that his staff simply can’t cover every Little League as larger operations can afford to be a little more specialized. game, but that if the caller would do so, he’d publish it on Offices open and close at various hours on various days. the Times-News Web site. The Times-News is now providing tearsheets electronically Some are steeped in history while others have more or less blossomed out of nowhere. I couldn’t help noticing as a whole and saving a bundle. Most advertisers are very appreciahow much bigger cities and papers seem in the eastern grand tive of the new format. Only five continue to request the newsprint tearsheets. division of our state, contributing 15 of our 28 dailies. My favorite stop thus far—hands down—The Erwin Record. In Pigeon Forge, circulation at the Tennessee Star Journal varies considerably in and out of tourist season, according Knowing the approximate time I was to arrive, the entire to a most friendly and talkative Editor Jim Callicott. He also staff was more or less on hand to greet me in their front noted his town is the only one he knows of that doesn’t have lobby. After a tour of their beautiful old building, renovated with historic preservation in mind, the entire staff gathered a so-called downtown area. In Clarksville, home of Fort Campbell and the 101st Air- in the conference room, as a fruit tray was brought in, for borne Division, a large proportion of the community has a lengthy discussion of issues relevant to TPA and state been deployed overseas, obviously taking its toll on the local newspapers. Editor Mark Stevens admitted upon hearing economy. Leaf–Chronicle Publisher and two-time former TPA my goal last year to visit every member newspaper, he didn’t President Gene Washer said having to incessantly report think there was any way I’d do it. Another first happened deaths of local soldiers in Iraq has made for a very sad situ- on my way out as a picture was requested, set up and taken of me with the staff, considering me news in itself. It’s no ation and taken its toll on advertising itself. Dyersburg State Gazette Editor and Co-Publisher Chris wonder the Erwin Record consistently wins press awards, Rimel, settling into his position once more, recently returned including a three-year running of the Sweepstakes; they’ve from a 14-month stint in Iraq, specifically noting the real story, got a very good thing going. On my northwest Tennessee excursion, I happened into as he puts it, “is that we’re doing a very good job there.” Deadly tornados have followed my travels as they first McKenzie well after hours, thought I’d find the newspaper, struck the Dyersburg area shortly after my visit; then the then a motel and bed down for the night, but there happened Gallatin area a couple of weeks following while attending to be a light on at the paper as Webmaster Deborah Turner the Advertising/Circulation Conference at Paris Landing was burning the midnight oil. Editor Joel Washburn was State Park. Visiting Tiptonville and the Lake County Ban- gracious enough to leave his home and come visit with ner with TPA Executive Director Greg Sherrill before the me. They have recently moved to the Olive System and conference, Publisher Evan Jones showed us hail almost like others are putting their entire paper online, available the size of a baseball packed up and saved in a freezer from under a subscription basis. There is also a free front page for non-subscribers. What I found most interesting is that that first storm. Speaking of Gallatin, Gannett papers immediately Joel encourages those out of state to buy the online version surrounding the Nashville area that I’ve visited thus far of the paper (as opposed to and at the same cost as printed including The News–Examiner (Gallatin), Ashland City version) due to the U.S. Postal Service’s poor delivery, notoriTimes, Robertson County Times (Springfield), The Dickson ous in our industry. Bill Ridings in Waverly recently underwent back surgery Herald and The Fairview Observer were in the process and have recently converted to tabloid dimensions. All say this is but seems to be bouncing back nicely. Enjoyed hearing him something Tennessean Publisher and boss Ellen Leifeld did reminisce about TPA’s good old days. Had a pleasant meeting with TPS President Bob Parkins, with suburban papers at her place of previous employment, publisher of The Milan Mirror-Exchange, and his son, Vicwhich witnessed great success. On the flip side, a couple of start-up papers, yet ineligible tor, who serves as editor and is also a TPA board member. for TPA membership, have emerged within the past year: The Bob Parkins’ office is a sight to behold, if you ever have the Williamson Herald in Franklin and The Gallatin Newspaper SEE LAKE, PAGE 3 are fighting Gannett head-on. The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 11 Designing newspaper ads doesn’t have to be dull HOW TO CONTACT US Tennessee Press Association BY KEVIN SLIMP TPS technology director I’m in a familiar predicament. There are at least a dozen new software applications on my desk, all waiting to be reviewed. There’s backup software, Slimp drive rescue software, photo editing software and word processing software, not to mention a pile of books. I decided to go with the most unique looking box. Comic Life, by Freeverse Software, fit the bill. At first, you might think this is an application a newspaper would never use. Not so, my friends. I installed and opened the application. Within 15 minutes, I had created my first comic. The comic I provided with this column was my second effort. It took about 10 minutes to create. Let me tell you how it works. After installing the software, I immediately opened Comic Life. The workplace was very user friendly. Basically, the left half of the screen is the template for your comic. I counted 16 templates to choose from or you can create your own. The right half includes a library of photos and all the tools. Comic Life gets its photos from your iPhoto library. Snapshots look at newspaper reach Sometimes good medicine comes in small doses. The following are links to brief sales sheets that demonstrate newspaper’s reach among consumers in various service and product categories. They also highlight newspaper’s competitive edge over other media. These sheets, in PDF format, can be printed and added to sales kits and shared with customers. For questions regarding the data in these sales sheets, one should contact William Johnson in NAA’s Business Analysis & Research Department at johnw@naa.org. Find the sheets at http://www.naa.org/CirculationPages/Circulation-Statisticsand-Trends/Snapshots.aspx. The Tennessee Press has the perfect spot for your ad Mail: 435 Montbrook Lane, Knoxville, TN 37919 Phone: (865) 584-5761 Fax: (865) 558-8687 Web: www.tnpress.com E-mail: (name)@tnpress.com Those with boxes, listed alphabetically: Laurie Alford (lalford) Pam Corley (pcorley) Yes, this application is only available on the Mac platform. I added the photos I wanted to use to my iPhoto library, then headed back to Comic Life. Laying out a page is as simple as dragging photos from the library into frames on the template. Once in the frames, pictures can be manipulated by dragging a handle, much as you resize photos in pagination applications. Each “cell” of your comic contains an image. Comic balloons, bubbles and boxes are added to cells by choosing styles from the bottom area of the workspace. Text is created within each balloon or box. You can even move a balloon’s tail by moving it with your mouse. My favorite aspect of Comic Life is the ability to use filters to create a “look” for your comic. I selected “Color Pencils” to give my creation the look of an old-fashioned comic book. When completed, files can be saved in tif, jpeg and other formats. Why would a newspaper be interested in Comic Life? First, it’s an easy way to be creative with advertising. Let’s face it. We only have so much time to spend on each ad. Why not dazzle your client with an ad that looks hand drawn but takes only 10 minutes to create? And Moody Castleman (mcastleman) Angelique Dunn (adunn) Beth Elliott (belliott) Robyn Gentile (rgentile) Kelley Hampton (khampton) Kathy Hensley (khensley) Barry Jarrell (bjarrell) Brenda Mays (bmays) Amanda Pearce (apearce) Greg Sherrill (gsherrill) Kevin Slimp (kslimp) Advertising e-mail: Knoxville office: knoxads@tnpress.com second (are you sitting down?), The price. Comic Life retails for $30 US/$35 CAN/$50 AUS. I can’t remember a product that offered so much potential at such an affordable price. Comic Life is available from most Apple software vendors or you can order it. Tennessee Press Service Mail: 435 Montbrook Lane, Knoxville, TN 37919 Phone: (865) 584-5761 Fax: (865) 558-8687 --134 Heady Drive Nashville, TN 37205 Phone: (615) 356-3914 Fax: (615) 356-3915 Web: www.tnpress.com Tennessee Press Association Foundation Mail: 435 Montbrook Lane, Knoxville, TN 37919 Phone: (865) 584-5761 Fax: (865) 558-8687 Web: www.tnpress.com Contact Robyn Gentile for more information at (865) 584-5761, ext. 105 or rgentile@tnpress.com. Read The Tennessee Press —then pass it on! CMYK The Tennessee Press 2 By SAM VENABLE News Sentinel, Knoxville *As of March 31, 2006, The Tennessee Press Service, Inc., fiscal year runs Dec. 1 through Nov. 30. CMYK October 12-14, 2006 www.newspaperinstitute.com Jay Tracy Andy Clint Ron Gary John Jim Vickey Stephen Laura Elenora Chris John Sheila Martha Jennifer Bonnie April Melissa Joe Steven Bob Valerie Terri Greg Brad Jack Albrecht Ayers Barnes Brewer Bridgeman Burton Carpenter Charlet Cooke Crass Dougherty Edwards Fletcher Gibson Holden Horn Horton Hufford Jackson Jones Karl Kaylor Kyer Laprad Likens Little Martin McElroy The Covington Leader Pulaski Citizen Kingsport Times-News The Lebanon Democrat The Courier-News, Clinton The Ashland City Times The Herald-News, Dayton Brentwood Chattanooga Times Free Press Cleveland Daily Banner The Paris Post-Intelligencer The Tennessee Press The Daily Herald, Columbia The Tennessean, Nashville Pulaski Citizen Pulaski Citizen The Wilson Post, Lebanon UT School of Journalism, Knoxville Humboldt Chronicle Rogersville Review Smoky Mountain Herald, Seymour Bristol Herald Courier The Tullahoma News Middle Tennessee Times, Smithville Roane County News, Kingston The Covington Leader Hickman County Times, Centerville News Sentinel, Knoxville 3 CONVENTION FROM PAGE ONE Everybody’s favorite Buddy March 2006: $458,487 Year* to date: $1,852,711 INSTITUTE OF NEWSPAPER TECHNOLOGY The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 TRACKS Tennessee Press Service handled this much advertising for TPA member newspapers: Stay ahead of the technology learning curve! MAY 2006 Sad news for News Sentinel readers who buy groceries and drugs: Your local contact is retiring. At the end of (February), Buddy Turpin (bid) adieu Venable to our advertising department after nearly 38 years. You’ve probably never met Buddy. Such is your loss because this guy is the original good times class clown. But I’ll guarantee you’ve seen the fruits of his labor—and, hopefully, then been inspired to purchase fruit, as well as meat, bread, milk and a kajillion other products, at your local supermarket. For 34 years, Buddy has been in charge of food and drug advertising. If there’s a store in our midst not trod by his trademark cowboy boots, I’m unaware of it. (Point of order: Whenever a nickname is mentioned in the newspaper, the person’s real handle is specified. Horatio Alphonse (Booger) Johnson III, for example. Not the case here. The name on this guy’s birth certificate is Buddy Lynn Turpin. For eons, the license plate on his pickup truck has simply read “BLT.” He is Buddy, the whole Buddy and nothing but the Buddy. True, certain friends, including columnists, do use other names, but not ones that would TPA wishes to thank these individuals for serving as judges of the Louisiana Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest. The UT-TPA State Press Contests would not be possible without members willing to judge the entries of our reciprocal partners. pass public muster.) And speaking of names, “Turpin” has been a mainstay inside these walls. Buddy’s late mother, Agnes, invested 42 years in our accounting department. Buddy started full time in 1968 but had already spent two years working part time while studying business at the University of Tennessee. Suffice to say we have been thoroughly Turpinized. Why hang it up? “There are trout that need to be caught; deer, elk and turkey that need to be hunted; campfires that need to be sat around; and brown whiskey that needs to be drunk,” he answered. “Yeah, but you’ve been doing that all your life,” I pointed out. “I know,” he replied with a sigh, “but now it’ll have to be on my time instead of the company’s.” If you haven’t guessed by now, I’m gonna miss this goof. Although we don’t share as much time outdoors as we once did—these days, Buddy logs more woods-and-waters hours in Wyoming and Montana than in Tennessee—he and I have fished and hunted together all over this part of the land. At one point, our second office was his bass boat on Douglas Lake. But you don’t know how delighted I am to be writing about his retirement instead of his obituary. Last June 6, Buddy suffered a massive heart attack at his desk. It went unnoticed for several minutes. Finally, coworkers heard him breathing loudly. “They thought I was snoring,” he said Cheryl Heather Tom Bob Victor Sharon Chris Mia Darrell Kay Paul Dick Clay Robb Tracy Sissy Nancy Mark Richard Scott Jessica Karen Joi Jamie Holly Jim Patricia Thank You! McGraw Nicholson Overton Parkins Parkins Patrick Peck Rhodarmer Richardson Rose Roy Schneider Scott Scott Sharp Smith Stephens Stevens Stevens Stewart Turner Weathers Whaley White Whitt Zachary Zechman with a laugh. Emergency medical personnel were summoned. Quick-thinking staffer Toby Steele administered a heart defibrillator. Yet by the time they wheeled Buddy out of here, he was already turning blue. At the emergency room, doctors could find no pulse or brain activity. Amazingly, Buddy was discharged from the hospital five days later. He was back on the job in six weeks, good as new and with no memory of the entire affair. As I’ve told Buddy several times since then, it (was) a blessed relief to stand in his presence and say words like “happy retirement” instead of “don’t he look natural?” (Feb. 21, 2006) (Clockwise from top right) Steve Lake with Keith Moore, liaison of The Knoxville Journal, TPA’s newest member. John M. Jones Jr. at The Greeneville Sun. Lake and Art Powers, publisher of the Johnson City Press. The newsboy statue at the Bristol Herald Courier. TPA Legal Hotline is available to all TPA members. IRE Conference set June 15-18 The best in the business will gather for more than 100 panels, workshops and special presentations about covering public safety, courts, national security, the military, business, education, local government and much more when the Investigative Reporters and Editors meet. The conference will be at the Renaissance Worthington Hotel in Fort Worth, Texas. If one has hotel or general conference questions, he or she may contact Ev Ruch-Graham, conference coordinator, at ev@ire.org or (573) 882-8969. Tornado damages Vol State campus Call Rick Hollow, TPA general counsel and provider of the hotline service, at Volunteer State Community College (VSCC) suffered severe damage to two buildings during the April 7 tornado that struck Gallatin, Tenn. Classes were canceled April 10-14. VSCC is an associate member of Tennessee Press Association. T. Clayton (Clay) Scott, assistant professor and TPA contact, was on campus during the tornado. He was among those sheltered in the basement of the Student Center. (865) 769-1715. Hollow & Hollow, LLC, Knoxville The Bolivar Bulletin Times The Lebanon Democrat Monroe County Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater The Milan Mirror-Exchange The Milan Mirror-Exchange Southern Standard, McMinnville The Commercial Appeal, Memphis Monroe County Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater The Oak Ridger, Oak Ridge Shelbyville Times-Gazette The Independent Herald, Oneida The Jackson Sun Volunteer State Community College, Gallatin The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Weakley County Press, Martin Shelbyville Times-Gazette The Fairview Observer The Erwin Record The Leaf-Chronicle , Clarksville Pulaski Citizen Carroll County News-Leader, Huntingdon Carroll County News-Leader, Huntingdon The Mountain Press, Sevierville Pulaski Citizen Pulaski Citizen Rogersville Review Southern Standard, McMinnville Friday, June 16 6:30 a.m. Golfers depart for course; transportation on your own 7:00 a.m. Golf outing at Bear Trace at Harrison Bay 9:00 a.m. Session A: NIE Workshop, Robie Scott, The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C. 9:00 a.m. Session B: SNPA session to be determined 9:00 a.m. InDesign, The Next Step, a computer lab class—Kevin Slimp 12:00 p.m. Lunch on one’s own 3:00 p.m. NIE presentation for publishers 6:00 p.m. Reception 7:00 p.m. Installation Banquet 9:00 p.m. Dessert Reception LAKE: From Memphis to Mountain City, president visits newspapers opportunity, and I’m going to leave it at that. Gibson County boasts of four community newspapers in separate towns. The other three are The Chronicle, Humboldt, The Herald Gazette, Trenton, and The Tri-City Reporter in Dyer. Publisher Bill Shuster, a TPA board member and very good friend of our family, graciously took time out of his busy schedule to show me about the relatively new facilities of the Herald–Citizen, Cookeville, a paper my father published in the early to mid-1970s. And, yes, there are a few holdouts on staff from his day. Had a nice visit with Jim Zachary of the Rogersville Review. His son James entertained at the dessert reception after the Governor’s Banquet at the Winter Convention. He noted that Tennessee’s very first newspaper, the Gazette, was printed in Rogersville in November 1791 and moved to Knoxville the following year to become the Knoxville Gazette. Rogersville is also home to the Tennessee Newspaper and Printing Museum, a worthy visit for anyone in our industry. A most promising prospect getting involved with TPA is Richard Esposito, brought on last year as publisher of The Oak Ridger. I had a very pleasant visit with him and Editor Darrell Richardson. The only appointment I’ve missed thus far was with Tom Gentry, The Standard Banner, Jefferson City, which broke my heart, but I simply overbooked and ran out of time. I will certainly make this up to him and his son, former TPA President and Editor Dale Gentry. Most everyone has spoken highly of our TPA/TPS staff, consistently calling Executive Director Greg Sherrill and Member Services Manager Robyn Gentile by name. Others have been affectionately mentioned as well. So far as changes and recommendations go: Numerous members—granted, I’m visiting predominantly with publishers or in some cases editors—have requested the annual awards banquet to be tied once more with the summer convention; and I do believe in years to come that it is in our best interest. Last year when Mike Fishman, Citizen Tribune, Morristown, served as TPA president and his brother Jeff, The Tullahoma News, as chairman of the Contests Committee, they actually opposed each other on this issue. Jeff ’s argument, and a very good one, is that publishers primarily attend the summer convention and not usually the people who are actually winning these awards for their respective papers; unlike when they are separate. Deborah Turner, again, The McKenzie Banner, had a legitimate complaint of something I believe we’ve all experienced: inadequately returned forms from contest entries. Feedback is critical to us all. We must take care when judging other states’ contests to provide valuable information and encourage or entice other states to do the same for us. Jerry Hilliard, associate editor of The Erwin Record and former Tennessee Press columnist, mentioned that with NIE programs, schools should have journalism textbooks and AP Stylebooks. Journalism classes aren’t getting the tools they need. Gene Washer recommended establishing a relationship with the attorney general, perhaps taking him out to dinner. Someone mentioned placing all inserts into a paper’s weekly shopper, mailing it total market, free of charge, and leaving them out of main editions. Jack McElroy, editor of the News Sentinel, Knoxville, suggested an RSS feed throughout state papers providing news stories that can be freely used by members. Ron Bridgeman, The Courier-News, Clinton, argued for a TPA statewide public notice Web site. Jim Zachary really wants members to come visit the Tennessee Newspaper and Printing Museum (mentioned above) in Rogersville. It would certainly make for an excellent story in The Tennessee Press, not to mention a nice excursion some time a convention is held nearby. Interestingly, I’ve had small papers say TPA focuses on larger papers and larger papers say TPA focuses on smaller. I’ve also learned that most publications in our state have been active in one shape or form in TPA at one time or another. Let me encourage everyone to continue your involvement and do what you can for our association, as it increases its value for us all. Thank you, everyone, for welcoming me into your papers. I’ve enjoyed visiting with you, and if I haven’t been by yet, I hope to be by soon. Feel free to e-mail other comments or suggestions to steve. lake@pulaskicitizen.com. FORESIGHT 2006 MAY 1: Law Day 3: World Press Freedom Day 3-5: NNA on the Road: Texas Style, Ft. Worth, Texas JUNE 14-16: TPA 137th Annual Summer Convention and SNPA training, Chattanooga Choo Choo 14-17: AAEC Annual Conference, Embassy Suites Hotel, Denver, Colo. 15-17: 8th Great Obituary Writers’ Conference, Plaza Hotel, Las Vegas, N.M. 15-18: Investigative Reporters and Editors, Renaissance Worthington Hotel, Fort Worth, Texas 17: ETSPJ Front Page Follies, Knoxville Convention Center JULY 21: TAPME awards ceremony, 10 a.m., Sheraton Music City, Nashville 21: UT-TPA State Press Contests Awards Luncheon, noon, Sheraton Music City, Nashville AUGUST 31-Sept. 2: Society of News Design Annual Workshop and Exhibition, Orlando, Fla. SEPTEMBER 8: International Literacy Day 13-15: National Conference of Editorial Writers Convention, Sheraton Station Square Hotel, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15: SNPA First Amendment Summit, Atlanta OCTOBER 1-7: National Newspaper Week 12-14: TPS Institute of Newspaper Technology, UT Campus, Knoxville Want to serve TPA on a committee? The 2006-07 committees will soon be appointed. If you are interested in serving on a TPA committee. Please contact TPA or complete the committee interest for at www.tnpress.com/committees.html. If you are interested in serving as a committee chair, please contact Henry Stokes, TPA vice president for dailies, (901) 529-2301 or stokes@germantownappeal.com. PLASTIC PRESS CARDS AVAILABLE TPA can provide member newspapers plastic, professional-looking press cards for $5 each. In interested, one should contact TPA at (865) 584-5761 or visit www.tnpress.com/presscredentials.html. CMYK The Tennessee Press 10 MAY 2006 Lots of Volunteers in Vol State CMYK After reading about the deadly tornados across TenBut the one university-related story that gets into nessee and the Southeast, more roadside bombings in the paper the next day is the negative situation Iraq, unethical politicians, higher gas prices, global involving that one student. warming, bird flu and another black church burning How can you avoid such complaints from your in the South, I was getting rather depressed from valuable readers? You do have to cover the news. reading the national news in several newspapers in But can you uncover positive stories that don’t April. But their local sections were no better. Fires, make the police blotter? wrecks, sexual assaults, political bickering and robWhat about those tireless public school teachberies filled those pages. Are Tennessee readers as ers and the many service projects and learning sick as I am about all the bad news? PRESSING activities that take place on a regular basis? How Apparently they are, according to a survey buried about the college fraternities and sororities—too in my files from a few months ago. Conducted by ISSUES often the targets of negative news—that devote The Segmentation Co., a division of Yankelovich, thousands of volunteer hours for breast cancer the national poll of 1,004 adults revealed that a Randy Hines research and Ronald McDonald houses, along with whopping 94 percent want to hear more good news. other nonprofit causes, every year? And 77 percent said the media do not provide them Despite their yearlong dedication to the unforenough coverage of good news. tunate, churches usually can’t escape from the religion Did you notice those percentages, editors? More than nine section unless a clergy member is facing charges such as out of 10 readers want you to provide them more good news embezzlement. How about the many businesses in your town and almost eight out of 10 said you do not provide them that adopt a highway and their employees actually go out to enough good news. Maybe you could take this column into clean up the litter on a regular basis? your next staff meeting when you start dishing out story Positive article possibilities are all around your circulation assignments. area. All you need to do is dig a little deeper, ask different It seems the depressing news articles mentioned in the lead questions from sources, and visit sites beyond your usual paragraphs have an effect on their Tennessee readers. About beat. And maybe the police blotter fluff can fit on your agate half the survey participants admit that learning about bad page, rather than becoming a Page One story. news makes their day worse. More than three-fourths said Ironically, the study was funded by Bayer Health Care, that the bad news creates feeling of anxiousness. which probably profits from the bad vibes people feel after “Simply put, good news can uplift the spirits, while bad news getting their daily doses of negativism from reading many can, at times, directly impact our emotions and our outlook Tennessee daily and nondaily newspapers. on the world around us in a negative way,” said David Bersoff, senior vice president of Monitor, a Yankelovich division. DR. RANDY HINES, former Tennessee educator, teaches in the Complaints often originate when a reporter writes a piece, Department of Communications at Susquehanna University. His for example, about a University of Tennessee student picked address is 514 University Ave., Selinsgrove, Pa. 17870. He can be up for drunken driving on I-40. Perhaps the other 25,978 UTK reached at (570) 372-4079 or randyhinesapr@yahoo.com. students were not arrested and charged with any offense. Commercial Appeal takes six awards in region contest BY SHERRI DRAKE The Commercial Appeal, Memphis The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, was honored in six categories in this year’s Green Eyeshade Excellence in Journalism Awards, open to working journalists in the South. “We had six journalists and teams honored this year for their work. That’s the most wins we’ve had in the last three years,” said Chris Peck, editor of The Commercial Appeal. “I think it speaks well of the quality and dedication of our staff, and I’m happy to see their good work recognized.” The contest recognizes outstanding journalists in print, radio and television across an 11-state region encompassing Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia. Columnist Geoff Calkins won first place in sports commentary for various columns. Former Commercial Appeal Reporter Aimee Edmondson, Photographer Karen Pulfer Focht and former Memphis Zone Editor Mickie Anderson won first place in investigative reporting for the infant mortality series “Born to Die.” “Karen Focht’s photography about the overwhelming number of infant deaths in Memphis truly is one of the finest pieces of documentary photography ever done at this newspaper,’’ Peck said. “I’m very proud of our infant mortality project and the journalists who worked on it,’’ he said. “This was an important story that showed the tragedy of Memphis having the highest infant mortality rate of any of the 60 largest cities in the country. Much good has come of this work, including Shelby County Mayor A. C. Wharton’s ‘1 For All’ initiative designed to get every baby born in Memphis to a healthy 1 year of age. For us, this kind of work and good result is what makes journalism worth the effort.’’ John Beifuss won second place in criticism for “Hustle & Flow,” Blake Fontenay won second place in editorial writing, former Commercial Appeal Columnist Wendi C. Thomas placed third in humorous commentary for various columns, and Dennis Copeland, director of new media, placed third in general news reporting for “68 Seconds.” Focht’s “Born to Die” work also won in the photography feature story category in the Society of Professional Journalists National Journalism Awards. Watch for the gold! Republic Newspapers, Knoxville, sells its last Florida property BY CARLY HARRINGTON News Sentinel, Knoxville Knoxville-based Republic Newspapers Inc. has sold the last of its Florida papers, The Sanford Herald, to an Oklahoma company. Family Media Inc. acquired the twiceweekly paper in Sanford Fla., effective March 31. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. “We’ve been gradually getting out of Florida for several years. The Sanford Herald was the last one,” said Nick Drewry, president of Republic Newspapers, which owns the Farragut Press, the Courier News in Clinton and three weeklies near Charlotte, N.C. At one time, the small nondaily newspaper company, founded in 1988, owned about a dozen community papers in four states that reached as far south as Florida and as far north as Kentucky. Drewry said the company, whose offices are at 11863 Kingston Pike, has been turning its attention to opportunities closer to home, including the possible purchase of other nondailies in Tennessee and North Carolina. Republic Newspapers also owns and operates Tucker Publishing, which produces outlet mall shopping guides that include one in Pigeon Forge. Others are in Florida, north Georgia, Las Vegas and several New England states. Republic Newspapers is solely owned and was founded by real estate deveoper Doug Horne. PROFILE bought The Print Shop in Waverly. And, on Jan. 1, 2006, started a free newspaper, The Hollow Rock-Bruceton News. Dennis Richardson Is president of Associated Publishers, a co-op owned web printing plant located in Huntingdon. “Lisa and I are the sole owners of Magic Valley Publishing Co., which is the name of the corporation. In 2004 I joined W. B. Grimes & Co. as director of the south and southwest covering Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana.” TPA director, District 8 Publisher, Carroll County News-Leader Huntingdon Personal: Grew up in the Whites Creek area of Davidson County. Father was a sharecropper and died at 42. Attended UT Martin, UT Knoxville and graduated from UTM with a B.S. degree in communications.”I had to finish my education at Martin because I couldn’t pass the typing test at Knoxville. But that ended up being for the best, since I met Lisa at UTM. We married in July 1975.” Four children, Mark, who has two children; Matthew; Gerilyn, a sophomore at UT Knoxville; Daniel, a senior at Camden High. Job experience: “I started on Linotype machines at a typesetting company in Nashville.” Later became sports editor of The Paris Post-Intelligencer, then editor of The Weakley County Press, Martin, then on the copy desk at The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville. Bought the Carroll County News in 1983. In 1992 bought The Tennessee Republican and combined the two with a new name, Carroll County News-Leader. In 1994 bought The Camden Chronicle and in 2002, The Fulton (Ky,) Leader. In 2004 Favorite part of job: “I really like making things work and exchanging ideas with fellow publishers.” Least favorite part of job: “The little things that I am grateful that I have quality people to take care of for me.” Your management philosophy: “I like to delegate to good people the various departmental duties.” Tell about your mentor, if you’ve had one. “I worked under Randal Benderman in Martin and still call him up to bounce ideas off him.” Most important issue facing newspapers: “The extinction of the mom and pop stores that are falling off as Wal-Mart expands its superstores.” Recreation you enjoy: “Traveling and, really, my job is my hobby. I just love coming to work each day, whether it is from First place winners in the 2006 UT-TPA State Press Contests will be notified by mail in a gold envelope. Letters to all winners will be mailed by May 15. The 2006 Awards Luncheon will be held July 21 in Nashville. the newspaper office or my home office, or on the road. But any time there is something involving our children, we do that. Daniel plays football at Camden High School. I am a former president of the Minor League football team for ages 6-12. Daniel and I coached a team last year and plan to do so again this year.” Music you like: country Reading: Editor and Publisher Movies: American Grafitti, westerns, The Blues Brothers, James Bond Television: Same. Collegiate football and basketball, game shows If you had a day to do anything you wanted to do: “I would piddle around our horse farm.” If you could have quality time with a historical figure, who would it be and why? Nathan Bedford Forrest. He found ways to get it done in many times unconventional ways What you see as the value of TPA. The TPA is valuable to provide advertising contacts, especially for smaller papers with limited resources, and to help provide training, and provide the legal counsel that papers cannot afford like a retainer for a good attorney. The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 9 OBITUARIES Judy Cagle church pastor. Other survivors include two grandchildren. Former general manager Judy Cagle, who began working for the Germantown News in 1993, died Jan. 27 in Proctor, Ark. “Judy was a dedicated and conscientious employee,” said Alex Coulter, publisher of the West Memphis Evening Times, where Cagle began working in 1988. “She was always ready to help do anything necessary to make the product and the business better,” he said. Cagle started her career as a typesetter in the composing room and worked her way to being the supervisor of that department. She later was promoted to production manager at the Evening Times before she transferred to the Germantown News as general manager. She left the newspaper in 2000. Leon Daniel UPI reporter BY JIM CHARLET Brentwood Leon Daniel, 74, longtime UPI reporter and Washington bureau chief, died March 19 in Glen Ellyn, Ill., five days after undergoing an angioplasty procedure. He was a native of Etowah, attended the University of Tennessee in the 1950s, and began his journalism career as a reporter for The Knoxville Journal. Daniel spent 36 years with United Press International, starting in Nashville in 1956, headed UPI’s Knoxville bureau in 1959 before moving to its Atlanta bureau in 1960, where he remained until 1966. From Atlanta, he covered the 1965 Dominican Republic rebellion, and also reported on the South’s civil rights movement before departing to cover the Vietnam War. Intermittent assignments in Afghanistan and Okinawa followed until 1975 when he returned to Vietnam to write eyewitness reports of the fall of Saigon. In the late 1970s, he was in Hong Kong as UPI’s editor for Asia, and later in London as its editor for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In 1977 while vacationing in Knoxville, he learned of the attempted escape of James Earl Ray from Brushy Mountain Prison in Morgan County. He rushed to dictate the UPI bulletin to the Atlanta bureau desk, and remained at the Tennessee prison site for three days to help frame UPI’s account of Ray’s recapture. By 1980, he was in Washington as national reporter, and later managing editor for global news. He was UPI’s chief correspondent by 1990, and in Kuwait directing the news service’s Gulf War coverage. After retirement, he continued to write op-ed pieces, some published in The Chicago Tribune. He lived in Washington until 1997, and in 2005 he and his companion, Judith Paterson, moved to Glen Ellyn where his daughter, Rev. Lillian Daniel, is a Ashley W. Fisher Columnist Ashley William (Bill) Fisher III died of cancer Feb. 3 at his home in Millington. Clara Greever Virginia newspaper manager Clara Grubbs Greever, a Johnson City native and once business manager of The Richlands Press and Tazewell County News Progress in the Clinch Valley region of southwest Virginia, died March 16 after a brief illness. She was the daughter of Frank Grubbs and Clara Bird Lusk of Johnson City, and a graduate of the University of Tennessee, and Science Hill High School in Johnson City. She was a registered dietician and after World War II, entered the newspaper profession with her husband, the late Charles R. Greever Jr., in Tazewell County, Va. She leaves one son, two daughters and two grandsons. Richard A. Kemp Former editor Richard Alexander Kemp, a former editor of The Elk Valley Times, Fayetteville, died Feb. 7. He was 79. He was a resident of Enterprise, Ala. Kemp was a veteran of three wars, having served in Leyte in the Philippines in the final months of World War II; in Korea in 1951; and near Saigon in Vietnam in 1960s. As a combat correspondent for the Pacific Stars and Stripes in Korea, Kemp made his first parachute jump behind enemy lines carrying a portable typewriter and a carbine, getting a world beat on the story. Kemp also covered the replacement of Gen. Douglas MacArthur by Gen. Matthew B. Ridgeway while in Korea. In between wars and after retiring from the Army, Kemp worked as a newspaper reporter and editor at several newspapers. A history buff and member of the Alabama Genealogical Society, Kemp was active after his Army retirement in the Sons of the American Revolution and sons of Confederate Veterans. The Dothan chapter of Sons of Confederate Veterans honored him with a lifetime achievement award named in his honor and to be presented annually to a Sons of Confederate Veterans members residing in southeast Alabama. Kemp also served six years total as president of both the Tri-State and Wiregrass chapters of the Alabama Sons of the American Revolution. Through his efforts and leadership, a monument was erected on grounds of the Ozark-Dale County Library honor- ing the Revolutionary soldiers buried in Dale County. He also was a member of the First Families of Alabama and a member of the Society of the Sons and Daughters of the Pilgrims. Kemp leaves his wife, Barbara Anne Kemp of Fayetteville; a daughter, Jeanne Stratton of St. Petersburg, Fla.; two sons, Michael Kemp of Dunedin, Fla. and Matt Kemp of Fayetteville; and five grandchildren. Peter H. Prince Former editor Peter Hayden Prince, an East Tennessee author, journalist and historian, died April 10 at his home in Knoxville. He was 70. Prince, known to most acquaintances as Pete, had prepared his own obituary and asked that it be completed and sent out upon his death, according to his son, Dan. Prince worked for a number of newspapers, including The Knoxville NewsSentinel, the Clinton Courier-News and the Citizen Tribune, Morristown, between 1950 and 1985. In 1982 he was selected chairman of the Pulitzer Prize nominating jury for news and feature photography. He also served as president of the East Tennessee chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists in 1973, served on the SPJ national board for six years and as a regional director. He wrote in his prepared obituary that he changed careers in 1985 because of a bipolar condition. He wrote that he was determined not “to be defeated by the incurable disease.” Indeed, for Ghost Towns in the Smokies, he collected 61,800 documents and 5,700 century-old photographs. The work chronicled a logging railroad at Clingmans Dome, a steamboat at Twentymile, a man staging his mock funeral at Smokemont and a swinging railroad bridge at Meigs Falls, according to his obituary. An avid hiker, he spent years in North Carolina and Tennessee researching 251 former towns once located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Prince was born on the Cumberland Plateau in Sewanee and went to live in an orphanage at age 11. He and his five siblings were separated for 53 years. He graduated from Peabody College of Vanderbilt in 1958. He hitchhiked to Knoxville to attend the University of Tennessee to take journalism classes. Prince was an avid Rotarian, joining the club in Morristown 1972. Prince is survived by sons, Michael Hayden Prince of Bean Station; Daniel Melhorn Prince of Knoxville; Jonathan Moinette Prince of Morristown; grandchildren, Alexus, Hunter, Nash and Nayland Prince. In memorium A contribution to Tennessee Press Association Foundation In memory of John Burgess by The Courier Savannah TRACKS Ray be nimble, Ray be quick By JIM CHARLET Brentwood This is the story of a man who grew up in Clarksville, Tennessee, and began work for the Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle in September 1958 when it was a familyowned newspaper Charlet and its Page One was dressed with the community’s name in an Old English flag. And he remained there his entire 48-year professional career, until retiring March 25 as national advertising manager. Add the four years he spent as a newspaper route carrier, and he invested 52 years of his life promoting an ink-on-paper news product…quite unusual in today’s world. From the day he was hired by newspaper co-owner Martha C. Charlet and started work in the mailroom at age 17, (Wilbur) Ray Roby was known for his slow, shy smile, which sometimes was punctuated by a high velocity facial blush. His other trademarks were his cow-licked blond hair and an almost “religious dedication” to customer service. Ray Roby was among my Clarksville High School French and English classmates, and we also shared classes at Austin Peay State University. While students in the late 1950s and early 1960s, we worked together in the mailroom as hand inserters of preprints, caught the newspaper folder of the 16-page Duplex Tubular hot metal printing press, and worked the hot metal “dump” in the composing room where we inserted Linotype line corrections in news columns and ads…one line at a time. We were there on Feb. 13, 1962 when The Nashville Record tabloid weekly newspaper rolled off the 24-page Goss Suburban offset press, and the next day when Tennessee’s first daily newspaper was printed by the offset press, named “The Duchess.” And while finishing college, we worked together on the 2to-11 p.m. night shift as ad compositors assembling ads for the 14 weekly newspapers owned by the Leaf-Chronicle Co. After college graduation, I left in 1963 for U.S. Air Force officer training, and Ray remained in college and working at the newspaper. In his 48-year newspaper career, Ray Roby twice survived what Editor John Seigenthaler of The Tennessean terms being “sold in chains,” once to Multimedia Inc. in 1973, and later to Gannett, Inc. in 1995. Not one to relish the games of corporate politics, Ray Roby was known for keeping his head down, keeping his ear attuned to his advertising customers, and keeping his eye on the ball in meeting any newspaper production requirement to help his advertisers. No matter where he worked at the newspaper, Ray Roby was always the “go-2-guy” because of his overwhelming positive attitude. He never walked from task to task, he jumped and ran. From his days of young, to his days of old, he was nimble and he was quick, and he was incapable of saying “it couldn’t be done”. Always quiet, always shy, always positive, for decades he had frequent contact with professionals at Tennessee Press Service, where he was regarded highly as a complete professional, and as a “customer’s birddog”…always making sure what appeared in print was exactly what the customer ordered. He was the epitome of the “Newspaper Advertising Man.” I left the Clarksville newspaper again in 1979 when 75 years of newspaper history was reversed by a corporate headquarters dictate to remove the community’s name from its Page One flag, and other nonsensical changesfor-change-sake implemented to show “corporate’s Visiting Firemen’s” fingerprints. But Ray Roby stayed, and over the years he became the newspaper’s anchor in the business community. After two other careers, I since retired twice and he kept working there. So I’ll never forget how we started our professional lives together, at the same time, same place, when work was fun, and newspapers had a lotta soul. Under Ray Roby’s photograph in the 1959 edition of the Clarksville High School Wildcat yearbook is this quote: “A little nonsense now and then Is relished by the best of men.” So welcome out, Ray Roby, it’s time for a little nonsense. A retirement clock for you is about as sensible as a rocking chair for an Indy 500 champ. You ain’t never been busy, until you been “retired busy.” JIM CHARLET is former editor of the Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle, and copy editor and makeup editor at The Atlanta Constitution. CMYK The Tennessee Press 4 MAY 2006 CMYK NIE/literacy conference successful The Southern Newspaper Publishers Association Newspaper in Education (NIE)/Literacy Conference in March was well-attended and successful. SNPA partnered with Texas Newspapers In Education to serve as host for the conference, held in Dallas, Texas. Evaluations from NIE coordinators have indicated that it was one of the best SNPA NIE/Literacy conferences. Hunter George, executive editor of The Birmingham News, served as chairman for the conference. George’s wit and humor kept everyone entertained. However, Edward VanHorn, SNPA executive director, and George succeeded in keeping the conference right on schedule! Eighty-three people participated. The planning committee strived to offer something valuable for any size newspaper that was represented. Sessions were offered for newspapers that were beginning NIE programs, advanced sessions for veteran NIE coordinators, how to secure sponsor sessions, a session on teaching about the U.S. Constitution with newspapers in the classroom, an informative session for those with an ABC-audited program, a “make and take” teacher workshop, and a session for coordinators to share their individual ideas. Tennessee had four in attendance: Ralph Baldwin, publisher of The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens, and a vice president with Jones Media; Lu Shep Baldwin, Jones Media NIE coordinator; Laura Dougherty, advertising manager/NIE coordinator with The Paris Post-Intelligencer; and Jolynna Wilson, education coordinator with The Commercial Appeal, Memphis. Those attending the Awards Banquet had the opportunity to hear speaker Michael Malone, an author from Raleigh, N.C. Tennessee received several awards, as follows: Best editorial (no circulation breakout) First place: Cleveland Daily Banner NIE CURRENTS Plans for next year’s conference are already being discussed. You may want to consider budgeting for this conference. It is a wonderful opportunity to gain new knowledge in order to boost your NIE program. Other NIE news: SNPA will offer an NIE session with the Traveling Campus scheduled the last day of the Tennessee Press Lu Shep Baldwin Best original in-paper content (over 150,000 circulation) First place: The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, “I Promised I Would Tell” Best revenue-development idea (25,000 circulation and under) First place: The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens, “NIE Sponsor Appreciation Luncheon” Best teacher training (25,000-75,000 circulation) Second place: Kingsport Times News, “NIE Teacher Workshop” Best NIE or literacy promotion (25,000 circulation and under) First place: The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens, “NIE Teacher and Sponsor Promotions” NIE Workshop Friday, June 16 Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn in conjunction with the TPA Summer Convention ROBIE SCOTT Educational Services Manager The Post and Courier Charleston, S.C. NIE Growing With Integrity This session will focus on the elements that are necessary to create and sustain a viable and productive NIE program. We will define the basics with a focus on long range goals that do not have to be recreated each year. Details will be provided for teacher training, NIE leadership selection, securing sponsors, obtaining NIE orders in mass, curriculum options, choosing vendor products that work and program evaluation and assessments. Why NIE? This session will begin with an overview of NIE research and analysis and continue with a discussion on how to sustain readers ages 7 -17 while developing them as loyal future readers. Some background NIE basics will be overviewed, including teacher training and NIE promotion, sponsorship opportunities and assessments. Convention details at www.tnpress.com Best NIE/literacy idea (25,000 circulation and under) Third place: Cleveland Daily Banner, “Character Education” Best NIE/literacy idea (25,000 circulation and under) Honorable mention: The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens, “Grandparents Day” TRACKS Association’s Summer Convention in June in Chattanooga. Robie Scott, education services manager with The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C., will conduct the session. Robie is a veteran in Newspaper in Education. She will speak to publishers about the impact of NIE in the classroom, based on research. Then she will conduct a session on the importance of NIE teacher training for NIE coordinators or other interested TPA members. NAA will have its annual YEA/NIE Conference in July in St. Louis, Mo. For more information about the SNPA conference, the TPA Summer Convention or the NAA conference in St. Louis, contact your press association or Lu Shep Baldwin at lbaldwin@xtn.net. LU SHEP BALDWIN is NIE coordinator for Jones Media, Greeneville. She is based in Athens. Thomas Fraser, assistant city editor and municipal and environmental reporter for The Daily Times, Maryville, has accepted a job with The Daily Journal in southern New Jersey. He is assistant metro editor and will do investigative work. | Marla Williams has joined the Nashville Business Journal as senior account executive. Earlier she worked there five years. | The Lebanon Democrat has named Heather M. Nicholson as circulation and marketing manager. She also will organize special events and promotions for the Democrat and its sister publications, The Hartsville Vidette and the Mt. Juliet News. | Edward Farrell has joined the Chester County Independent, Henderson, as a staff writer. He recently worked on The Collierville Herald. Promising way to boost advertising The lady on the plane was telling me about her new hiking boots. “I shopped around,” she said. “But I decided to buy from L.L. Bean, because of the guarantee.” Guarantees and warranties can be powerful marketing tools. Simply put, a guarantee is a promise to replace an unsatisfactory product or refund the purchase price, while a warranty generally offers to replace defective parts. L.L. Bean’s famous promise states, “Our products are guaranteed to give 100% satisfaction in every way. Return anything purchased from us at any time if it proves otherwise. We do not want you to have anything from L.L. Bean that is not completely John satisfactory.” Every word is true. You may have heard stories of customers who returned products for refunds—many years after they were purchased, and many years after the receipts were lost. There’s no reason to limit quality-promises to national marketers. With a little creative thinking, you can help local advertisers develop similar strategies to set themselves apart from their competitors. Here are some points to keep in mind: 1. Offer value. Don’t make a half-hearted promise. Be bold. Let the promise be an expression of the advertiser’s confidence. DeWalt Service Centers promise “the price of a repair will not exceed the published price. You may pay less, but never more.” This well-known tool company’s guarantee sounds even better, when they add that they repair “most major brands of power tools.” How about that for a statement of quality? They are so knowledgeable that they are qualified to repair other brands, as well as their own. 2. Be specific. Don’t rely on incomplete promises like “we guarantee our work.” I remember seeing a sign in the post office that read, “Service in five minutes or less.” What would have happened if a customer had stepped up to the counter Hand and glove “Freedom of speech and freedom of action are meaningless without freedom to think.” Bergen Evans Author, 1946 and said, “I’ve been standing in line for 15 minutes. What do I get?” They would have gotten exactly what the sign promised: nothing. The sign implied–but did not state–a specific guarantee. It was nothing more than an empty slogan on the wall. Specificity sells. Can you promise product reliability? (Most local merchants carry national brands which offer guarantees and warranties. But how many mention this in their advertising?) Can you guarantee service? (Here’s a way for the mom and pops to beat the big box stores.) Foust Can you guarantee results? (Think of those ads that used to say, “Lose 20 pounds in 30 days, or your money back.”) 3. Set a time limit. An ad for Oreck vacuum cleaners outlines a “full 10-year guarantee against breakage or burnout of the housing plus a 3-year warranty on the motor.” Evidently, this is a unique promise, because the next line of copy states that the guarantee was “not six months or one year like other brands.” How long will your promise be good? 30 days? 90 days? A year? A lifetime? The right promise can make a big difference for an advertiser. ©Copyright 2006 by John Foust. All rights reserved. JOHN FOUST conducts on-site and video training for newspaper advertising departments. His three new video programs are designed to help ad managers conduct in-house training for their sales teams. For information, contact John Foust, P.O. Box 97606, Raleigh, N.C. 27624; jfoust@mindspring.com; or (919) 848-2401. The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 5 Sunshine bill going to House-Senate study committee The Sunshine in Government Improvement Act of 2006 is on its way to a “special” House and Senate study committee that will include press and citizen groups as well as representatives of city, county and state government. That’s not a bad thing because it gives us a better opportunity to make real improvements in the open government laws than we were able to do in the normal legislative process. It shows, however, that TPA and allied groups have more work to do on top of the good work already done by newspapers this year. We will not be starting from scratch. Dozens of papers have made the public more aware of the problems, and the legislation we proposed to correct them, through news stories and editorials. The TPA clipping service sent me as many as 10-15 clips on some days in February and March. To their credit, some papers brought readers and public officials into the stories. That discussion needs to continue in coming months. At press time, the General Assembly was expected to create a 19-member study panel and acknowledge by resolution problems with Tennessee’s open government laws. The resolution would instruct the panel to report its “initial” findings and recommendations by Dec. 1 and final report by Feb. 1, 2007.. The committee includes one representative each from TPA, the broadcasters’ association, the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government, Common Cause; League of Women Voters, SPJ, two members each from the House and Senate, two appointed by the governor; one designated by the attorney general, two each from TML and Tennessee County Services, one school board member and a public utility board member. TML and TCSA must name one elected official each. MTAS and CTAS were taken out at insistence of TML and CTAS. The study resolution places the discussion where it belongs—in the context of ethics in government. MTAS and CTAS have been tasked by the legislature to produce model ethics standards for local government. The issue will be taken up during the 2007 session. “...Tennessee’s open government laws were adopted to bring transparency and public confidence in government and to ensure public participation in the government process,” the draft resolution states. “… It is the intent of the General Assembly protect the public’s right to know. that all Tennesseans have the utmost In coming months we all need to conrespect and trust in the operation of centrate on this issue. Here’s how. government and the enforcement of 1. Assess openness of government laws enacted for their benefit.” at your local level. You might not have What’s next? any problems, but you could ask your It is an election year so it is essential local officials for suggestions they over the next few months that we might support for places that do. Redevote some extra attention to the member we found alleged violations subject. Transparency means more of the open meetings law in 10 percent disclosure and openness to make it TENNESSEE of the towns and cities and almost a easier for everyone to know what goes third of the counties. The resolution on inside government. COALITION also notes a significant rise in the Lest we forget, two county commisnumber of alleged violations. sioners, a school board member and FOR OPEN an aide to a county mayor were among GOVERNMENT 2. Discuss the situation—in print or as civic-minded residents—in the those indicted in the Tennessee Waltz context of government ethics reform, sting operation. The Chattanooga Frank Gibson disclosure and openness. Times Free Press discovAsk every candidate for ered through a public office—local and state ofrecords request that an fice—where they stand on indicted Hamilton County Gibson is executive director of the Tenopen government. That school board member used nessee Coalition for Open Government. can be a softball question, his public e-mail account to One can contact him at fgibson@tcog.info; so you’ll need to be specific. lobby on behalf of the fake (615) 202-2685; or TCOG, P. O. Box 22248, Ask whether they will supFBI enterprise. Records in Nashville, Tenn. 37202. For more information Nashville showed he had on Tennessee’s government access laws and port reasonable improvement to the open meetings not registered to represent a list of Sunshine Law problems reported in Tennessee newspapers over the past three and public records laws the company. that come out of this study It is in the best interest years, go to www.tcog.info. committee. Keep in mind of your readers to know that Tennessee is among who is trying to influence officials in your area and how they go about it. only 12 states with no prescribed penalty for No one suggests that corruption exists in city sunshine and records violations. Public officials and county government to the level alleged in the can be recalled or removed from a board if found Waltz scandal, but the lack of transparency makes guilty of sunshine violations in three states. In another, it is treated as an ethics infraction. it harder to find potential problems. It’s your call about what to do with the informaIn the wake of the Waltz sting and the black eye it gave the state, the legislature and Gov. Phil tion you gather. You can survey and report their Bredesen launched concurrent reviews of reforms responses in your publications or hang onto it needed to restore public confidence in government. for later, but send it along to us when you can. The governor’s ethics advisory panel left it to the It’s important that you get them on the record and General Assembly and the governor himself to solicit their support. For those among us who are timid about writing address questions of open government. The governor has responded by supporting an advisory on this subject, remember whose government it is and who ultimately benefits from transparency ombudsman on public access. Lawmakers have given local governments until in government. Don’t worry whether the public the next legislative session to apply controls on sees it as self-serving. It’s about assuming civic responsibility. local conduct or risk having it done by them. Sunshine Improvement Act Since public accountability is the goal, it’s paraSince late December, newspapers across the mount that we have workable open meetings and records laws and efficient procedures in place to state have called for enactment of the Sunshine in Government Improvement Act. At the same time, county commissions mounted a campaign to call their state representatives and senators. Some lawmakers were getting four or five calls a day from angry county officials, who, according to one lawmaker, engaged in “hypothetical hysteria.” They cited different scenarios in which they would be hanged for going fishing or attending church with other commissioners and without ever getting a court hearing. Not true, but it was convincing. Some county commissions applied pressure by passing resolutions calling on their representatives to oppose the legislation. It made no difference that compromises had already been made to accommodate some of their concerns. One committee of commissioners was informed about compromises we had made already but still recommended that the full commission oppose the legislation “as it was originally filed.” We had difficulty passing the bill because many county officials misunderstood its intent and ignored the legislative process in which differences are ironed out. Some opposition was based on misinformation from their representatives on Capitol Hill. The Tennessee Municipal League, which represents more than 300 towns and cities, remained open-minded and willing to suggest changes to improve the proposal. They invited us to appear before their members to explain the proposal. We were willing to make changes TML sought, but none of the county commission resolutions reflected those efforts. We anticipated opposition to the proposal, as filed. We knew there would need to be some tweaking and compromise. We didn’t anticipate a major association of elected officials would refuse to discuss it flat out. That leaves us in the position of having to start the discussion in a different forum, away from the heat of a legislative session. FRANK GIBSON is coordinator of theTPA Freedom of Information Committee and executive director of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government. He can be reached at fgibson@tcog.info or (615) 202-2685. For more information online, go to www.tcog.info. Jones, The Washington Post, becomes president of Newspaper Association of America Boisfeuillet (Bo) Jones Jr., publisher and chief executive officer of The Washington Post, has been elected to serve as the Newspaper Association of America’s next chairman. The gavel was passed to Jones from last year’s chairman Jay R. Smith, president of Cox Newspapers Inc. in Atlanta, during the Association’s Annual Convention April 2-4 at the Fairmont Hotel in Chicago. Smith will continue to serve on the NAA Board of Directors as immediate past chairman. Jones was appointed publisher and chief executive officer of The Washington Post in 2000. He joined the Post in 1980 as vice president and general counsel. Jones also has served as president and general manager, and associate publisher. In addition to serving as 2006-07 NAA chairman, Jones is a director of the Associated Press, the Eugene & Agnes Meyer Foundation, the Federal City Council, the Cooperative Assistance Fund, and several Post affiliates. He also is a member of the University of Maryland School of Journalism Board of Visitors. Other officers elected were Vice Chairwoman Susan Clark-Johnson, president of the Newspaper Division of Gannett Co. in McLean, Va.; Secretary Gary B. Pruitt, chairman, president and chief executive officer of The McClatchy Co. in Sacramento; and Treasurer George B. Irish, president of Hearst Newspapers, a subsidiary of The Hearst Corp. in New York City. Elected to two-year terms on the NAA Board of Directors were Donna Barrett, president and chief executive officer, Community Newspaper Holdings Inc., Birmingham, Ala.; Scott Flanders, president and chief executive officer, Freedom Communications Inc., Irvine, Calif.; Harold W. Fuson Jr., senior vice president and chief legal officer, The Copley Press Inc., La Jolla, Calif.; Marshall N. Morton, president and chief executive officer, Media General Inc., Richmond, Va.; Charles Peters, president and chief executive officer, The Gazette, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Steven J. Smith, chairman and chief executive officer, Journal Communications Inc., Milwaukee; and Virgil L. Smith, president and publisher, Asheville (N.C.) Citizen-Times. Directors re-elected to two-year terms were Jean B. Clifton, president and chief operating officer, Journal Register Co., Trenton, N.J.; Joseph J. Lodovic IV, president, MediaNews Group Inc., Denver; David R. Lord, president, Pioneer Newspapers Inc., Seattle; James M. Moroney III, publisher and chief executive officer, The Dallas Morning News; James A. Moss, chairman, Times Herald-Record, Middletown, N.Y.; Scott C. Schurz, president, Hoosier Times Inc., Bloomington, Ind.; and Gary K. Shorts, president and chief executive officer, Calkins Media, Levittown, Pa. Directors continuing their terms are: R. Bruce Bradley, president/publishing group, Landmark Communications Inc., Norfolk, Va.; Mark G. Contreras, vice president/newspaper operations, The E.W. Scripps Co., Cincinnati; W. Stacey Cowles, president and publisher, The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash.; James C. Currow, executive vice president/newspapers, Morris Communications Co. LLC, Augusta, Ga.; Walter E. Hussman Jr., publisher, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Little Rock; Mark W. Newhouse, vice president/general manager, The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J.; Robert M. Nutting, president and chief executive officer, The Nutting Company, Inc., Wheeling, W.Va.; David M. Paxton, president/chief executive officer, Paxton Media Group LLC, Paducah, Ky.; Charles V. Pittman, senior vice president/newspapers, Schurz Communications Inc., South Bend, Ind.; Michael E. Reed, president and chief executive officer, Liberty Group Publishing Inc., Downers Grove, Ill.; Janet L. Robinson, president and chief executive officer, The New York Times Co.; Hilary A. Schneider, senior vice president, Knight Ridder, San Jose, Calif.; Scott C. Smith, president, Tribune Publishing Co., Chicago, Ill.; Paul Tash, editor, chief executive officer and chairman, St. Petersburg Times; and Kathleen M. Waltz, president, chief executive officer and publisher, The Orlando Sentinel. CMYK The Tennessee Press 8 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 7 50 years of ownership TRACKS Tom and Ellin Gentry found a newspaper, and a home, in 1956 CMYK BY STEVE MARION Staff writer The Standard Banner, Jefferson City Back in 1962, people in downtown Jefferson City were surprised one day to see the press coming up Main Street. We’re not talking about Tom Gentry, publisher and editor of the local newspaper, though he was present. We’re talking about the press, a four-page hand-fed Cranston, weighing in at well over a thousand pounds. Police blocked off the street as Gentry, his entire staff of three, and helpers rolled the iron monster up the street on heavy metal rollers. The Cranston emerged from the newspaper’s rented office on Main Street, made a left turn, and inched its way west to Gentry’s new building on the Andrew Johnson Highway. Who says journalism wasn’t mobile in those days? “I don’t think we caused any problems for traffic,” Gentry quipped. “There weren’t many cars on the street.” The Standard Banner’s press doesn’t hold Main Street parades any more. It stays in its den, where it has grown to a size that makes the old Cranston look like a pup. The way the press comes to life with clock-like regularity hasn’t changed, though. This week, Tom Gentry’s press marks 50 years of publishing. Fifty years of ink and paper. Five decades of deadlines, headlines, bylines. For 50 years somehow ink has poured out of barrels and turned into people’s lives, their births and deaths, milestones, successes and disappointments, achievements, dreams, crimes. Through it all, Gentry’s paper, he is proud to say, has “never missed the mail.” Not once on a publication day have mail trucks left Jefferson City without their stacks of newspapers, though more than once the ink has barely been dry. “I think we’ve chased down the mail trucks before they could pull out of the parking lot a few times,” Gentry’s son Dale, who is managing editor, said during a celebration Saturday evening. “But we’ve never let them get away without the paper.” Tom Gentry’s pride in never missing the deadline that counts most tells you something about him. He doesn’t easily lose sight of a goal, no matter how much turmoil the moment might contain, and he doesn’t mind working as hard as it takes to get there. “I don’t think I’ve seen anybody work harder than Tom,” said Paul Young, who has been with the paper 44 years. “In the early days we put out three papers, and I’ve seen Tom stay up all night doing one of them, go home and shower, come back and pull an all-nighter putting out the next one.” Gentry’s wife of 56 years, Ellin, says Tom Gentry at his trusty typewriter he inherited his mother’s even temperament. His work ethic may have come from his father, a teacher who later was elected superintendent of schools in Putnam County. Gentry remembers riding a horse-drawn buggy with his dad as they visited the schools scattered around the county—and it was his father who started the family into the newspaper business in 1923 with his purchase of the Putnam County Herald. “I always liked newspapers and newspaper work,” Gentry recalled. “I watched my dad and saw how he handled things—how he developed a reputation as a good editor and publisher. I saw how you could do some good for a community that way.” In February 1956, Tom and Ellin Gentry came to Jefferson City and bought the Jefferson City Standard and Grainger County News from Judge George Shepherd. “We were looking for something we could afford,” Gentry recalled, “and we were looking for a place where we wanted to live.” The paper had a good Linotype operator and a couple of pressmen. Gentry did the rest. He gathered news, took photographs, sold advertising, kept the books and ran the commercial printing side of the business. “I could see after about six months that it was going to work out,” he said. “I really appreciated the reception I got from the business people.” As he began to expand, he hired Cal THE STANDARD BANNER Taylor, who would stay 25 years until her retirement, to run the office. Mrs. Taylor’s crisp way of answering the phone, “Standard Office!”, became known all over town. The move to the newspaper’s current office on Old Andrew Johnson Highway from its old rented quarters on Main Street in 1962 was a sign the paper was going to have staying power. Then, in 1965, Gentry made another bold move. He consolidated the Banner and Standard to make The Jefferson County Standard Banner. Dr. Else Muncy, author of a history of the county, later placed Gentry’s arrival in town, and his decision to consolidate the papers, on a short list of the best things that happened to the community in the second half of the 20th century. People here were beginning to see themselves as Jefferson Countians, where previously they had identified most strongly with the county’s towns and small communities. There’s an adage that says newspaper works runs in families because it takes everybody in the family to get the work done. Ellin Gentry recalls that she often ran errands, to pick up news and advertising copy and take photos, when her husband’s schedule was overwhelmed—but she also ended up running the operation one week in the fall of 1962. Tom, a World War II Navy vet, had joined a group of journalists on a trip to observe military operations in Cuba—and it happened to occur at the same time as the Cuban Missile Crisis. For a while, Ellin had no way of contacting her husband, and there was that record of never missing the mail to consider. “It was hectic,” she recalled. “I helped as much as I could, and we had a good staff to get us through it.” The week became more exciting than she would have liked when Young’s hand was injured by a piece of machinery as they worked to get the paper out. “She had to take me to the hospital,” Young recalled. “It was a pretty interesting week—maybe more interesting than she wanted it to be. But we got the papers out.” True to form, Tom sent in a story about his experiences to help things come together. Back home, he continued his hectic schedule. Soon, the local sheriff trusted him enough to take him along on some of his moonshine raids. “They would bring the stills back and display them on the lawn in front of the jail,” Gentry recalled. “I remember one time I went on a raid and a guy had barricaded himself in a house. There was even some shooting. I had to take cover behind a car.” The changes that had begun with the press parade on Main Street continued. In the early ’60s, the paper made the switch from letterpress to offset. It was the first of many technological advances that have changed almost everything about the way a newspaper comes together. “One of the things I appreciate about Tom is that he has always made sure the newspaper had good equipment,” said Young. Most recently, The Standard Banner added a new 12-ton “quad stack” printing unit to its state-of-the-art press, which now has more color capability than ever before. Photography, meanwhile, has gone from the days of flashbulbs and negatives to today’s color digital process. Gentry was pleased that his son Dale, whose first job was to keep the papers aligned as they came off the old press, decided to come home to the family business after majoring in journalism at the University of Tennessee. Dale has developed The Standard Banner into a paper that wins state prizes every year for its content and design. “We didn’t push him toward it, but I could tell he was interested from the start,” Tom said. “Dale has been a great asset to the paper.” At a dinner Saturday night, staff members at the newspaper presented Tom and Ellin a framed plaque showing the paper’s flag in 1956 and the current one. It also features now and then photos of the publisher, as well as 1956 and 2006 silver coins. The staff traded stories and thanked Gentry for believing in them and the business. “Tom has given life to it,” Ellin said of the newspaper. “I think he and Dale have made a big change in what the newspaper contributes to the community.” “I think the local newspaper will continue to have a place,” Tom said. “We print the local news, and after all, that is news nobody else has.” (Feb. 9, 2006) THE STANDARD BANNER Tom Gentry and his son, Dale, to his left, and grandchildren Ann Gowan and David Gentry. ELENORA E. EDWARDS | TPS HELEN COMER | THE JACKSON SUN (Left photo) Carol Dix shows Page One of the issue of The Tennessee Press that announced that The Jackson Sun had won the Be Kind to Editors Contest sponsored by the newspaper. The newspaper held a special thank-you event for all its editors. (Right) Two TPA staff members visited the newspaper April 5 to treat the staff. From left are Executive Director Greg Sherrill, Autumn Hardee and Dix, Sun staff members, and Member Services Manager Robyn Gentile. WHAT’S BEING DONE Giving readers the good runaround USE PROPER SPACING: If the space you’re using The use of runarounds in text offers designers the for the runaround is too tight, elements almost seem opportunity to make a visual element an integral to blend together. Use spacing that’s too wide and part of the package. The text and the visual become there’s too much separation. During the past few inseparable—such treatment helps readers underyears, my standard spacing has been four points—but stand that neither is complete without the other. I open the spacing in a package like a feature, where But a poorly-placed runaround can make you apI use more liberal spacing throughout. Don’t cram. pear sloppy. OK, the more pleasant term for it is “unCHECK ABOVE AND BELOW: Proper spacing also professional”—but readers would say “sloppy.” demands that you don’t run type too tight to the top The reason is that the text adjacent to the runand bottom of the wrapped element. Here, too, use around, especially with today’s narrower column proper spacing. widths, tends to space badly. Often, there’s enough BY MAKE THE ELEMENT SMALLER: Time was, we space between words to march an entire Army bat- DESIGN used to use mug shots at 6 picas wide by 9 picas deep. talion through! that was back in the days of hot type and 85 line Following are some thoughts—and tips—on how Ed Henninger But screens. Most of us are now using smaller mugs. For to handle runarounds: the past few years, I’ve been advising clients to size WHATCHAMACALLIT: Part of the fun of this mugs at 4x6 picas. Even at that business is that the lexicon smaller size, they reproduce has never quite been graven well, thanks to improved in stone. Some call these prepress and press work. “runarounds,” others say Runarounds are an imthey’re “notches.” Still others portant part of your design call them “wraparounds” or repertoire. Use them badly “text wraps.” Whatever name and your paper looks sloppy. they go by at your place, Use them correctly and your they’re formed by placing an paper looks—and becomes— element in the side of the text, more professional. wrapping the type around the element. FOR A LIST of tips on how PLACEMENT: Do we place to adjust the type adjacent the element to the left or right to a runaround, visit Ed edge of the column of text? Henninger’s web site at www. The answer is: “Yep.” If it henningerconsulting.com makes more sense to place the map on the left side, do so. But if the person in a mug shot and leave a request with an e-mail address. We’ll send the list is looking to the left of your page, you may want to place out to you right away. that mug toward the right side of the copy. CHECK AND FIX: Let’s just repeat that, for emphasis. ED HENNINGER is an independent newspaper consultant Check and fix. Check and fix. Check and fix. Once you’ve and the director of Henninger Consulting, offering comprehenplaced the element in the runaround, check the type adjacent sive newspaper design services including redesigns, workto it. (See: FOR A LIST…below). If you fail to adjust the type shops, staff training and evaluations. One can contact him at edh@henningerconsulting.com; On the Web, henningerconsultas needed, you will look sloppy. LOCK NAMELINE: If your visual element is a mug shot, ing.com; or (803) 327-3322. make sure the nameline is locked to the baseline, like the text in the story. Not locking text to the baseline? You should. Parade Magazine and Kodak recently joined forces with the Citizen Tribune, Morristown, and College Square Mall to present the Parade-Kodak National Photo Contest exhibit titled “Love.” It featured photos submitted by everyday people doing what they love, with people and objects they love, from a couple that had just gotten married to a mother opossum carrying a back full of babies.Visitors were admitted free to the 12-day event. John Dennan has been named vice president of operations at The Commercial Appeal, Memphis. He oversees circulation, human resources and operations. Dennan “Memphis is an exciting place to be right now because new editions of our newspaper have been launched to give readers more local news and local advertising,” Dennan said. He said his new position is a chance to apply the knowledge and experience gained previously to “contribute to the success” of the newspaper. Dennan comes to The Commercial Appeal from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, where he oversaw completion of a $17 million facility expansion and makeover of a 35-year-old printing plant, among other accomplishments. Before working in St. Louis, Dennan was vice president of production for the San Francisco Chronicle and vice president of production for the Philadelphia Inquirer. He began his newspaper career in Fort Worth. A rock “Despite the evident frailties of mainstream journalism, even those who operate around its margins— bloggers, op-ed writers, even some of the more opinionated sectors of cable—are still completely dependent on it and still believe they’re getting some truth there.” Todd Gitlin, professor, Columbia University IMAGESETTER FOR SALE ECRM VRL36 with precision rollers for excellent color registration. Can handle film widths from 12 to 14 inches. Perfect condition. Includes Harlequin RIP Version 5.5, revision 1a (handles Level III postscript and PDF files accurately). Will image a broadsheet page in approx. 3 minutes. We will deliver and set up machine within 200 miles without charge. Will negotiate on further distances. Includes imagesetter, RIP, G4 Macintosh to host RIP with dongle, 17-inch monitor, two film input and two take-up cassettes. Entire setup only $5,000 (less than the price of a RIP program alone). We can include a Glunz & Jensen Devotec 15 film processor, also in excellent condition, for additional $2000. Todd County Standard, Elkton, KY. Toll free phone 1-877-220-9446, ask for Mike or Michael. CMYK 6 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 7 50 years of ownership TRACKS Tom and Ellin Gentry found a newspaper, and a home, in 1956 CMYK BY STEVE MARION Staff writer The Standard Banner, Jefferson City Back in 1962, people in downtown Jefferson City were surprised one day to see the press coming up Main Street. We’re not talking about Tom Gentry, publisher and editor of the local newspaper, though he was present. We’re talking about the press, a four-page hand-fed Cranston, weighing in at well over a thousand pounds. Police blocked off the street as Gentry, his entire staff of three, and helpers rolled the iron monster up the street on heavy metal rollers. The Cranston emerged from the newspaper’s rented office on Main Street, made a left turn, and inched its way west to Gentry’s new building on the Andrew Johnson Highway. Who says journalism wasn’t mobile in those days? “I don’t think we caused any problems for traffic,” Gentry quipped. “There weren’t many cars on the street.” The Standard Banner’s press doesn’t hold Main Street parades any more. It stays in its den, where it has grown to a size that makes the old Cranston look like a pup. The way the press comes to life with clock-like regularity hasn’t changed, though. This week, Tom Gentry’s press marks 50 years of publishing. Fifty years of ink and paper. Five decades of deadlines, headlines, bylines. For 50 years somehow ink has poured out of barrels and turned into people’s lives, their births and deaths, milestones, successes and disappointments, achievements, dreams, crimes. Through it all, Gentry’s paper, he is proud to say, has “never missed the mail.” Not once on a publication day have mail trucks left Jefferson City without their stacks of newspapers, though more than once the ink has barely been dry. “I think we’ve chased down the mail trucks before they could pull out of the parking lot a few times,” Gentry’s son Dale, who is managing editor, said during a celebration Saturday evening. “But we’ve never let them get away without the paper.” Tom Gentry’s pride in never missing the deadline that counts most tells you something about him. He doesn’t easily lose sight of a goal, no matter how much turmoil the moment might contain, and he doesn’t mind working as hard as it takes to get there. “I don’t think I’ve seen anybody work harder than Tom,” said Paul Young, who has been with the paper 44 years. “In the early days we put out three papers, and I’ve seen Tom stay up all night doing one of them, go home and shower, come back and pull an all-nighter putting out the next one.” Gentry’s wife of 56 years, Ellin, says Tom Gentry at his trusty typewriter he inherited his mother’s even temperament. His work ethic may have come from his father, a teacher who later was elected superintendent of schools in Putnam County. Gentry remembers riding a horse-drawn buggy with his dad as they visited the schools scattered around the county—and it was his father who started the family into the newspaper business in 1923 with his purchase of the Putnam County Herald. “I always liked newspapers and newspaper work,” Gentry recalled. “I watched my dad and saw how he handled things—how he developed a reputation as a good editor and publisher. I saw how you could do some good for a community that way.” In February 1956, Tom and Ellin Gentry came to Jefferson City and bought the Jefferson City Standard and Grainger County News from Judge George Shepherd. “We were looking for something we could afford,” Gentry recalled, “and we were looking for a place where we wanted to live.” The paper had a good Linotype operator and a couple of pressmen. Gentry did the rest. He gathered news, took photographs, sold advertising, kept the books and ran the commercial printing side of the business. “I could see after about six months that it was going to work out,” he said. “I really appreciated the reception I got from the business people.” As he began to expand, he hired Cal THE STANDARD BANNER Taylor, who would stay 25 years until her retirement, to run the office. Mrs. Taylor’s crisp way of answering the phone, “Standard Office!”, became known all over town. The move to the newspaper’s current office on Old Andrew Johnson Highway from its old rented quarters on Main Street in 1962 was a sign the paper was going to have staying power. Then, in 1965, Gentry made another bold move. He consolidated the Banner and Standard to make The Jefferson County Standard Banner. Dr. Else Muncy, author of a history of the county, later placed Gentry’s arrival in town, and his decision to consolidate the papers, on a short list of the best things that happened to the community in the second half of the 20th century. People here were beginning to see themselves as Jefferson Countians, where previously they had identified most strongly with the county’s towns and small communities. There’s an adage that says newspaper works runs in families because it takes everybody in the family to get the work done. Ellin Gentry recalls that she often ran errands, to pick up news and advertising copy and take photos, when her husband’s schedule was overwhelmed—but she also ended up running the operation one week in the fall of 1962. Tom, a World War II Navy vet, had joined a group of journalists on a trip to observe military operations in Cuba—and it happened to occur at the same time as the Cuban Missile Crisis. For a while, Ellin had no way of contacting her husband, and there was that record of never missing the mail to consider. “It was hectic,” she recalled. “I helped as much as I could, and we had a good staff to get us through it.” The week became more exciting than she would have liked when Young’s hand was injured by a piece of machinery as they worked to get the paper out. “She had to take me to the hospital,” Young recalled. “It was a pretty interesting week—maybe more interesting than she wanted it to be. But we got the papers out.” True to form, Tom sent in a story about his experiences to help things come together. Back home, he continued his hectic schedule. Soon, the local sheriff trusted him enough to take him along on some of his moonshine raids. “They would bring the stills back and display them on the lawn in front of the jail,” Gentry recalled. “I remember one time I went on a raid and a guy had barricaded himself in a house. There was even some shooting. I had to take cover behind a car.” The changes that had begun with the press parade on Main Street continued. In the early ’60s, the paper made the switch from letterpress to offset. It was the first of many technological advances that have changed almost everything about the way a newspaper comes together. “One of the things I appreciate about Tom is that he has always made sure the newspaper had good equipment,” said Young. Most recently, The Standard Banner added a new 12-ton “quad stack” printing unit to its state-of-the-art press, which now has more color capability than ever before. Photography, meanwhile, has gone from the days of flashbulbs and negatives to today’s color digital process. Gentry was pleased that his son Dale, whose first job was to keep the papers aligned as they came off the old press, decided to come home to the family business after majoring in journalism at the University of Tennessee. Dale has developed The Standard Banner into a paper that wins state prizes every year for its content and design. “We didn’t push him toward it, but I could tell he was interested from the start,” Tom said. “Dale has been a great asset to the paper.” At a dinner Saturday night, staff members at the newspaper presented Tom and Ellin a framed plaque showing the paper’s flag in 1956 and the current one. It also features now and then photos of the publisher, as well as 1956 and 2006 silver coins. The staff traded stories and thanked Gentry for believing in them and the business. “Tom has given life to it,” Ellin said of the newspaper. “I think he and Dale have made a big change in what the newspaper contributes to the community.” “I think the local newspaper will continue to have a place,” Tom said. “We print the local news, and after all, that is news nobody else has.” (Feb. 9, 2006) ELENORA E. EDWARDS | TPS HELEN COMER | THE JACKSON SUN (Left photo) Carol Dix shows Page One of the issue of The Tennessee Press that announced that The Jackson Sun had won the Be Kind to Editors Contest sponsored by the newspaper. The newspaper held a special thank-you event for all its editors. (Right) Two TPA staff members visited the newspaper April 5 to treat the staff. From left are Executive Director Greg Sherrill, Autumn Hardee and Dix, Sun staff members, and Member Services Manager Robyn Gentile. WHAT’S BEING DONE Giving readers the good runaround It featured photos submitted by everyday people doing what they love, with people and objects they love, from a couple that had just gotten married to a mother opossum carrying a back full of babies.Visitors were admitted free to the 12-day event. BY DESIGN Ed Henninger Permission has not been granted for this column to be included in the online version of The Tennessee Press. THE STANDARD BANNER Tom Gentry and his son, Dale, to his left, and grandchildren Ann Gowan and David Gentry. Parade Magazine and Kodak recently joined forces with the Citizen Tribune, Morristown, and College Square Mall to present the Parade-Kodak National Photo Contest exhibit titled “Love.” John Dennan has been named vice president of operations at The Commercial Appeal, Memphis. He oversees circulation, human resources and operations. Dennan “Memphis is an exciting place to be right now because new editions of our newspaper have been launched to give readers more local news and local advertising,” Dennan said. He said his new position is a chance to apply the knowledge and experience gained previously to “contribute to the success” of the newspaper. Dennan comes to The Commercial Appeal from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, where he oversaw completion of a $17 million facility expansion and makeover of a 35-year-old printing plant, among other accomplishments. Before working in St. Louis, Dennan was vice president of production for the San Francisco Chronicle and vice president of production for the Philadelphia Inquirer. He began his newspaper career in Fort Worth. A rock “Despite the evident frailties of mainstream journalism, even those who operate around its margins— bloggers, op-ed writers, even some of the more opinionated sectors of cable—are still completely dependent on it and still believe they’re getting some truth there.” Todd Gitlin, professor, Columbia University IMAGESETTER FOR SALE ECRM VRL36 with precision rollers for excellent color registration. Can handle film widths from 12 to 14 inches. Perfect condition. Includes Harlequin RIP Version 5.5, revision 1a (handles Level III postscript and PDF files accurately). Will image a broadsheet page in approx. 3 minutes. We will deliver and set up machine within 200 miles without charge. Will negotiate on further distances. Includes imagesetter, RIP, G4 Macintosh to host RIP with dongle, 17-inch monitor, two film input and two take-up cassettes. Entire setup only $5,000 (less than the price of a RIP program alone). We can include a Glunz & Jensen Devotec 15 film processor, also in excellent condition, for additional $2000. Todd County Standard, Elkton, KY. Toll free phone 1-877-220-9446, ask for Mike or Michael. CMYK 6 MAY 2006 CMYK NIE/literacy conference successful The Southern Newspaper Publishers Association Newspaper in Education (NIE)/Literacy Conference in March was well-attended and successful. SNPA partnered with Texas Newspapers In Education to serve as host for the conference, held in Dallas, Texas. Evaluations from NIE coordinators have indicated that it was one of the best SNPA NIE/Literacy conferences. Hunter George, executive editor of The Birmingham News, served as chairman for the conference. George’s wit and humor kept everyone entertained. However, Edward VanHorn, SNPA executive director, and George succeeded in keeping the conference right on schedule! Eighty-three people participated. The planning committee strived to offer something valuable for any size newspaper that was represented. Sessions were offered for newspapers that were beginning NIE programs, advanced sessions for veteran NIE coordinators, how to secure sponsor sessions, a session on teaching about the U.S. Constitution with newspapers in the classroom, an informative session for those with an ABC-audited program, a “make and take” teacher workshop, and a session for coordinators to share their individual ideas. Tennessee had four in attendance: Ralph Baldwin, publisher of The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens, and a vice president with Jones Media; Lu Shep Baldwin, Jones Media NIE coordinator; Laura Dougherty, advertising manager/NIE coordinator with The Paris Post-Intelligencer; and Jolynna Wilson, education coordinator with The Commercial Appeal, Memphis. Those attending the Awards Banquet had the opportunity to hear speaker Michael Malone, an author from Raleigh, N.C. Tennessee received several awards, as follows: Best editorial (no circulation breakout) First place: Cleveland Daily Banner NIE CURRENTS Plans for next year’s conference are already being discussed. You may want to consider budgeting for this conference. It is a wonderful opportunity to gain new knowledge in order to boost your NIE program. Other NIE news: SNPA will offer an NIE session with the Traveling Campus scheduled the last day of the Tennessee Press Lu Shep Baldwin Best original in-paper content (over 150,000 circulation) First place: The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, “I Promised I Would Tell” Best revenue-development idea (25,000 circulation and under) First place: The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens, “NIE Sponsor Appreciation Luncheon” Best teacher training (25,000-75,000 circulation) Second place: Kingsport Times News, “NIE Teacher Workshop” Best NIE or literacy promotion (25,000 circulation and under) First place: The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens, “NIE Teacher and Sponsor Promotions” NIE Workshop Friday, June 16 Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn in conjunction with the TPA Summer Convention ROBIE SCOTT Educational Services Manager The Post and Courier Charleston, S.C. NIE Growing With Integrity This session will focus on the elements that are necessary to create and sustain a viable and productive NIE program. We will define the basics with a focus on long range goals that do not have to be recreated each year. Details will be provided for teacher training, NIE leadership selection, securing sponsors, obtaining NIE orders in mass, curriculum options, choosing vendor products that work and program evaluation and assessments. Why NIE? This session will begin with an overview of NIE research and analysis and continue with a discussion on how to sustain readers ages 7 -17 while developing them as loyal future readers. Some background NIE basics will be overviewed, including teacher training and NIE promotion, sponsorship opportunities and assessments. Convention details at www.tnpress.com Best NIE/literacy idea (25,000 circulation and under) Third place: Cleveland Daily Banner, “Character Education” Best NIE/literacy idea (25,000 circulation and under) Honorable mention: The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens, “Grandparents Day” TRACKS Association’s Summer Convention in June in Chattanooga. Robie Scott, education services manager with The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C., will conduct the session. Robie is a veteran in Newspaper in Education. She will speak to publishers about the impact of NIE in the classroom, based on research. Then she will conduct a session on the importance of NIE teacher training for NIE coordinators or other interested TPA members. NAA will have its annual YEA/NIE Conference in July in St. Louis, Mo. For more information about the SNPA conference, the TPA Summer Convention or the NAA conference in St. Louis, contact your press association or Lu Shep Baldwin at lbaldwin@xtn.net. LU SHEP BALDWIN is NIE coordinator for Jones Media, Greeneville. She is based in Athens. Thomas Fraser, assistant city editor and municipal and environmental reporter for The Daily Times, Maryville, has accepted a job with The Daily Journal in southern New Jersey. He is assistant metro editor and will do investigative work. | Marla Williams has joined the Nashville Business Journal as senior account executive. Earlier she worked there five years. | The Lebanon Democrat has named Heather M. Nicholson as circulation and marketing manager. She also will organize special events and promotions for the Democrat and its sister publications, The Hartsville Vidette and the Mt. Juliet News. | Edward Farrell has joined the Chester County Independent, Henderson, as a staff writer. He recently worked on The Collierville Herald. Promising way to boost advertising The lady on the plane was telling me about her new hiking boots. “I shopped around,” she said. “But I decided to buy from L.L. Bean, because of the guarantee.” Guarantees and warranties can be powerful marketing tools. Simply put, a guarantee is a promise to replace an unsatisfactory product or refund the purchase price, while a warranty generally offers to replace defective parts. L.L. Bean’s famous promise states, “Our products are guaranteed to give 100% satisfaction in every way. Return anything purchased from us at any time if it proves otherwise. We do not want you to have anything from L.L. Bean that is not completely John satisfactory.” Every word is true. You may have heard stories of customers who returned products for refunds—many years after they were purchased, and many years after the receipts were lost. There’s no reason to limit quality-promises to national marketers. With a little creative thinking, you can help local advertisers develop similar strategies to set themselves apart from their competitors. Here are some points to keep in mind: 1. Offer value. Don’t make a half-hearted promise. Be bold. Let the promise be an expression of the advertiser’s confidence. DeWalt Service Centers promise “the price of a repair will not exceed the published price. You may pay less, but never more.” This well-known tool company’s guarantee sounds even better, when they add that they repair “most major brands of power tools.” How about that for a statement of quality? They are so knowledgeable that they are qualified to repair other brands, as well as their own. 2. Be specific. Don’t rely on incomplete promises like “we guarantee our work.” I remember seeing a sign in the post office that read, “Service in five minutes or less.” What would have happened if a customer had stepped up to the counter Hand and glove “Freedom of speech and freedom of action are meaningless without freedom to think.” Bergen Evans Author, 1946 and said, “I’ve been standing in line for 15 minutes. What do I get?” They would have gotten exactly what the sign promised: nothing. The sign implied–but did not state–a specific guarantee. It was nothing more than an empty slogan on the wall. Specificity sells. Can you promise product reliability? (Most local merchants carry national brands which offer guarantees and warranties. But how many mention this in their advertising?) Can you guarantee service? (Here’s a way for the mom and pops to beat the big box stores.) Foust Can you guarantee results? (Think of those ads that used to say, “Lose 20 pounds in 30 days, or your money back.”) 3. Set a time limit. An ad for Oreck vacuum cleaners outlines a “full 10-year guarantee against breakage or burnout of the housing plus a 3-year warranty on the motor.” Evidently, this is a unique promise, because the next line of copy states that the guarantee was “not six months or one year like other brands.” How long will your promise be good? 30 days? 90 days? A year? A lifetime? The right promise can make a big difference for an advertiser. ©Copyright 2006 by John Foust. All rights reserved. JOHN FOUST conducts on-site and video training for newspaper advertising departments. His three new video programs are designed to help ad managers conduct in-house training for their sales teams. For information, contact John Foust, P.O. Box 97606, Raleigh, N.C. 27624; jfoust@mindspring.com; or (919) 848-2401. The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 5 Sunshine bill going to House-Senate study committee The Sunshine in Government Improvement Act of 2006 is on its way to a “special” House and Senate study committee that will include press and citizen groups as well as representatives of city, county and state government. That’s not a bad thing because it gives us a better opportunity to make real improvements in the open government laws than we were able to do in the normal legislative process. It shows, however, that TPA and allied groups have more work to do on top of the good work already done by newspapers this year. We will not be starting from scratch. Dozens of papers have made the public more aware of the problems, and the legislation we proposed to correct them, through news stories and editorials. The TPA clipping service sent me as many as 10-15 clips on some days in February and March. To their credit, some papers brought readers and public officials into the stories. That discussion needs to continue in coming months. At press time, the General Assembly was expected to create a 19-member study panel and acknowledge by resolution problems with Tennessee’s open government laws. The resolution would instruct the panel to report its “initial” findings and recommendations by Dec. 1 and final report by Feb. 1, 2007.. The committee includes one representative each from TPA, the broadcasters’ association, the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government, Common Cause; League of Women Voters, SPJ, two members each from the House and Senate, two appointed by the governor; one designated by the attorney general, two each from TML and Tennessee County Services, one school board member and a public utility board member. TML and TCSA must name one elected official each. MTAS and CTAS were taken out at insistence of TML and CTAS. The study resolution places the discussion where it belongs—in the context of ethics in government. MTAS and CTAS have been tasked by the legislature to produce model ethics standards for local government. The issue will be taken up during the 2007 session. “...Tennessee’s open government laws were adopted to bring transparency and public confidence in government and to ensure public participation in the government process,” the draft resolution states. “… It is the intent of the General Assembly protect the public’s right to know. that all Tennesseans have the utmost In coming months we all need to conrespect and trust in the operation of centrate on this issue. Here’s how. government and the enforcement of 1. Assess openness of government laws enacted for their benefit.” at your local level. You might not have What’s next? any problems, but you could ask your It is an election year so it is essential local officials for suggestions they over the next few months that we might support for places that do. Redevote some extra attention to the member we found alleged violations subject. Transparency means more of the open meetings law in 10 percent disclosure and openness to make it TENNESSEE of the towns and cities and almost a easier for everyone to know what goes third of the counties. The resolution on inside government. COALITION also notes a significant rise in the Lest we forget, two county commisnumber of alleged violations. sioners, a school board member and FOR OPEN an aide to a county mayor were among GOVERNMENT 2. Discuss the situation—in print or as civic-minded residents—in the those indicted in the Tennessee Waltz context of government ethics reform, sting operation. The Chattanooga Frank Gibson disclosure and openness. Times Free Press discovAsk every candidate for ered through a public office—local and state ofrecords request that an fice—where they stand on indicted Hamilton County Gibson is executive director of the Tenopen government. That school board member used nessee Coalition for Open Government. can be a softball question, his public e-mail account to One can contact him at fgibson@tcog.info; so you’ll need to be specific. lobby on behalf of the fake (615) 202-2685; or TCOG, P. O. Box 22248, Ask whether they will supFBI enterprise. Records in Nashville, Tenn. 37202. For more information Nashville showed he had on Tennessee’s government access laws and port reasonable improvement to the open meetings not registered to represent a list of Sunshine Law problems reported in Tennessee newspapers over the past three and public records laws the company. that come out of this study It is in the best interest years, go to www.tcog.info. committee. Keep in mind of your readers to know that Tennessee is among who is trying to influence officials in your area and how they go about it. only 12 states with no prescribed penalty for No one suggests that corruption exists in city sunshine and records violations. Public officials and county government to the level alleged in the can be recalled or removed from a board if found Waltz scandal, but the lack of transparency makes guilty of sunshine violations in three states. In another, it is treated as an ethics infraction. it harder to find potential problems. It’s your call about what to do with the informaIn the wake of the Waltz sting and the black eye it gave the state, the legislature and Gov. Phil tion you gather. You can survey and report their Bredesen launched concurrent reviews of reforms responses in your publications or hang onto it needed to restore public confidence in government. for later, but send it along to us when you can. The governor’s ethics advisory panel left it to the It’s important that you get them on the record and General Assembly and the governor himself to solicit their support. For those among us who are timid about writing address questions of open government. The governor has responded by supporting an advisory on this subject, remember whose government it is and who ultimately benefits from transparency ombudsman on public access. Lawmakers have given local governments until in government. Don’t worry whether the public the next legislative session to apply controls on sees it as self-serving. It’s about assuming civic responsibility. local conduct or risk having it done by them. Sunshine Improvement Act Since public accountability is the goal, it’s paraSince late December, newspapers across the mount that we have workable open meetings and records laws and efficient procedures in place to state have called for enactment of the Sunshine in Government Improvement Act. At the same time, county commissions mounted a campaign to call their state representatives and senators. Some lawmakers were getting four or five calls a day from angry county officials, who, according to one lawmaker, engaged in “hypothetical hysteria.” They cited different scenarios in which they would be hanged for going fishing or attending church with other commissioners and without ever getting a court hearing. Not true, but it was convincing. Some county commissions applied pressure by passing resolutions calling on their representatives to oppose the legislation. It made no difference that compromises had already been made to accommodate some of their concerns. One committee of commissioners was informed about compromises we had made already but still recommended that the full commission oppose the legislation “as it was originally filed.” We had difficulty passing the bill because many county officials misunderstood its intent and ignored the legislative process in which differences are ironed out. Some opposition was based on misinformation from their representatives on Capitol Hill. The Tennessee Municipal League, which represents more than 300 towns and cities, remained open-minded and willing to suggest changes to improve the proposal. They invited us to appear before their members to explain the proposal. We were willing to make changes TML sought, but none of the county commission resolutions reflected those efforts. We anticipated opposition to the proposal, as filed. We knew there would need to be some tweaking and compromise. We didn’t anticipate a major association of elected officials would refuse to discuss it flat out. That leaves us in the position of having to start the discussion in a different forum, away from the heat of a legislative session. FRANK GIBSON is coordinator of theTPA Freedom of Information Committee and executive director of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government. He can be reached at fgibson@tcog.info or (615) 202-2685. For more information online, go to www.tcog.info. Jones, The Washington Post, becomes president of Newspaper Association of America Boisfeuillet (Bo) Jones Jr., publisher and chief executive officer of The Washington Post, has been elected to serve as the Newspaper Association of America’s next chairman. The gavel was passed to Jones from last year’s chairman Jay R. Smith, president of Cox Newspapers Inc. in Atlanta, during the Association’s Annual Convention April 2-4 at the Fairmont Hotel in Chicago. Smith will continue to serve on the NAA Board of Directors as immediate past chairman. Jones was appointed publisher and chief executive officer of The Washington Post in 2000. He joined the Post in 1980 as vice president and general counsel. Jones also has served as president and general manager, and associate publisher. In addition to serving as 2006-07 NAA chairman, Jones is a director of the Associated Press, the Eugene & Agnes Meyer Foundation, the Federal City Council, the Cooperative Assistance Fund, and several Post affiliates. He also is a member of the University of Maryland School of Journalism Board of Visitors. Other officers elected were Vice Chairwoman Susan Clark-Johnson, president of the Newspaper Division of Gannett Co. in McLean, Va.; Secretary Gary B. Pruitt, chairman, president and chief executive officer of The McClatchy Co. in Sacramento; and Treasurer George B. Irish, president of Hearst Newspapers, a subsidiary of The Hearst Corp. in New York City. Elected to two-year terms on the NAA Board of Directors were Donna Barrett, president and chief executive officer, Community Newspaper Holdings Inc., Birmingham, Ala.; Scott Flanders, president and chief executive officer, Freedom Communications Inc., Irvine, Calif.; Harold W. Fuson Jr., senior vice president and chief legal officer, The Copley Press Inc., La Jolla, Calif.; Marshall N. Morton, president and chief executive officer, Media General Inc., Richmond, Va.; Charles Peters, president and chief executive officer, The Gazette, Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Steven J. Smith, chairman and chief executive officer, Journal Communications Inc., Milwaukee; and Virgil L. Smith, president and publisher, Asheville (N.C.) Citizen-Times. Directors re-elected to two-year terms were Jean B. Clifton, president and chief operating officer, Journal Register Co., Trenton, N.J.; Joseph J. Lodovic IV, president, MediaNews Group Inc., Denver; David R. Lord, president, Pioneer Newspapers Inc., Seattle; James M. Moroney III, publisher and chief executive officer, The Dallas Morning News; James A. Moss, chairman, Times Herald-Record, Middletown, N.Y.; Scott C. Schurz, president, Hoosier Times Inc., Bloomington, Ind.; and Gary K. Shorts, president and chief executive officer, Calkins Media, Levittown, Pa. Directors continuing their terms are: R. Bruce Bradley, president/publishing group, Landmark Communications Inc., Norfolk, Va.; Mark G. Contreras, vice president/newspaper operations, The E.W. Scripps Co., Cincinnati; W. Stacey Cowles, president and publisher, The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash.; James C. Currow, executive vice president/newspapers, Morris Communications Co. LLC, Augusta, Ga.; Walter E. Hussman Jr., publisher, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Little Rock; Mark W. Newhouse, vice president/general manager, The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J.; Robert M. Nutting, president and chief executive officer, The Nutting Company, Inc., Wheeling, W.Va.; David M. Paxton, president/chief executive officer, Paxton Media Group LLC, Paducah, Ky.; Charles V. Pittman, senior vice president/newspapers, Schurz Communications Inc., South Bend, Ind.; Michael E. Reed, president and chief executive officer, Liberty Group Publishing Inc., Downers Grove, Ill.; Janet L. Robinson, president and chief executive officer, The New York Times Co.; Hilary A. Schneider, senior vice president, Knight Ridder, San Jose, Calif.; Scott C. Smith, president, Tribune Publishing Co., Chicago, Ill.; Paul Tash, editor, chief executive officer and chairman, St. Petersburg Times; and Kathleen M. Waltz, president, chief executive officer and publisher, The Orlando Sentinel. CMYK The Tennessee Press 8 MAY 2006 Lots of Volunteers in Vol State CMYK After reading about the deadly tornados across TenBut the one university-related story that gets into nessee and the Southeast, more roadside bombings in the paper the next day is the negative situation Iraq, unethical politicians, higher gas prices, global involving that one student. warming, bird flu and another black church burning How can you avoid such complaints from your in the South, I was getting rather depressed from valuable readers? You do have to cover the news. reading the national news in several newspapers in But can you uncover positive stories that don’t April. But their local sections were no better. Fires, make the police blotter? wrecks, sexual assaults, political bickering and robWhat about those tireless public school teachberies filled those pages. Are Tennessee readers as ers and the many service projects and learning sick as I am about all the bad news? PRESSING activities that take place on a regular basis? How Apparently they are, according to a survey buried about the college fraternities and sororities—too in my files from a few months ago. Conducted by ISSUES often the targets of negative news—that devote The Segmentation Co., a division of Yankelovich, thousands of volunteer hours for breast cancer the national poll of 1,004 adults revealed that a Randy Hines research and Ronald McDonald houses, along with whopping 94 percent want to hear more good news. other nonprofit causes, every year? And 77 percent said the media do not provide them Despite their yearlong dedication to the unforenough coverage of good news. tunate, churches usually can’t escape from the religion Did you notice those percentages, editors? More than nine section unless a clergy member is facing charges such as out of 10 readers want you to provide them more good news embezzlement. How about the many businesses in your town and almost eight out of 10 said you do not provide them that adopt a highway and their employees actually go out to enough good news. Maybe you could take this column into clean up the litter on a regular basis? your next staff meeting when you start dishing out story Positive article possibilities are all around your circulation assignments. area. All you need to do is dig a little deeper, ask different It seems the depressing news articles mentioned in the lead questions from sources, and visit sites beyond your usual paragraphs have an effect on their Tennessee readers. About beat. And maybe the police blotter fluff can fit on your agate half the survey participants admit that learning about bad page, rather than becoming a Page One story. news makes their day worse. More than three-fourths said Ironically, the study was funded by Bayer Health Care, that the bad news creates feeling of anxiousness. which probably profits from the bad vibes people feel after “Simply put, good news can uplift the spirits, while bad news getting their daily doses of negativism from reading many can, at times, directly impact our emotions and our outlook Tennessee daily and nondaily newspapers. on the world around us in a negative way,” said David Bersoff, senior vice president of Monitor, a Yankelovich division. DR. RANDY HINES, former Tennessee educator, teaches in the Complaints often originate when a reporter writes a piece, Department of Communications at Susquehanna University. His for example, about a University of Tennessee student picked address is 514 University Ave., Selinsgrove, Pa. 17870. He can be up for drunken driving on I-40. Perhaps the other 25,978 UTK reached at (570) 372-4079 or randyhinesapr@yahoo.com. students were not arrested and charged with any offense. Commercial Appeal takes six awards in region contest BY SHERRI DRAKE The Commercial Appeal, Memphis The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, was honored in six categories in this year’s Green Eyeshade Excellence in Journalism Awards, open to working journalists in the South. “We had six journalists and teams honored this year for their work. That’s the most wins we’ve had in the last three years,” said Chris Peck, editor of The Commercial Appeal. “I think it speaks well of the quality and dedication of our staff, and I’m happy to see their good work recognized.” The contest recognizes outstanding journalists in print, radio and television across an 11-state region encompassing Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia. Columnist Geoff Calkins won first place in sports commentary for various columns. Former Commercial Appeal Reporter Aimee Edmondson, Photographer Karen Pulfer Focht and former Memphis Zone Editor Mickie Anderson won first place in investigative reporting for the infant mortality series “Born to Die.” “Karen Focht’s photography about the overwhelming number of infant deaths in Memphis truly is one of the finest pieces of documentary photography ever done at this newspaper,’’ Peck said. “I’m very proud of our infant mortality project and the journalists who worked on it,’’ he said. “This was an important story that showed the tragedy of Memphis having the highest infant mortality rate of any of the 60 largest cities in the country. Much good has come of this work, including Shelby County Mayor A. C. Wharton’s ‘1 For All’ initiative designed to get every baby born in Memphis to a healthy 1 year of age. For us, this kind of work and good result is what makes journalism worth the effort.’’ John Beifuss won second place in criticism for “Hustle & Flow,” Blake Fontenay won second place in editorial writing, former Commercial Appeal Columnist Wendi C. Thomas placed third in humorous commentary for various columns, and Dennis Copeland, director of new media, placed third in general news reporting for “68 Seconds.” Focht’s “Born to Die” work also won in the photography feature story category in the Society of Professional Journalists National Journalism Awards. Watch for the gold! Republic Newspapers, Knoxville, sells its last Florida property BY CARLY HARRINGTON News Sentinel, Knoxville Knoxville-based Republic Newspapers Inc. has sold the last of its Florida papers, The Sanford Herald, to an Oklahoma company. Family Media Inc. acquired the twiceweekly paper in Sanford Fla., effective March 31. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. “We’ve been gradually getting out of Florida for several years. The Sanford Herald was the last one,” said Nick Drewry, president of Republic Newspapers, which owns the Farragut Press, the Courier News in Clinton and three weeklies near Charlotte, N.C. At one time, the small nondaily newspaper company, founded in 1988, owned about a dozen community papers in four states that reached as far south as Florida and as far north as Kentucky. Drewry said the company, whose offices are at 11863 Kingston Pike, has been turning its attention to opportunities closer to home, including the possible purchase of other nondailies in Tennessee and North Carolina. Republic Newspapers also owns and operates Tucker Publishing, which produces outlet mall shopping guides that include one in Pigeon Forge. Others are in Florida, north Georgia, Las Vegas and several New England states. Republic Newspapers is solely owned and was founded by real estate deveoper Doug Horne. PROFILE bought The Print Shop in Waverly. And, on Jan. 1, 2006, started a free newspaper, The Hollow Rock-Bruceton News. Dennis Richardson Is president of Associated Publishers, a co-op owned web printing plant located in Huntingdon. “Lisa and I are the sole owners of Magic Valley Publishing Co., which is the name of the corporation. In 2004 I joined W. B. Grimes & Co. as director of the south and southwest covering Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana.” TPA director, District 8 Publisher, Carroll County News-Leader Huntingdon Personal: Grew up in the Whites Creek area of Davidson County. Father was a sharecropper and died at 42. Attended UT Martin, UT Knoxville and graduated from UTM with a B.S. degree in communications.”I had to finish my education at Martin because I couldn’t pass the typing test at Knoxville. But that ended up being for the best, since I met Lisa at UTM. We married in July 1975.” Four children, Mark, who has two children; Matthew; Gerilyn, a sophomore at UT Knoxville; Daniel, a senior at Camden High. Job experience: “I started on Linotype machines at a typesetting company in Nashville.” Later became sports editor of The Paris Post-Intelligencer, then editor of The Weakley County Press, Martin, then on the copy desk at The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville. Bought the Carroll County News in 1983. In 1992 bought The Tennessee Republican and combined the two with a new name, Carroll County News-Leader. In 1994 bought The Camden Chronicle and in 2002, The Fulton (Ky,) Leader. In 2004 Favorite part of job: “I really like making things work and exchanging ideas with fellow publishers.” Least favorite part of job: “The little things that I am grateful that I have quality people to take care of for me.” Your management philosophy: “I like to delegate to good people the various departmental duties.” Tell about your mentor, if you’ve had one. “I worked under Randal Benderman in Martin and still call him up to bounce ideas off him.” Most important issue facing newspapers: “The extinction of the mom and pop stores that are falling off as Wal-Mart expands its superstores.” Recreation you enjoy: “Traveling and, really, my job is my hobby. I just love coming to work each day, whether it is from First place winners in the 2006 UT-TPA State Press Contests will be notified by mail in a gold envelope. Letters to all winners will be mailed by May 15. The 2006 Awards Luncheon will be held July 21 in Nashville. the newspaper office or my home office, or on the road. But any time there is something involving our children, we do that. Daniel plays football at Camden High School. I am a former president of the Minor League football team for ages 6-12. Daniel and I coached a team last year and plan to do so again this year.” Music you like: country Reading: Editor and Publisher Movies: American Grafitti, westerns, The Blues Brothers, James Bond Television: Same. Collegiate football and basketball, game shows If you had a day to do anything you wanted to do: “I would piddle around our horse farm.” If you could have quality time with a historical figure, who would it be and why? Nathan Bedford Forrest. He found ways to get it done in many times unconventional ways What you see as the value of TPA. The TPA is valuable to provide advertising contacts, especially for smaller papers with limited resources, and to help provide training, and provide the legal counsel that papers cannot afford like a retainer for a good attorney. The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 9 OBITUARIES Judy Cagle church pastor. Other survivors include two grandchildren. Former general manager Judy Cagle, who began working for the Germantown News in 1993, died Jan. 27 in Proctor, Ark. “Judy was a dedicated and conscientious employee,” said Alex Coulter, publisher of the West Memphis Evening Times, where Cagle began working in 1988. “She was always ready to help do anything necessary to make the product and the business better,” he said. Cagle started her career as a typesetter in the composing room and worked her way to being the supervisor of that department. She later was promoted to production manager at the Evening Times before she transferred to the Germantown News as general manager. She left the newspaper in 2000. Leon Daniel UPI reporter BY JIM CHARLET Brentwood Leon Daniel, 74, longtime UPI reporter and Washington bureau chief, died March 19 in Glen Ellyn, Ill., five days after undergoing an angioplasty procedure. He was a native of Etowah, attended the University of Tennessee in the 1950s, and began his journalism career as a reporter for The Knoxville Journal. Daniel spent 36 years with United Press International, starting in Nashville in 1956, headed UPI’s Knoxville bureau in 1959 before moving to its Atlanta bureau in 1960, where he remained until 1966. From Atlanta, he covered the 1965 Dominican Republic rebellion, and also reported on the South’s civil rights movement before departing to cover the Vietnam War. Intermittent assignments in Afghanistan and Okinawa followed until 1975 when he returned to Vietnam to write eyewitness reports of the fall of Saigon. In the late 1970s, he was in Hong Kong as UPI’s editor for Asia, and later in London as its editor for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In 1977 while vacationing in Knoxville, he learned of the attempted escape of James Earl Ray from Brushy Mountain Prison in Morgan County. He rushed to dictate the UPI bulletin to the Atlanta bureau desk, and remained at the Tennessee prison site for three days to help frame UPI’s account of Ray’s recapture. By 1980, he was in Washington as national reporter, and later managing editor for global news. He was UPI’s chief correspondent by 1990, and in Kuwait directing the news service’s Gulf War coverage. After retirement, he continued to write op-ed pieces, some published in The Chicago Tribune. He lived in Washington until 1997, and in 2005 he and his companion, Judith Paterson, moved to Glen Ellyn where his daughter, Rev. Lillian Daniel, is a Ashley W. Fisher Columnist Ashley William (Bill) Fisher III died of cancer Feb. 3 at his home in Millington. Clara Greever Virginia newspaper manager Clara Grubbs Greever, a Johnson City native and once business manager of The Richlands Press and Tazewell County News Progress in the Clinch Valley region of southwest Virginia, died March 16 after a brief illness. She was the daughter of Frank Grubbs and Clara Bird Lusk of Johnson City, and a graduate of the University of Tennessee, and Science Hill High School in Johnson City. She was a registered dietician and after World War II, entered the newspaper profession with her husband, the late Charles R. Greever Jr., in Tazewell County, Va. She leaves one son, two daughters and two grandsons. Richard A. Kemp Former editor Richard Alexander Kemp, a former editor of The Elk Valley Times, Fayetteville, died Feb. 7. He was 79. He was a resident of Enterprise, Ala. Kemp was a veteran of three wars, having served in Leyte in the Philippines in the final months of World War II; in Korea in 1951; and near Saigon in Vietnam in 1960s. As a combat correspondent for the Pacific Stars and Stripes in Korea, Kemp made his first parachute jump behind enemy lines carrying a portable typewriter and a carbine, getting a world beat on the story. Kemp also covered the replacement of Gen. Douglas MacArthur by Gen. Matthew B. Ridgeway while in Korea. In between wars and after retiring from the Army, Kemp worked as a newspaper reporter and editor at several newspapers. A history buff and member of the Alabama Genealogical Society, Kemp was active after his Army retirement in the Sons of the American Revolution and sons of Confederate Veterans. The Dothan chapter of Sons of Confederate Veterans honored him with a lifetime achievement award named in his honor and to be presented annually to a Sons of Confederate Veterans members residing in southeast Alabama. Kemp also served six years total as president of both the Tri-State and Wiregrass chapters of the Alabama Sons of the American Revolution. Through his efforts and leadership, a monument was erected on grounds of the Ozark-Dale County Library honor- ing the Revolutionary soldiers buried in Dale County. He also was a member of the First Families of Alabama and a member of the Society of the Sons and Daughters of the Pilgrims. Kemp leaves his wife, Barbara Anne Kemp of Fayetteville; a daughter, Jeanne Stratton of St. Petersburg, Fla.; two sons, Michael Kemp of Dunedin, Fla. and Matt Kemp of Fayetteville; and five grandchildren. Peter H. Prince Former editor Peter Hayden Prince, an East Tennessee author, journalist and historian, died April 10 at his home in Knoxville. He was 70. Prince, known to most acquaintances as Pete, had prepared his own obituary and asked that it be completed and sent out upon his death, according to his son, Dan. Prince worked for a number of newspapers, including The Knoxville NewsSentinel, the Clinton Courier-News and the Citizen Tribune, Morristown, between 1950 and 1985. In 1982 he was selected chairman of the Pulitzer Prize nominating jury for news and feature photography. He also served as president of the East Tennessee chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists in 1973, served on the SPJ national board for six years and as a regional director. He wrote in his prepared obituary that he changed careers in 1985 because of a bipolar condition. He wrote that he was determined not “to be defeated by the incurable disease.” Indeed, for Ghost Towns in the Smokies, he collected 61,800 documents and 5,700 century-old photographs. The work chronicled a logging railroad at Clingmans Dome, a steamboat at Twentymile, a man staging his mock funeral at Smokemont and a swinging railroad bridge at Meigs Falls, according to his obituary. An avid hiker, he spent years in North Carolina and Tennessee researching 251 former towns once located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Prince was born on the Cumberland Plateau in Sewanee and went to live in an orphanage at age 11. He and his five siblings were separated for 53 years. He graduated from Peabody College of Vanderbilt in 1958. He hitchhiked to Knoxville to attend the University of Tennessee to take journalism classes. Prince was an avid Rotarian, joining the club in Morristown 1972. Prince is survived by sons, Michael Hayden Prince of Bean Station; Daniel Melhorn Prince of Knoxville; Jonathan Moinette Prince of Morristown; grandchildren, Alexus, Hunter, Nash and Nayland Prince. In memorium A contribution to Tennessee Press Association Foundation In memory of John Burgess by The Courier Savannah TRACKS Ray be nimble, Ray be quick By JIM CHARLET Brentwood This is the story of a man who grew up in Clarksville, Tennessee, and began work for the Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle in September 1958 when it was a familyowned newspaper Charlet and its Page One was dressed with the community’s name in an Old English flag. And he remained there his entire 48-year professional career, until retiring March 25 as national advertising manager. Add the four years he spent as a newspaper route carrier, and he invested 52 years of his life promoting an ink-on-paper news product…quite unusual in today’s world. From the day he was hired by newspaper co-owner Martha C. Charlet and started work in the mailroom at age 17, (Wilbur) Ray Roby was known for his slow, shy smile, which sometimes was punctuated by a high velocity facial blush. His other trademarks were his cow-licked blond hair and an almost “religious dedication” to customer service. Ray Roby was among my Clarksville High School French and English classmates, and we also shared classes at Austin Peay State University. While students in the late 1950s and early 1960s, we worked together in the mailroom as hand inserters of preprints, caught the newspaper folder of the 16-page Duplex Tubular hot metal printing press, and worked the hot metal “dump” in the composing room where we inserted Linotype line corrections in news columns and ads…one line at a time. We were there on Feb. 13, 1962 when The Nashville Record tabloid weekly newspaper rolled off the 24-page Goss Suburban offset press, and the next day when Tennessee’s first daily newspaper was printed by the offset press, named “The Duchess.” And while finishing college, we worked together on the 2to-11 p.m. night shift as ad compositors assembling ads for the 14 weekly newspapers owned by the Leaf-Chronicle Co. After college graduation, I left in 1963 for U.S. Air Force officer training, and Ray remained in college and working at the newspaper. In his 48-year newspaper career, Ray Roby twice survived what Editor John Seigenthaler of The Tennessean terms being “sold in chains,” once to Multimedia Inc. in 1973, and later to Gannett, Inc. in 1995. Not one to relish the games of corporate politics, Ray Roby was known for keeping his head down, keeping his ear attuned to his advertising customers, and keeping his eye on the ball in meeting any newspaper production requirement to help his advertisers. No matter where he worked at the newspaper, Ray Roby was always the “go-2-guy” because of his overwhelming positive attitude. He never walked from task to task, he jumped and ran. From his days of young, to his days of old, he was nimble and he was quick, and he was incapable of saying “it couldn’t be done”. Always quiet, always shy, always positive, for decades he had frequent contact with professionals at Tennessee Press Service, where he was regarded highly as a complete professional, and as a “customer’s birddog”…always making sure what appeared in print was exactly what the customer ordered. He was the epitome of the “Newspaper Advertising Man.” I left the Clarksville newspaper again in 1979 when 75 years of newspaper history was reversed by a corporate headquarters dictate to remove the community’s name from its Page One flag, and other nonsensical changesfor-change-sake implemented to show “corporate’s Visiting Firemen’s” fingerprints. But Ray Roby stayed, and over the years he became the newspaper’s anchor in the business community. After two other careers, I since retired twice and he kept working there. So I’ll never forget how we started our professional lives together, at the same time, same place, when work was fun, and newspapers had a lotta soul. Under Ray Roby’s photograph in the 1959 edition of the Clarksville High School Wildcat yearbook is this quote: “A little nonsense now and then Is relished by the best of men.” So welcome out, Ray Roby, it’s time for a little nonsense. A retirement clock for you is about as sensible as a rocking chair for an Indy 500 champ. You ain’t never been busy, until you been “retired busy.” JIM CHARLET is former editor of the Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle, and copy editor and makeup editor at The Atlanta Constitution. CMYK The Tennessee Press 4 By SAM VENABLE News Sentinel, Knoxville *As of March 31, 2006, The Tennessee Press Service, Inc., fiscal year runs Dec. 1 through Nov. 30. CMYK October 12-14, 2006 www.newspaperinstitute.com Jay Tracy Andy Clint Ron Gary John Jim Vickey Stephen Laura Elenora Chris John Sheila Martha Jennifer Bonnie April Melissa Joe Steven Bob Valerie Terri Greg Brad Jack Albrecht Ayers Barnes Brewer Bridgeman Burton Carpenter Charlet Cooke Crass Dougherty Edwards Fletcher Gibson Holden Horn Horton Hufford Jackson Jones Karl Kaylor Kyer Laprad Likens Little Martin McElroy The Covington Leader Pulaski Citizen Kingsport Times-News The Lebanon Democrat The Courier-News, Clinton The Ashland City Times The Herald-News, Dayton Brentwood Chattanooga Times Free Press Cleveland Daily Banner The Paris Post-Intelligencer The Tennessee Press The Daily Herald, Columbia The Tennessean, Nashville Pulaski Citizen Pulaski Citizen The Wilson Post, Lebanon UT School of Journalism, Knoxville Humboldt Chronicle Rogersville Review Smoky Mountain Herald, Seymour Bristol Herald Courier The Tullahoma News Middle Tennessee Times, Smithville Roane County News, Kingston The Covington Leader Hickman County Times, Centerville News Sentinel, Knoxville 3 CONVENTION FROM PAGE ONE Everybody’s favorite Buddy March 2006: $458,487 Year* to date: $1,852,711 INSTITUTE OF NEWSPAPER TECHNOLOGY The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 TRACKS Tennessee Press Service handled this much advertising for TPA member newspapers: Stay ahead of the technology learning curve! MAY 2006 Sad news for News Sentinel readers who buy groceries and drugs: Your local contact is retiring. At the end of (February), Buddy Turpin (bid) adieu Venable to our advertising department after nearly 38 years. You’ve probably never met Buddy. Such is your loss because this guy is the original good times class clown. But I’ll guarantee you’ve seen the fruits of his labor—and, hopefully, then been inspired to purchase fruit, as well as meat, bread, milk and a kajillion other products, at your local supermarket. For 34 years, Buddy has been in charge of food and drug advertising. If there’s a store in our midst not trod by his trademark cowboy boots, I’m unaware of it. (Point of order: Whenever a nickname is mentioned in the newspaper, the person’s real handle is specified. Horatio Alphonse (Booger) Johnson III, for example. Not the case here. The name on this guy’s birth certificate is Buddy Lynn Turpin. For eons, the license plate on his pickup truck has simply read “BLT.” He is Buddy, the whole Buddy and nothing but the Buddy. True, certain friends, including columnists, do use other names, but not ones that would TPA wishes to thank these individuals for serving as judges of the Louisiana Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest. The UT-TPA State Press Contests would not be possible without members willing to judge the entries of our reciprocal partners. pass public muster.) And speaking of names, “Turpin” has been a mainstay inside these walls. Buddy’s late mother, Agnes, invested 42 years in our accounting department. Buddy started full time in 1968 but had already spent two years working part time while studying business at the University of Tennessee. Suffice to say we have been thoroughly Turpinized. Why hang it up? “There are trout that need to be caught; deer, elk and turkey that need to be hunted; campfires that need to be sat around; and brown whiskey that needs to be drunk,” he answered. “Yeah, but you’ve been doing that all your life,” I pointed out. “I know,” he replied with a sigh, “but now it’ll have to be on my time instead of the company’s.” If you haven’t guessed by now, I’m gonna miss this goof. Although we don’t share as much time outdoors as we once did—these days, Buddy logs more woods-and-waters hours in Wyoming and Montana than in Tennessee—he and I have fished and hunted together all over this part of the land. At one point, our second office was his bass boat on Douglas Lake. But you don’t know how delighted I am to be writing about his retirement instead of his obituary. Last June 6, Buddy suffered a massive heart attack at his desk. It went unnoticed for several minutes. Finally, coworkers heard him breathing loudly. “They thought I was snoring,” he said Cheryl Heather Tom Bob Victor Sharon Chris Mia Darrell Kay Paul Dick Clay Robb Tracy Sissy Nancy Mark Richard Scott Jessica Karen Joi Jamie Holly Jim Patricia Thank You! McGraw Nicholson Overton Parkins Parkins Patrick Peck Rhodarmer Richardson Rose Roy Schneider Scott Scott Sharp Smith Stephens Stevens Stevens Stewart Turner Weathers Whaley White Whitt Zachary Zechman with a laugh. Emergency medical personnel were summoned. Quick-thinking staffer Toby Steele administered a heart defibrillator. Yet by the time they wheeled Buddy out of here, he was already turning blue. At the emergency room, doctors could find no pulse or brain activity. Amazingly, Buddy was discharged from the hospital five days later. He was back on the job in six weeks, good as new and with no memory of the entire affair. As I’ve told Buddy several times since then, it (was) a blessed relief to stand in his presence and say words like “happy retirement” instead of “don’t he look natural?” (Feb. 21, 2006) (Clockwise from top right) Steve Lake with Keith Moore, liaison of The Knoxville Journal, TPA’s newest member. John M. Jones Jr. at The Greeneville Sun. Lake and Art Powers, publisher of the Johnson City Press. The newsboy statue at the Bristol Herald Courier. TPA Legal Hotline is available to all TPA members. IRE Conference set June 15-18 The best in the business will gather for more than 100 panels, workshops and special presentations about covering public safety, courts, national security, the military, business, education, local government and much more when the Investigative Reporters and Editors meet. The conference will be at the Renaissance Worthington Hotel in Fort Worth, Texas. If one has hotel or general conference questions, he or she may contact Ev Ruch-Graham, conference coordinator, at ev@ire.org or (573) 882-8969. Tornado damages Vol State campus Call Rick Hollow, TPA general counsel and provider of the hotline service, at Volunteer State Community College (VSCC) suffered severe damage to two buildings during the April 7 tornado that struck Gallatin, Tenn. Classes were canceled April 10-14. VSCC is an associate member of Tennessee Press Association. T. Clayton (Clay) Scott, assistant professor and TPA contact, was on campus during the tornado. He was among those sheltered in the basement of the Student Center. (865) 769-1715. Hollow & Hollow, LLC, Knoxville The Bolivar Bulletin Times The Lebanon Democrat Monroe County Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater The Milan Mirror-Exchange The Milan Mirror-Exchange Southern Standard, McMinnville The Commercial Appeal, Memphis Monroe County Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater The Oak Ridger, Oak Ridge Shelbyville Times-Gazette The Independent Herald, Oneida The Jackson Sun Volunteer State Community College, Gallatin The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Weakley County Press, Martin Shelbyville Times-Gazette The Fairview Observer The Erwin Record The Leaf-Chronicle , Clarksville Pulaski Citizen Carroll County News-Leader, Huntingdon Carroll County News-Leader, Huntingdon The Mountain Press, Sevierville Pulaski Citizen Pulaski Citizen Rogersville Review Southern Standard, McMinnville Friday, June 16 6:30 a.m. Golfers depart for course; transportation on your own 7:00 a.m. Golf outing at Bear Trace at Harrison Bay 9:00 a.m. Session A: NIE Workshop, Robie Scott, The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C. 9:00 a.m. Session B: SNPA session to be determined 9:00 a.m. InDesign, The Next Step, a computer lab class—Kevin Slimp 12:00 p.m. Lunch on one’s own 3:00 p.m. NIE presentation for publishers 6:00 p.m. Reception 7:00 p.m. Installation Banquet 9:00 p.m. Dessert Reception LAKE: From Memphis to Mountain City, president visits newspapers opportunity, and I’m going to leave it at that. Gibson County boasts of four community newspapers in separate towns. The other three are The Chronicle, Humboldt, The Herald Gazette, Trenton, and The Tri-City Reporter in Dyer. Publisher Bill Shuster, a TPA board member and very good friend of our family, graciously took time out of his busy schedule to show me about the relatively new facilities of the Herald–Citizen, Cookeville, a paper my father published in the early to mid-1970s. And, yes, there are a few holdouts on staff from his day. Had a nice visit with Jim Zachary of the Rogersville Review. His son James entertained at the dessert reception after the Governor’s Banquet at the Winter Convention. He noted that Tennessee’s very first newspaper, the Gazette, was printed in Rogersville in November 1791 and moved to Knoxville the following year to become the Knoxville Gazette. Rogersville is also home to the Tennessee Newspaper and Printing Museum, a worthy visit for anyone in our industry. A most promising prospect getting involved with TPA is Richard Esposito, brought on last year as publisher of The Oak Ridger. I had a very pleasant visit with him and Editor Darrell Richardson. The only appointment I’ve missed thus far was with Tom Gentry, The Standard Banner, Jefferson City, which broke my heart, but I simply overbooked and ran out of time. I will certainly make this up to him and his son, former TPA President and Editor Dale Gentry. Most everyone has spoken highly of our TPA/TPS staff, consistently calling Executive Director Greg Sherrill and Member Services Manager Robyn Gentile by name. Others have been affectionately mentioned as well. So far as changes and recommendations go: Numerous members—granted, I’m visiting predominantly with publishers or in some cases editors—have requested the annual awards banquet to be tied once more with the summer convention; and I do believe in years to come that it is in our best interest. Last year when Mike Fishman, Citizen Tribune, Morristown, served as TPA president and his brother Jeff, The Tullahoma News, as chairman of the Contests Committee, they actually opposed each other on this issue. Jeff ’s argument, and a very good one, is that publishers primarily attend the summer convention and not usually the people who are actually winning these awards for their respective papers; unlike when they are separate. Deborah Turner, again, The McKenzie Banner, had a legitimate complaint of something I believe we’ve all experienced: inadequately returned forms from contest entries. Feedback is critical to us all. We must take care when judging other states’ contests to provide valuable information and encourage or entice other states to do the same for us. Jerry Hilliard, associate editor of The Erwin Record and former Tennessee Press columnist, mentioned that with NIE programs, schools should have journalism textbooks and AP Stylebooks. Journalism classes aren’t getting the tools they need. Gene Washer recommended establishing a relationship with the attorney general, perhaps taking him out to dinner. Someone mentioned placing all inserts into a paper’s weekly shopper, mailing it total market, free of charge, and leaving them out of main editions. Jack McElroy, editor of the News Sentinel, Knoxville, suggested an RSS feed throughout state papers providing news stories that can be freely used by members. Ron Bridgeman, The Courier-News, Clinton, argued for a TPA statewide public notice Web site. Jim Zachary really wants members to come visit the Tennessee Newspaper and Printing Museum (mentioned above) in Rogersville. It would certainly make for an excellent story in The Tennessee Press, not to mention a nice excursion some time a convention is held nearby. Interestingly, I’ve had small papers say TPA focuses on larger papers and larger papers say TPA focuses on smaller. I’ve also learned that most publications in our state have been active in one shape or form in TPA at one time or another. Let me encourage everyone to continue your involvement and do what you can for our association, as it increases its value for us all. Thank you, everyone, for welcoming me into your papers. I’ve enjoyed visiting with you, and if I haven’t been by yet, I hope to be by soon. Feel free to e-mail other comments or suggestions to steve. lake@pulaskicitizen.com. FORESIGHT 2006 MAY 1: Law Day 3: World Press Freedom Day 3-5: NNA on the Road: Texas Style, Ft. Worth, Texas JUNE 14-16: TPA 137th Annual Summer Convention and SNPA training, Chattanooga Choo Choo 14-17: AAEC Annual Conference, Embassy Suites Hotel, Denver, Colo. 15-17: 8th Great Obituary Writers’ Conference, Plaza Hotel, Las Vegas, N.M. 15-18: Investigative Reporters and Editors, Renaissance Worthington Hotel, Fort Worth, Texas 17: ETSPJ Front Page Follies, Knoxville Convention Center JULY 21: TAPME awards ceremony, 10 a.m., Sheraton Music City, Nashville 21: UT-TPA State Press Contests Awards Luncheon, noon, Sheraton Music City, Nashville AUGUST 31-Sept. 2: Society of News Design Annual Workshop and Exhibition, Orlando, Fla. SEPTEMBER 8: International Literacy Day 13-15: National Conference of Editorial Writers Convention, Sheraton Station Square Hotel, Pittsburgh, Pa. 15: SNPA First Amendment Summit, Atlanta OCTOBER 1-7: National Newspaper Week 12-14: TPS Institute of Newspaper Technology, UT Campus, Knoxville Want to serve TPA on a committee? The 2006-07 committees will soon be appointed. If you are interested in serving on a TPA committee. Please contact TPA or complete the committee interest for at www.tnpress.com/committees.html. If you are interested in serving as a committee chair, please contact Henry Stokes, TPA vice president for dailies, (901) 529-2301 or stokes@germantownappeal.com. PLASTIC PRESS CARDS AVAILABLE TPA can provide member newspapers plastic, professional-looking press cards for $5 each. In interested, one should contact TPA at (865) 584-5761 or visit www.tnpress.com/presscredentials.html. CMYK The Tennessee Press 10 MAY 2006 From Memphis to Mountain City (USPS 616-460) Published monthly by the TENNESSEE PRESS SERVICE, INC. for the TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION, INC. 435 Montbrook Lane Knoxville, Tennessee 37919 Telephone (865) 584-5761/Fax (865) 558-8687/www.tnpress.com Subscriptions: $6 annually Periodicals Postage Paid At Knoxville,TN POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Tennessee Press, 435 Montbrook Lane, Knoxville,TN 37919. The Tennessee Press is printed by The Standard Banner, Jefferson City. Greg M. Sherrill.....................................................Editor Elenora E. Edwards.............................Managing Editor Robyn Gentile..........................Production Coordinator Angelique Dunn...............................................Assistant 20 Member 06 Tennessee Press Association The Tennessee Press is printed on recycled paper and is recyclable. www.tnpress.com The Tennessee Press can be read online at: CMYK OFFICIAL WEBSITE OF THE TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION Steve Lake, Pulaski Citizen/The Giles Free Press................................President Henry Stokes, The Germantown Appeal......................................Vice President Pauline Sherrer, Crossville Chronicle..........................................Vice President Bill Willliams, The Paris Post-Intelligencer...........................................Treasurer Greg M. Sherrill, Knoxville....................................................Executive Director DIRECTORS Keith Wilson, Kingsport Times-News...................................................District 1 Kevin Burcham, The News-Herald, Lenoir City....................................District 2 Tom Overton III, Advocate and Democrat, Sweetwater......................District 3 Bill Shuster, Herald-Citizen, Cookeville................................................District 4 Dennis Stanley, Smithville Review.......................................................District 5 Hulon Dunn, Lewis County Herald, Hohenwald..................................District 7 Dennis Richardson, Carroll County News-Leader, Huntingdon.........District 8 Victor Parkins, The Milan Mirror-Exchange...........................................District 9 Jay Albrecht, The Covington Leader....................................................District 10 Mike Fishman, Citizen Tribune, Morristown...........................................At large TENNESSEE PRESS SERVICE Bob Parkins, The Milan Mirror-Exchange.............................................President Dale C. Gentry, The Standard Banner, Jefferson City.................Vice President W. R. (Ron) Fryar, McMinnville..............................................................Director Mike Pirtle, Murfreesboro.......................................................................Director Pauline Sherrer, Crossville Chronicle.....................................................Director Michael Williams, The Paris Post-Intelligencer......................................Director Greg M. Sherrill............................................................Executive Vice President TENNESSEE PRESS ASSOCIATION FOUNDATION W.R. (Ron) Fryar, McMinnville.............................................................President Larry K. Smith, LaFollette.............................................................Vice President Richard L. Hollow, Knoxville....................................................General Counsel Greg M. Sherrill....................................................................Secretary-Treasurer CONTACT THE MANAGING EDITOR TPAers with suggestions, questions or comments about items inTheTennessee Press are welcome to contact the managing editor. Call Elenora E. Edwards, (865) 457-5459; send a note to P.O. Box 502, Clinton, TN 37717-0502; or e-mail ElenoraEdwards@comcast.net. The June issue deadline is May 8. Former TPA President Mike Pirtle recently Believe it or not, my journey begins in Memphis retired as editor from The Daily News Journal, with incoming TPA President Henry Stokes and Murfreesboro. The Commercial Appeal. At the time they were My good friend, and up to this point TPA board busy looking for a publisher. They’ve long since member, Clint Brewer recently left The Lebanon hired Joseph Pepe and even decentralized their Democrat. The Democrat suffered an enormous loss operation, as Henry now runs The Germantown & recently with the death of renowned staff reporter Collierville Appeal. Brooks Franklin, who succumbed to cancer at 47. I’ve been asked at a number of stops along the A number of papers in this state are thinking way what I hope to accomplish visiting newspapers outside the box and doing some extraordinary things throughout the state, something legendary TPA to make that bottom line. The one that blew me away President Carl A. Jones Jr. of the Johnson City Press YOUR did in his term of 1956-57 and Larry Smith of The PRESIDING like no other is the arrangement Publisher Lynn Richardson of the Herald and Tribune, JonesborLaFollette Press repeated in his of 1977-78. Truth be known, as I’m sure it was to some extent REPORTER ough, has with her city: 100 percent saturation as the city pays for all residents to have a subscription to these two predecessors, my aim is both selfish and to the paper, all in return for extensive, full coverage selfless. The way I look at it, it’s a good excuse to get Steve Lake out from behind my desk, enjoy some sunshine and a little of civic boards, with the understanding that government extra time with my wife and 9-month-old daughter, who have employees receive no special treatment or favors in the joined me for a good portion, and see our great state, many paper—sounds like a dream setup for both parties. During my Sandusky circuit in the eastern corner of places of which I’ve never seen before. It’s a great opportunity to put names with papers and their the state, Keith Wilson, TPA board member and publisher settings, enjoy a little camaraderie, and see how others oper- extraordinaire of the Kingsport Times–News, ran through a ate, perhaps bringing something home of use to myself and laundry list of innovative ideas his paper is pursuing. Keith other members, find out what TPA is doing right and where is one of the most brilliant people I’ve ever met, with just a it may go wrong, see where we can make improvements and touch of madness, necessary for any creative genius. He’s how we can be of better service to our members, educate them hired genuine artists for composing positions and made them about various TPA offerings, and encourage members to get part of the advertising department; has made a small fortune in sales on a photo book with pictures brought in by readers more involved in our organization. If there is one observation I’ve made thus far in my visits of the paper, his angle being photos that tell a story and the to approximately two-fifths of our member publications story behind the photos, with local sponsorship basically across the state (should be much more by the time you read offsetting production costs; and is in the process of creating this), it’s that newspapers are as diverse as the people and a community Web site of high-interest silos, allowing readers to contribute news. He mentions as an example here he’ll areas they cover. Most operate on a shoestring with a very tight, limited staff, get a call asking him to cover Little League. Keith tells the with employees of smaller papers forced to wear many hats, caller that his staff simply can’t cover every Little League as larger operations can afford to be a little more specialized. game, but that if the caller would do so, he’d publish it on Offices open and close at various hours on various days. the Times-News Web site. The Times-News is now providing tearsheets electronically Some are steeped in history while others have more or less blossomed out of nowhere. I couldn’t help noticing as a whole and saving a bundle. Most advertisers are very appreciahow much bigger cities and papers seem in the eastern grand tive of the new format. Only five continue to request the newsprint tearsheets. division of our state, contributing 15 of our 28 dailies. My favorite stop thus far—hands down—The Erwin Record. In Pigeon Forge, circulation at the Tennessee Star Journal varies considerably in and out of tourist season, according Knowing the approximate time I was to arrive, the entire to a most friendly and talkative Editor Jim Callicott. He also staff was more or less on hand to greet me in their front noted his town is the only one he knows of that doesn’t have lobby. After a tour of their beautiful old building, renovated with historic preservation in mind, the entire staff gathered a so-called downtown area. In Clarksville, home of Fort Campbell and the 101st Air- in the conference room, as a fruit tray was brought in, for borne Division, a large proportion of the community has a lengthy discussion of issues relevant to TPA and state been deployed overseas, obviously taking its toll on the local newspapers. Editor Mark Stevens admitted upon hearing economy. Leaf–Chronicle Publisher and two-time former TPA my goal last year to visit every member newspaper, he didn’t President Gene Washer said having to incessantly report think there was any way I’d do it. Another first happened deaths of local soldiers in Iraq has made for a very sad situ- on my way out as a picture was requested, set up and taken of me with the staff, considering me news in itself. It’s no ation and taken its toll on advertising itself. Dyersburg State Gazette Editor and Co-Publisher Chris wonder the Erwin Record consistently wins press awards, Rimel, settling into his position once more, recently returned including a three-year running of the Sweepstakes; they’ve from a 14-month stint in Iraq, specifically noting the real story, got a very good thing going. On my northwest Tennessee excursion, I happened into as he puts it, “is that we’re doing a very good job there.” Deadly tornados have followed my travels as they first McKenzie well after hours, thought I’d find the newspaper, struck the Dyersburg area shortly after my visit; then the then a motel and bed down for the night, but there happened Gallatin area a couple of weeks following while attending to be a light on at the paper as Webmaster Deborah Turner the Advertising/Circulation Conference at Paris Landing was burning the midnight oil. Editor Joel Washburn was State Park. Visiting Tiptonville and the Lake County Ban- gracious enough to leave his home and come visit with ner with TPA Executive Director Greg Sherrill before the me. They have recently moved to the Olive System and conference, Publisher Evan Jones showed us hail almost like others are putting their entire paper online, available the size of a baseball packed up and saved in a freezer from under a subscription basis. There is also a free front page for non-subscribers. What I found most interesting is that that first storm. Speaking of Gallatin, Gannett papers immediately Joel encourages those out of state to buy the online version surrounding the Nashville area that I’ve visited thus far of the paper (as opposed to and at the same cost as printed including The News–Examiner (Gallatin), Ashland City version) due to the U.S. Postal Service’s poor delivery, notoriTimes, Robertson County Times (Springfield), The Dickson ous in our industry. Bill Ridings in Waverly recently underwent back surgery Herald and The Fairview Observer were in the process and have recently converted to tabloid dimensions. All say this is but seems to be bouncing back nicely. Enjoyed hearing him something Tennessean Publisher and boss Ellen Leifeld did reminisce about TPA’s good old days. Had a pleasant meeting with TPS President Bob Parkins, with suburban papers at her place of previous employment, publisher of The Milan Mirror-Exchange, and his son, Vicwhich witnessed great success. On the flip side, a couple of start-up papers, yet ineligible tor, who serves as editor and is also a TPA board member. for TPA membership, have emerged within the past year: The Bob Parkins’ office is a sight to behold, if you ever have the Williamson Herald in Franklin and The Gallatin Newspaper SEE LAKE, PAGE 3 are fighting Gannett head-on. The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 11 Designing newspaper ads doesn’t have to be dull HOW TO CONTACT US Tennessee Press Association BY KEVIN SLIMP TPS technology director I’m in a familiar predicament. There are at least a dozen new software applications on my desk, all waiting to be reviewed. There’s backup software, Slimp drive rescue software, photo editing software and word processing software, not to mention a pile of books. I decided to go with the most unique looking box. Comic Life, by Freeverse Software, fit the bill. At first, you might think this is an application a newspaper would never use. Not so, my friends. I installed and opened the application. Within 15 minutes, I had created my first comic. The comic I provided with this column was my second effort. It took about 10 minutes to create. Let me tell you how it works. After installing the software, I immediately opened Comic Life. The workplace was very user friendly. Basically, the left half of the screen is the template for your comic. I counted 16 templates to choose from or you can create your own. The right half includes a library of photos and all the tools. Comic Life gets its photos from your iPhoto library. Snapshots look at newspaper reach Sometimes good medicine comes in small doses. The following are links to brief sales sheets that demonstrate newspaper’s reach among consumers in various service and product categories. They also highlight newspaper’s competitive edge over other media. These sheets, in PDF format, can be printed and added to sales kits and shared with customers. For questions regarding the data in these sales sheets, one should contact William Johnson in NAA’s Business Analysis & Research Department at johnw@naa.org. Find the sheets at http://www.naa.org/CirculationPages/Circulation-Statisticsand-Trends/Snapshots.aspx. The Tennessee Press has the perfect spot for your ad Mail: 435 Montbrook Lane, Knoxville, TN 37919 Phone: (865) 584-5761 Fax: (865) 558-8687 Web: www.tnpress.com E-mail: (name)@tnpress.com Those with boxes, listed alphabetically: Laurie Alford (lalford) Pam Corley (pcorley) Yes, this application is only available on the Mac platform. I added the photos I wanted to use to my iPhoto library, then headed back to Comic Life. Laying out a page is as simple as dragging photos from the library into frames on the template. Once in the frames, pictures can be manipulated by dragging a handle, much as you resize photos in pagination applications. Each “cell” of your comic contains an image. Comic balloons, bubbles and boxes are added to cells by choosing styles from the bottom area of the workspace. Text is created within each balloon or box. You can even move a balloon’s tail by moving it with your mouse. My favorite aspect of Comic Life is the ability to use filters to create a “look” for your comic. I selected “Color Pencils” to give my creation the look of an old-fashioned comic book. When completed, files can be saved in tif, jpeg and other formats. Why would a newspaper be interested in Comic Life? First, it’s an easy way to be creative with advertising. Let’s face it. We only have so much time to spend on each ad. Why not dazzle your client with an ad that looks hand drawn but takes only 10 minutes to create? And Moody Castleman (mcastleman) Angelique Dunn (adunn) Beth Elliott (belliott) Robyn Gentile (rgentile) Kelley Hampton (khampton) Kathy Hensley (khensley) Barry Jarrell (bjarrell) Brenda Mays (bmays) Amanda Pearce (apearce) Greg Sherrill (gsherrill) Kevin Slimp (kslimp) Advertising e-mail: Knoxville office: knoxads@tnpress.com second (are you sitting down?), The price. Comic Life retails for $30 US/$35 CAN/$50 AUS. I can’t remember a product that offered so much potential at such an affordable price. Comic Life is available from most Apple software vendors or you can order it. Tennessee Press Service Mail: 435 Montbrook Lane, Knoxville, TN 37919 Phone: (865) 584-5761 Fax: (865) 558-8687 --134 Heady Drive Nashville, TN 37205 Phone: (615) 356-3914 Fax: (615) 356-3915 Web: www.tnpress.com Tennessee Press Association Foundation Mail: 435 Montbrook Lane, Knoxville, TN 37919 Phone: (865) 584-5761 Fax: (865) 558-8687 Web: www.tnpress.com Contact Robyn Gentile for more information at (865) 584-5761, ext. 105 or rgentile@tnpress.com. Read The Tennessee Press —then pass it on! CMYK The Tennessee Press 2 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 TPA is parent to TPS, TPAF; supports industry CMYK BY GREG SHERRILL TPA executive director This is the first in a series of stories on our three companies, Tennessee Press Association, Tennessee Press Service and Tennessee Press Association Foundation. Sherrill Since I came to Tennessee Press in 1996 (that’s right, you’ve endured me for 10 years now), there has been enormous change within our industry as newspapers have hired new staff and changed hands or ownership. New papers have started, and many formerly independent newspapers have gone to group ownership, often led by personnel from outside our state or region. We eagerly welcome Tennessee’s newand-changing newspaper leadership, and we want to make sure they know and understand TPA, TPS and TPAF and make full use of the resources we bring to support our members. With each story in this series, I will highlight one company and attempt to show just how we are working for you. I encourage publishers, editors and other upper newspaper management to post or circulate these stories to all departments of your newspaper, and encourage staff to contact TPA if they ever have any questions or concerns —we’re here to help. Tennessee Press Association Inc. is the parent company to both TPS and TPAF. The association was formed 136 years ago in 1870-71 to support and advance the newspaper industry in our state. Today TPA is composed of 128 member newspapers, which include 28 daily and 100 non-daily papers. All of our newspaper members maintain certain criteria as outlined in the TPA Constitution and Bylaws, which include maintaining a minimum of 70 percent paid circulation, having been in continuous publication for one year, and publishing at least as frequently as once a week. TPA also has an associate class of members, which are vendors and suppliers to the newspaper industry who wish to maintain contact with our member papers. The association is governed by a 15member board of your peers, which meets at least three times a year to deliberate TPA business. TPA is supported through membership dues from newspapers and associate members, and from assistance from its related companies, Tennessee Press Service and the TPA Foundation. More on these entities in coming months. TPA and related companies provide an impressive list of member services to newspapers of all sizes. When a newspaper holds a TPA membership, it covers all employees of that paper in terms of attending TPA functions or making use of association benefits. Robyn Gentile, our member services manager, maintains a Member Services Guide which explains these in more detail. The guide can be viewed on our Web site at www.tnpress.com, or we can mail one at any time. Some TPA functions are very visible to newspapers; some occur behind the scenes. Perhaps one of the most important benefits we provide is not immediately visible to most newspaper staffers—lobbying for issues that could affect so many aspects of our operations or endanger the freedoms that we, as an industry, are charged with upholding. Tennessee started more than 30 years ago with one of the strongest open records and meeting laws in the country. Through the passage of time, these vital laws have been under constant attack, and TPA members, staff and TPA’s contract lobbyist have been hard at work trying to protect these laws so that news departments statewide and the public have the access to information they need to be informed. TPA is a primary supporter of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government (TCOG) and is currently working with that organization to strengthen open records and meetings laws. In addition to protecting the public’s right to know, TPA has convinced legislators that taxes on newspaper advertising and circulation are a bad idea. We issue press credentials for newspaper employees and have just this year offered color photo ID badges with digital signature for staffers. We offer blanket legal hotline coverage to all member newspapers, which can be a tremendous asset for staff members at all levels, from reporters who can’t get into that county commission meeting to ad reps who don’t want to say the wrong thing in a housing ad to publishers who are worried that they may be sued. Help is often just a phone call away. TPA holds several meetings each year that are open to all newspaper staff. These include our annual winter and summer conventions, as well as various board meetings and training sessions. The Winter Convention and Press Institute, our largest meeting, takes place each February in Nashville and includes a reception with state legislators, an address by the governor, and countless educational and training sessions covering all facets of newspaper operation from reporting to editing to technology and legal issues. Each spring, TPA holds an advertising and circulation conference especially for these vital revenue-producing newspaper departments. In addition to quality training by recognized industry leaders, it’s a great time for newspaper staff from all across the state to share ideas. The highlight of the conference is often the presentation of the annual Ideas Contest awards. Each year, newspapers from across the state submit entries in 27 advertising and circulation categories to compete against other papers for the best revenue-producing ideas. The contest is judged by newspaper professionals from a different state each year. The annual Summer Convention, held in mid-June, rotates yearly to each of the state’s three grand divisions. This year’s convention in Chattanooga will have more training opportunities than ever before as we partner with Southern Newspaper Publishers Association (SNPA) for a joint convention and SNPA Traveling Campus program. The summer convention also includes installation of TPA officers, a golf tournament and opportunities for family and staff outings to experience some of Tennessee’s many attractions. The State Press Contests are held each year to spotlight the “best of the best” publishing efforts in editorial, sports, service, promotion, photography, advertising and appearance. TPA members submit more than 1,000 entries, which are assembled by TPA staff and transported to another state for judging by newspaper professionals. From this, we award first through sixth place in 20 categories at an annual awards luncheon held in July in Nashville. This year’s contests recognize material that was published during the 2005 calendar year. I have traveled to newspaper offices across the state and seen many of the unique in-laid tile plaques for first place prominently displayed in halls, reception areas and offices. TPA partners with the University of Tennessee, which provides tremendous financial and administrative support for this immense project. Over the past two decades, nothing has changed the newspaper industry more than the incredible advances of technology. TPA is proud to be recognized as a national leader in technology and has helped so many member newspapers make the jump from total paste-up to complete electronic pagination. Most of our technology assistance is handled by TPS and will be covered next month, but one important overlap is our Web site, www.tnpress.com. This site becomes more heavily used each month as we add features and member services. Newspaper staff can now register for upcoming TPA events, print contests entry information, browse resumes for possible hires, list openings at their papers, download serial stories for publication, read The Tennessee Press, and more, all at one place. I encourage all newspaper staff to take a look at what TPA offers. We appreciate each of our member newspapers and want to make sure you receive the full benefits of your membership. Should you have any questions about TPA, please contact a staff member at any time. You can send us an e-mail 24 hours a day from the “Contact Us” section of www.tnpress.com. Next month: Tennessee Press Service Inc., the business arm of TPA, brings advertising revenue and many more services to your newspaper. Watch for the gold! State Press, AP awards events set July 21 C M Y K Awards in the State Press Contests covering 2005 will be presented at a luncheon at noon on Friday, July 21. At 11:00, Tennessee Associated Press Managing Editors Stokes awards for writing and photography will be presented. Both events will be at the Sheraton Music City in east Nashville. Louisiana Press Association has judged the State Yeomans Press Contests, which cover many aspects of newspaper work. Charles Primm, representing the University of Tennessee, is handling preparation of plaques and certificates, as well as a PowerPoint presentation of winners. An official of UT will present the awards. W h i l e aw a rd s b e l o n g t o t h e newspapers, starting this year, duplicate certificates can be provided to individual staff members contributing to the winning entries. TPA Vice President Henry Stokes, The Germantown Appeal, is chairman of the Contests Committee. The awards program began in the 1940s with just a few categories, but now, there are 20. Adam Yeomans, AP bureau chief for Tennessee, is coordinating the TAPME ceremony. Proceeds of the State Press Contests go to the Edward J. Meeman Fund at UT. Meeman Awards, named for a former Memphis Press-Scimitar editor, are awarded in editorials and public service. See other sections This issue of The Tennessee Press includes two special pull-out sections. One reports on the April 6 to 8 TPA Advertising/Circulation Conference and Ideas Contest. The other previews the 137th Annual TPA Summer Convention. First place winners in the 2006 UT-TPA State Press Contests will be notified by mail in a gold envelope. Letters to all winners will be mailed by May 15. The 2006 Awards Luncheon will be held July 21 in Nashville. Kudos STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN (Left photo) Evan Jones, publisher of The Lake County Banner, Tiptonville, sits in his office, which is full of memorabilia. Lori Long, an employee at the Banner, shows almost baseball-size hail that fell April 2. TPA President Steve Lake and Executive Director Greg Sherrill visited the newspaper on April 6. No. 11 MAY 2006 Vol. 69 Tom Griscom and the Chattanooga Times Free Press staff were the first to register for the summer convention. Hotel ROBYN GENTILE | TPA TENNESSEE STATE PARKS RIVERBEND FESTIVAL Convention headquarters is the Chattanooga Choo Choo The traditional Summer Convention Holiday Inn in the heart of Tennessee’s fourth largest Golf Tournament will be held at the BearTrace golf course designed by Jack city. Nicklaus. It is at Harrison Bay State Park north of Chattanooga. A Riverbend poster and the festival during fireworks. The festival began in 1978. Chatta’new’ga: Here we come! BY ELENORA E. EDWARDS Managing editor Train, plane or car—grab one and head for Chattanooga in June for the Tennessee Press Association 137 th Anniversary Summer Convention. The Convention Committee, headed by Kevin Burcham, publisher of The News-Herald, Lenoir City, has put together a schedule somewhat different from those of the past—one that’s sure to please. For one thing, the convention will start a day earlier than usual—on Wednesday. And it will run three whole days. It’ll be June 14 through 16, with headquarters at the Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn. Another difference is that the entire first day will be one of training, and training opportunities will continue the next two days. TPA is being joined by the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association Traveling Campus, which will provide most of the training. The deadline for making reservations is the end of the day Wednesday, May 24. One should call the inn at 1-800-872-2529 or (423) 266-5000 to reserve a room. A standard room is $92 plus tax per night, while a rail car room will cost $142 plus tax per night. The Riverbend Festival will be in full swing at that time, so TPA recommends members not delay in seeing to reservations. The fact that the festival is under way Burcham is a good thing for TPA, since conventioneers will take it in on Thursday night. They will be treated to VIP seating and refreshments, thanks to the host newspaper, the Chattanooga Times Free Press. Another important event will be the passing of the presidential gavel from Steve Lake, publisher of the Pulaski Citizen, to Henry Stokes, publisher of The Germantown Appeal and former managing editor of The Commercial Appeal, Memphis. That will take place at the Summer Banquet on Friday night. Burcham said the committee is pleased that TPA can take advantage of the excellent training opportunities SNPA is offering. There will be learning as well as a lot of fun activities connected with the Riverbend Festival, he noted. “There’s something for everybody. Take advantage of everything the DETAILS Who: Newspaper staff members What: TPA Summer Convention When: Wednesday-Friday, June 14-16 Where: Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn Deadline: End of day Wednesday, May 24 TPA has arranged as well as the SNPA program,” he said. A s t h e S u m m e r C o nve n t i o n Committee finalizes details, further information will be posted on the TPA Web site, www.tnpress.com. TPAers will receive a packet containing registration information and various sites of interest in the Chattanooga area. See the special section in the center of this newspaper for information on various aspects of the convention. The schedule is as follows. Wednesday, June 14 SNPA will provide the Traveling Campus training program. 9:30 a.m. Session A: SNPA 9:30 a.m. Session B: SNPA 1:30 p.m. Session C: SNPA 1:30 p.m. Session D: SNPA Thursday, June 15 8:30 a.m. TPA registration opens 9:00 a.m. Session A—Introduction to Adobe InDesign for Newspapers—Kevin Slimp Session B: SNPA 12:00 p.m. Lunch on your own 1:30 p.m. Ice Cream Reception sponsored by Mayfield Dairy 2:00 p.m. TPA Board of Directors; TPA Business Session; TPS Stockholders; TPAF Board of Trustees 2:00 p.m. Session C—Using InDesign/ InCopy LiveEdit Workflow— Kevin Slimp Session D—SNPA 5:00 p.m. Take free shuttles to Riverbend Festival 6:00 p.m. Riverbend Festival VIP event sponsored by the Chattanooga Times Free Press. Return on one’s own. SEE CONVENTION, PAGE 3 INSIDE HINES PROFILE 4 4 GIBSON-TCOG GENTRY ANNIVERSARY 5 6 HENNINGER NIE-LITERACY 7 OBITS 8 SLIMP 9 11 IN CONTACT Phone: (865) 584-5761 Fax: (865) 558-8687 Online: www.tnpress.com CMYK 12 The Tennessee Press Area Attractions History of Chattanooga Chattanooga Ducks—Unique ex-military amphibious vehicles made for the US Army to land troops on beaches during wartime. The Ducks are equally at home on land as well as water. www.chattanoogaducks.com The name “Chattanooga” comes from the Creek Indian word for “rock coming to a point.” This refers to Lookout Mountain, which begins in Chattanooga and stretches 88 miles through Alabama and Georgia. The city itself started out with two different names: Ross’s Landing and Lookout City. Ross’s Landing was established in 1816 by John Ross, chief of the Cherokee Indians. This area consisted of a ferry, warehouse and landing. With the organization of Hamilton County in 1819, Ross’s Landing served not only the Cherokee trade, but also as a convenient business center for the county. In 1838, the city officially took the name of “Chattanooga.” That same year, Cherokee parties left from Ross’s Landing for the West on what became known as the Trail of Tears. The bloodiest 2-day battle of the Civil War… In addition to its important location with the mountains and the river, the city was a vital railroad center, with tracks leading from Atlanta to Nashville, Memphis to Charleston and Knoxville to Virginia. Strategically placed at the “Gateway to the Deep South,” Chattanooga’s nickname during the war, troops were able to not only transport supplies, but also reinforcements. In addition, if the Union won here, they would have easy access to the Confederates’ “home turf.” What started off as a skirmish along the banks of the Tennessee River in the spring of 1863 resulted in the Confederates retreat to Chickamauga, Georgia. Here, the bloodiest two-day battle of the entire Civil War was fought, with a staggering 37,000 casualties. The Confederates were the first to regroup after the devastating Battle of Chickamauga, and they proceeded to lay siege to the Union forces holed up in Chattanooga. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant was sent in after the Union’s defeat at Chickamauga to regain control of the campaign. Under Grant’s leadership, and with the help of Gens. Thomas, Hooker and Sherman, the Union was able to win the next five battles in the Campaign for Chattanooga. Upon the Union’s victory at the final battle in the campaign for Chattanooga, the Battle of Missionary Ridge, the gateway was opened, allowing for Sherman’s famous march to Atlanta the following year. Shortly thereafter, the war ended. In 1890, veterans from both the Union and the Confederacy came back to the Scenic City. They placed tablets and erected monuments in what became the nation’s first national military park. The Chickamauga-Chattanooga National Military Park is still the largest of its kind in the nation with districts at the Chickamauga Battlefield, Point Park and Lookout Mountain Battlefield, Missionary Ridge, Orchard Knob and Signal Point. The Chattanooga National Cemetery was created in 1863, after the battles in the Campaign for Chattanooga, due to the enormous number of casualties at the Battle of Chickamauga. By 1865, more than 12,000 Union soldiers had been buried. The cemetery was officially designated as the first national cemetery in 1867 when Congress passed “An Act to Establish and Protect National Cemeteries.” Oldest truss bridge of its size in the South… Built in 1891, the Walnut Street Bridge became the first multiuse structure to span the Tennessee River, and for almost three decades, it served as the only way to cross the river. The Walnut Street Bridge served as a busy thoroughfare to the citizens of Chattanooga for many decades. Almost 100 years after its construction, the bridge was closed on the advice of engineers who feared its collapse. Committed citizens spoke out against its destruction, and the funds were then committed to preserve this historical landmark by turning it into a “walking bridge.” Today, the Walnut Street Bridge con- Coolidge Park—On the north shore of the Tennessee River, this park features a A fountain at Coolidge Park restored antique carousel and delightfully sculpted water fountains that are as much fun to play upon as they are refreshing on a hot summer day. Creative Discovery Museum—What child does not want to dig for dinosaur bones, take apart stuff that works, beat on drums and hide in a tree? All of this and more awaits visitors at this interactive museum. Designed for ages 2-12. www.cdmfun.com ES Hunter Museum of Art—Explore a beautiful mansion housing one of the finest collections of American art in the southeast. Located in the Bluff Arts district. Imax 3D Theater—Imax is the largest and most exciting film format in the world. Go to www.tnaqua.org for information on movies and schedules. ES Incline Railway—The world’s steepest passenger railway, a grade of 72.7% near the top, the Incline Railway will take you on a one mile trip to the top of historic Lookout Mountain. International Towing and Recovery Museum—a unique museum where you One of many views at Rock City can learn the history of the worldwide industry with exhibits of equipment that date back to 1916. www.internationaltowingmuseum.org Lake Winnepesaukah—Located just minutes from downtown Chattanooga, this amusement park has 30 rides. www.lakewinnie.com CMYK The Passage—An underground passageway leading to the river, marking the Trail of Tears and celebrating Chattanooga’s Native American culture. Point Park—Thirty-eight miles of hiking trails leading to overlooks, waterfalls, and historic ruins. A panoramic mural of the Battle of Lookout Mountain, painted by a witness of the historic event, is on display at Point Park. Rock City—A true marvel of nature featuring massive rock formations, gardens and “See 7 States” panoramic views. www.seerockcity.com Ruby Falls—Discovered in 1928 by Leo Lambert and named after his wife Ruby, take this cave adventure to view the spectacular waterfall and rock formations. www.rubyfalls.com Southern Belle Riverboat—cruise on the Tennessee River past urban parks, bluffs and maclellan Island, an 18-acre bird sanctuary. Sightseeing and dinner cruises offered. www.chattanoogariverboat.com Tennessee Aquarium—The Aquarium’s new $30 million Ocean Journey building is an expansion of the Aquarium’s popular Gulf of Mexico exhibit. It added 700,000 gallons of saltwater exhibits to what is currently the world’s largest freshwater aquarium. www.tnaqua.org ES Walnut Street Bridge—the world’s longest L ake Winnepasaukah’s pedestrian bridge connects the north and south Cannon Ball rollercoaster shores from Ross’s Landing to Coolidge Park. Warehouse Row—unique downtown shopping with over 25 stores in a beautiful, historic urban setting. Set in renovated turn-of-the century railroad warehouse. ES Do You Seek More Adventure? Ocoee River Rafting—Take a wild ride down the roaring whitewater rapids of the Ocoee River, site of the 1996 Olympic Canoe and Kayak Slalom Competition. Lookout Mountain Flight Park—Where visitors can hang glide off the top of the mountain. The place to go for hang gliding adventure, or to simply be a spectator. www.hanglide.com Rafting on the Ocoee River ES = a stop on CARTA, the free electric shuttle serving downtown Chattanooga. MAY 2006 Special section TPA Summer Convention Preview May 2006 CHATTA’NEW’GA, HERE WE COME! CHATTANOOGA CVB Experience the world’s steepest passenger railway at the Incline Railway nects downtown Chattanooga to the north shore’s Coolidge Park and Frazier Avenue. The first Gold Record… The famous Chattanooga Choo Choo Terminal Station was built in 1908. The station still stands today as a testament of the golden age of railroad with its 85-foot freestanding dome, the world’s largest free-standing dome. In addition, the song “Chattanooga Choo Choo,” which was made famous by Glen Miller in the 1940s, became the first gold record. See Rock City... Historical evidence shows that Native Americans once inhabited Lookout Mountain. It was in 1823 that two missionaries, Daniel S. Butrick and William Chamberlain, arrived in the area to minister to these Indians. On Aug. 28, 1823, Rev. Butrick made an entry in his diary describing “a citadel of rocks” atop the mountain, noting the immense size of the boulders and stating that they were arranged in such a way “as to afford streets and lanes.” By the time the Civil War reached the slopes of Lookout Mountain, more and more people had discovered what was already being called “the Rock City.” During the famous Battle of Lookout Mountain, both a Union and a Confederate nurse speculated in separate diary entries that one could see seven states from atop the summit. Rock City remained known to hikers and geologists throughout the latter portion of the 1800s, but it would take the dawning of a new century before the fabulous Rock City would reach its full potential. Frieda Carter set out to develop this property into a rock garden to end all rock gardens. She had taken string and marked a trail that wound its way around giant rock formations, ending at the giant outcropping known as Lover’s Leap. She had also collected wildflowers and other plants and had them transplanted along her trail. Garnet Carter realized his wife had something there and that lots of people might be willing to pay to see it. The rest, as they say, is history. Ruby Falls… In 1928, Leo Lambert began digging an elevator shaft down to the original cave within the Lookout Mountain Caverns. After 92 days of drilling through 420 feet of solid stone, the crew reached its target. But, some 260 feet down, Lambert was overtaken by an unfamiliar gust of air. Searching for the source, Lambert traveled for 17 hours before he stumbled upon a spectacular waterfall and breathtaking scenes of rock formations and mineral deposits within a large cavern. His description of his discovery seemed so preposterous that the group refused to believe him until he returned to the falls a second time with his wife, Ruby. When she repeated Lambert’s story to the engineers, work began to enable visitors to view this natural wonder, and Ruby Falls opened to the public in 1929. June 14-16 agenda: SNPA-TPA training, business and play BY ELENORA E. EDWARDS Managing editor The TPA Summer Convention coming up in June sounds like it will be one of the most training-packed ever. Drawing on our own expert, Kevin Slimp, and an array of standouts in various newspaper fields, conventioneers will be engaged for three days of training by Southern Newspaper Publishers Association and TPA. SNPA schedules several training occasions, called Traveling Campuses, in the states that comprise the regional organization. SNPA and TPA are cooperating to present this event during convention time. Convention attendees can take advantage of Traveling Campus training at no additional cost. The 137th Annual Summer Convention will run Wednesday through Friday, June 14-16, with all training and business sessions taking place at the Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn. In addition to all that brainwork, the normal TPA, Tennessee Press Service and TPA Foundation meetings will take place. And on Thursday night, conventioneers will attend the annual Riverbend Festival, where there will be all kinds of activities to please. Thanks to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, TPAers will have VIP seats and refreshments. Friday morning will bring an event that a good contingent of press association members wouldn’t miss except for high water: the golf tournament. It will be held at Bear Trace golf course at Harrison Bay State Park, Harrison. The afternoon agenda includes a session on Newspaper in Education. On Friday night, a reception, the Installation Banquet and a dessert reception are set. New officers of TPA, TPS and TPAF, as well as other principals, will be recognized. Steve Lake, 2005-06 TPA president, will say his farewell and turn over the gavel to Henry Stokes. Stokes has served two years as vice president for dailies. VIP treatment for TPAers at Riverbend Festival It’s not what you k n ow. . . i t ’s wh o you know. Tom Griscom and the Chattanooga Times Free Press invite TPA convention attendees to a VIP experience at the Riverbend Festival. On June RIVERBEND FESTIVAL 15, the Chattanooga Chattanooga at night during Riverbend 2005 Times Free Press is hosting TPAers at the city’s popular evening’s headline entertainment music festival. The evening will begin will be reserved for you. (See page 3 with a tour and refreshments in the for the current Riverbend line up for hospitality tent. VIP seating for the June 15.) Dear TPAer: Looking for a great trip at a time of higher gasoline prices? An opportunity to combine business with pleasure, bring family and be with friends, and have memories to share for years to come? The answers await you in Chattanooga at the 2006 Tennessee Press Association Summer Convention. From June 14 to 16, your host, the Chattanooga Times Free Press, invites you downtown to experience our town. CMYK 4 - Summer Convention Preview The TPA will recognize the best in our state and offer timely in-class training courses. There will be time to share best practices and realize that size does not matter when it comes to providing a quality newspaper either in print or online. Then you will be able to experience the summer music festival on the river bank —Riverbend. The Times Free Press and the TPA invite you to be our guest where you will enjoy good music on the banks of the Tennessee River. All this and more await our visitors to the TPA Summer Convention in Chattanooga. Welcome aboard. Sincerely, Tom Griscom Editor and Publisher Chattanooga Times Free Press Chatta’new’ga—what’s new about it? Chatta’new’ga is one of the city’s current promotional themes. What’s new? Ocean Journey, a $30 million expansion to the Tennessee Aquarium, opened in 2005. It features 700,000 gallons of saltwater exhibits. Dive beneath the waves through a coral reef teeming with fascinating 10-foot-long sharks, fierce barracuda and graceful stingrays. You will have hands-on encounters with tiny bamboo sharks and stingrays. Other enchanting exhibits will showcase amazing creatures like octopus, jellyfish and giant crabs. The Hunter Museum of Art and the Creative Discovery Museum completed renovations in 2005. The Passage provides a pedestrian connection from downtown to the Tennessee River. It marks the beginning of the Trail of Tears and celebrates Native American history and culture. One can learn about Chattanooga’s improvements and attractions at www. chattanoogafun.com. INSIDE SCHEDULE TRAINING LEADERS ACTIVITIES HEADQUARTERS CHATTANOOGA HISTORY 2 2 3 3 4 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 Convention Schedule/Training TPA 137th Annual Summer Convention June 14-16, 2006 Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn Wednesday, June 14 9:30 a.m. Session A: SNPA Session B: SNPA 1:30 p.m. Session C: SNPA (SNPA will provide Traveling Campus training program at its discretion on Wednesday.) Session D: SNPA CMYK Thursday, June 15 8:30 a.m. TPA registration opens 9:00 a.m. Session A—Intro to Adobe InDesign for Newspapers—Kevin Slimp Session B: SNPA 12:00 p.m. Lunch on one’s own 1:30 p.m. Ice Cream Reception sponsored by Mayfield Dairy 2:00 p.m. TPA Board of Directors; TPA Business Session; TPS Stockholders; TPAF Board of Trustees 2:00 p.m. Session C—Using InDesign/InCopy LiveEdit Workflow—Kevin Slimp Session D—SNPA 5:00 p.m. Take shuttles to Riverbend Festival 6:00 p.m. Riverbend Festival VIP event sponsored by the Chattanooga Times Free Press Friday, June 16 7:00 a.m. 9:00 a.m. Golf outing at Bear Trace at Harrison Bay sponsored by Bowater America Session A: NIE Workshop, Robie Scott, The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C. Session B: SNPA Computer Lab: InDesign, The Next Step 12:00 p.m. Lunch on one’s own 3:00 p.m. NIE presentation for publishers 6:00 p.m. Reception sponsored by BellSouth 7:00 p.m. Installation Banquet 9:00 p.m. Dessert Reception Convention Committee Kevin Burcham, chair, The News-Herald, Lenoir City Ralph Baldwin, The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens Stephen L. Crass, Cleveland Daily Banner Bob Lutgen, Chattanooga Times Free Press Tom Overton, Monroe County Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater ROBIE SCOTT, educational services manager The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C. NIE Growing With Integrity This session will focus on the elements that are necessary to create and sustain a viable and productive NIE program. We will define the basics with a focus on long range goals that do not have to be recreated each year. Details will be provided for teacher training, NIE leadership selection, securing sponsors, obtaining NIE orders in mass, curriculum options, choosing vendor products that work and program evaluation and assessments. Where to Stay and Play Golf Tournament at Bear Trace, Harrison Bay Crass Why NIE? This session will begin with an overview of NIE research and analysis and continue with a discussion on how to sustain readers ages 7 -17 while developing them as loyal future readers. Some background NIE basics will be overviewed, including teacher training and NIE promotion, sponsorship opportunities and assessments. Scott is a nationally known newspaper veteran with 18 years’ experience in NIE. Before entering the newspaper industry, Scott worked as a television producer. She also has served as a professor at The Citadel Military College since 1993. Most recently she wrote an NIE column for the Buenos Aires Herald in Argentina. The annual TPA Golf Tournament chairman is Stephen Crass, publisher of The Cleveland Daily Banner. Tom Wolfe will represent Bowater America, the tournament sponsor. The golf course, about 20 minutes north of Chattanooga at Harrison Bay State Park, was designed by Jack Nicklaus and was the second Bear Trace course to open. It is surrounded by both water and heavilywooded land, making an ideal setting for the course. The BearTrace features Bermuda fairways lined with soaring pine and hardwood trees. Although water touches 12 fairways, there is more than sufficient room to hit safely. The Holiday Inn’s lobby is the former terminal station for Southern Railway The hotel is one of the South’s renowned and unique landmarks. This 24-acre vacation and convention complex lies in the heart of Chattanooga and has something for everyone. The Choo Choo combines history and fun in a delightful blend that appeals to visitors of all ages. Wolfe STATE OF TENNESSEE A view from the course of Bear Trace at Harrison Bay 6:30 a.m. Transportation on your own 7:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast 8:00 a.m. Shotgun Start KEVIN SLIMP, TPS technology director InDesign, the Next Step Kevin will teach this class using the TPAF traveling lab. Attendees will get hands-on training in the following topics: •Creating Styles in InDesign •Working with Nested Styles •Input options for text and graphics •Creating postscript files from InDesign •Find/Change text in InDesign •Creating Tables in InDesign •Using the Transform tools in InDesign SNPA - TPA Partnership TPA is partnering with the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association (SNPA) to provide even more quality training in conjunction with the Summer Convention. SNPA will begin sessions on Wednesday, June 14, for those who are local or can drive in for the day. These sessions will be the more traditional Traveling Campus offerings for various departments. On Thursday and Friday, the sessions will be more management-type sessions. As soon as the sessions’ descriptions are available, TPA will distribute the details and post at www.tnpress.com. The complex includes train cars that one can sleep in, an array of restaurants and shops, the swimming pools, meeting and banquet rooms, an authentic New Orleans trolley and beautiful landscaped gardens. Details at www.choochoo.com. $50 registration fee Breakfast, lunch, beverages and prizes sponsored by Bowater America Riverbend Festival Intro to Adobe InDesign for Newspapers This is the perfect section for newspapers getting ready to make the move to InDesign and for those who have recently done so. Kevin will cover topics including: •Working with text in InDesign •Working with shapes and graphs •Working with paths in InDesign •Working with photos •Exporting files from InDesign •Using Text Wrap •Preflighting files in InDesign •Using InDesign’s special effects Using the InDesign/InCopy LiveEdit workflow The InDesign/InCopy workflow has become very popular among newspapers over the past two years. This workflow allows reporters, editors and designers to work in a managed workflow without the needing to buy an external workflow system. This class will be of much interest to anyone using InDesign or thinking about using it. Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn RESERVATIONS: (800) 872-2529 or (423) 266-5000 TPA RATE: $92, plus tax, per night/ $142, plus tax, per night for rail car room DEADLINE: Wednesday, May 24 Friday, June 16 Scott was elected to the South Carolina State Board of Education in 1997 and also serves as a commissioner on the Mayor’s Council for Children, Youth and Families. An active Rotarian, she spent two months in Scotland as a U.S. Rotary Foundation Ambassador. She serves on the board of four other nonprofit organizations. Summer Convention Preview - 3 CMYK 2 - Summer Convention Preview Over the past 25 years, the Riverbend Festival has become Chattanooga’s signature event. And this year our convention host, the Chattanooga Times Free Press, invites you to be part of it. Thursday, June 15, 2006 (as of 4/19/06) All performances are in the evening. Coca-Cola Stage 9:30 - 11:00 Sugarland TPA convention attendees will be given VIP access to the festival on Thursday, June 15 as the opening event of the convention. You will have VIP seating at the festival and a time of fellowship at the VIP hospitality tent. Your festival admission pin will also give you admission for each night of the festival. A limited number of space is available in the VIP area. Register with TPA early. Tickets will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. Limit 6 per newspaper. Covista Stage 6:15 - 7:30 Korean Dance It has grown from a first year attendance of 1,000 watching 7:45 - 9:00 Blue Merle 11:00 - 12:00 Dexter Thomas Band performers on a small sand barge to 650,000 enjoying world UnumProvident Stage 6:30 - 7:45 U I Blue 8:00 - 9:15 Ember Swift 9:30 - 12:00 The Duhks Bud Light Stage 6:30 - 7:45 Sky Dog 8:30 - 9:15 Overland Express 9:30 - 12:00 Shady Deal AmSouth Bank Stage 7:00 - 8:15 Escape Artists 8:30 - 9:45 Two Tons Of Steel 10:00 - 11:15 Madfish Willy www.riverbendfestival.com class entertainment for nine days on six stages, and over 100 performances. It is held at the new 21st Century Waterfront along the banks of the Tennessee River at Ross’s Landing. Riverbend 2006 is set for June 9-17 and featured artists include: The Allman Brothers, Hank Williams, Jr., Trisha Yearwood, Kenny Rogers, Los Lonely Boys, Sugarland, Suzy Bogguss and more. Visit www.riverbendfestival.com for more information. sponsored by Formal gardens and the Chattanooga Choo Choo The Holiday Inn has three swimming are features of the Holiday Inn complex pools including this indoor pool. Things to See and Do in Chattanooga There is so much to see and do in the Chattanooga area that it cannot be listed in this space. We are working with various attractions on discounts and offers for you. Watch your mail, email and www.tnpress.com for details. One of the attractions that has agreed to work with us is the Tennessee Aquarium. An excellent resource for planning your trip to Chattanooga is the Chattanooga Convention and Visitors Bureau Web site, www.chattanoogafun.com. We encourage you to bring your family and take advantage of all Chattanooga offers for family fun. A partial listing of area attractions is located on page 4 of this section. www.chattanoogafun.com TPA, as usual, will mail packets containing various kinds of information about the convention. One also can consult www.tnpress.com for registration information. The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 Convention Schedule/Training TPA 137th Annual Summer Convention June 14-16, 2006 Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn Wednesday, June 14 9:30 a.m. Session A: SNPA Session B: SNPA 1:30 p.m. Session C: SNPA (SNPA will provide Traveling Campus training program at its discretion on Wednesday.) Session D: SNPA CMYK Thursday, June 15 8:30 a.m. TPA registration opens 9:00 a.m. Session A—Intro to Adobe InDesign for Newspapers—Kevin Slimp Session B: SNPA 12:00 p.m. Lunch on one’s own 1:30 p.m. Ice Cream Reception sponsored by Mayfield Dairy 2:00 p.m. TPA Board of Directors; TPA Business Session; TPS Stockholders; TPAF Board of Trustees 2:00 p.m. Session C—Using InDesign/InCopy LiveEdit Workflow—Kevin Slimp Session D—SNPA 5:00 p.m. Take shuttles to Riverbend Festival 6:00 p.m. Riverbend Festival VIP event sponsored by the Chattanooga Times Free Press Friday, June 16 7:00 a.m. 9:00 a.m. Golf outing at Bear Trace at Harrison Bay sponsored by Bowater America Session A: NIE Workshop, Robie Scott, The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C. Session B: SNPA Computer Lab: InDesign, The Next Step 12:00 p.m. Lunch on one’s own 3:00 p.m. NIE presentation for publishers 6:00 p.m. Reception sponsored by BellSouth 7:00 p.m. Installation Banquet 9:00 p.m. Dessert Reception Convention Committee Kevin Burcham, chair, The News-Herald, Lenoir City Ralph Baldwin, The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens Stephen L. Crass, Cleveland Daily Banner Bob Lutgen, Chattanooga Times Free Press Tom Overton, Monroe County Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater ROBIE SCOTT, educational services manager The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C. NIE Growing With Integrity This session will focus on the elements that are necessary to create and sustain a viable and productive NIE program. We will define the basics with a focus on long range goals that do not have to be recreated each year. Details will be provided for teacher training, NIE leadership selection, securing sponsors, obtaining NIE orders in mass, curriculum options, choosing vendor products that work and program evaluation and assessments. Where to Stay and Play Golf Tournament at Bear Trace, Harrison Bay Crass Why NIE? This session will begin with an overview of NIE research and analysis and continue with a discussion on how to sustain readers ages 7 -17 while developing them as loyal future readers. Some background NIE basics will be overviewed, including teacher training and NIE promotion, sponsorship opportunities and assessments. Scott is a nationally known newspaper veteran with 18 years’ experience in NIE. Before entering the newspaper industry, Scott worked as a television producer. She also has served as a professor at The Citadel Military College since 1993. Most recently she wrote an NIE column for the Buenos Aires Herald in Argentina. The annual TPA Golf Tournament chairman is Stephen Crass, publisher of The Cleveland Daily Banner. Tom Wolfe will represent Bowater America, the tournament sponsor. The golf course, about 20 minutes north of Chattanooga at Harrison Bay State Park, was designed by Jack Nicklaus and was the second Bear Trace course to open. It is surrounded by both water and heavilywooded land, making an ideal setting for the course. The BearTrace features Bermuda fairways lined with soaring pine and hardwood trees. Although water touches 12 fairways, there is more than sufficient room to hit safely. The Holiday Inn’s lobby is the former terminal station for Southern Railway The hotel is one of the South’s renowned and unique landmarks. This 24-acre vacation and convention complex lies in the heart of Chattanooga and has something for everyone. The Choo Choo combines history and fun in a delightful blend that appeals to visitors of all ages. Wolfe STATE OF TENNESSEE A view from the course of Bear Trace at Harrison Bay 6:30 a.m. Transportation on your own 7:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast 8:00 a.m. Shotgun Start KEVIN SLIMP, TPS technology director InDesign, the Next Step Kevin will teach this class using the TPAF traveling lab. Attendees will get hands-on training in the following topics: •Creating Styles in InDesign •Working with Nested Styles •Input options for text and graphics •Creating postscript files from InDesign •Find/Change text in InDesign •Creating Tables in InDesign •Using the Transform tools in InDesign SNPA - TPA Partnership TPA is partnering with the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association (SNPA) to provide even more quality training in conjunction with the Summer Convention. SNPA will begin sessions on Wednesday, June 14, for those who are local or can drive in for the day. These sessions will be the more traditional Traveling Campus offerings for various departments. On Thursday and Friday, the sessions will be more management-type sessions. As soon as the sessions’ descriptions are available, TPA will distribute the details and post at www.tnpress.com. The complex includes train cars that one can sleep in, an array of restaurants and shops, the swimming pools, meeting and banquet rooms, an authentic New Orleans trolley and beautiful landscaped gardens. Details at www.choochoo.com. $50 registration fee Breakfast, lunch, beverages and prizes sponsored by Bowater America Riverbend Festival Intro to Adobe InDesign for Newspapers This is the perfect section for newspapers getting ready to make the move to InDesign and for those who have recently done so. Kevin will cover topics including: •Working with text in InDesign •Working with shapes and graphs •Working with paths in InDesign •Working with photos •Exporting files from InDesign •Using Text Wrap •Preflighting files in InDesign •Using InDesign’s special effects Using the InDesign/InCopy LiveEdit workflow The InDesign/InCopy workflow has become very popular among newspapers over the past two years. This workflow allows reporters, editors and designers to work in a managed workflow without the needing to buy an external workflow system. This class will be of much interest to anyone using InDesign or thinking about using it. Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn RESERVATIONS: (800) 872-2529 or (423) 266-5000 TPA RATE: $92, plus tax, per night/ $142, plus tax, per night for rail car room DEADLINE: Wednesday, May 24 Friday, June 16 Scott was elected to the South Carolina State Board of Education in 1997 and also serves as a commissioner on the Mayor’s Council for Children, Youth and Families. An active Rotarian, she spent two months in Scotland as a U.S. Rotary Foundation Ambassador. She serves on the board of four other nonprofit organizations. Summer Convention Preview - 3 CMYK 2 - Summer Convention Preview Over the past 25 years, the Riverbend Festival has become Chattanooga’s signature event. And this year our convention host, the Chattanooga Times Free Press, invites you to be part of it. Thursday, June 15, 2006 (as of 4/19/06) All performances are in the evening. Coca-Cola Stage 9:30 - 11:00 Sugarland TPA convention attendees will be given VIP access to the festival on Thursday, June 15 as the opening event of the convention. You will have VIP seating at the festival and a time of fellowship at the VIP hospitality tent. Your festival admission pin will also give you admission for each night of the festival. A limited number of space is available in the VIP area. Register with TPA early. Tickets will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. Limit 6 per newspaper. Covista Stage 6:15 - 7:30 Korean Dance It has grown from a first year attendance of 1,000 watching 7:45 - 9:00 Blue Merle 11:00 - 12:00 Dexter Thomas Band performers on a small sand barge to 650,000 enjoying world UnumProvident Stage 6:30 - 7:45 U I Blue 8:00 - 9:15 Ember Swift 9:30 - 12:00 The Duhks Bud Light Stage 6:30 - 7:45 Sky Dog 8:30 - 9:15 Overland Express 9:30 - 12:00 Shady Deal AmSouth Bank Stage 7:00 - 8:15 Escape Artists 8:30 - 9:45 Two Tons Of Steel 10:00 - 11:15 Madfish Willy www.riverbendfestival.com class entertainment for nine days on six stages, and over 100 performances. It is held at the new 21st Century Waterfront along the banks of the Tennessee River at Ross’s Landing. Riverbend 2006 is set for June 9-17 and featured artists include: The Allman Brothers, Hank Williams, Jr., Trisha Yearwood, Kenny Rogers, Los Lonely Boys, Sugarland, Suzy Bogguss and more. Visit www.riverbendfestival.com for more information. sponsored by Formal gardens and the Chattanooga Choo Choo The Holiday Inn has three swimming are features of the Holiday Inn complex pools including this indoor pool. Things to See and Do in Chattanooga There is so much to see and do in the Chattanooga area that it cannot be listed in this space. We are working with various attractions on discounts and offers for you. Watch your mail, email and www.tnpress.com for details. One of the attractions that has agreed to work with us is the Tennessee Aquarium. An excellent resource for planning your trip to Chattanooga is the Chattanooga Convention and Visitors Bureau Web site, www.chattanoogafun.com. We encourage you to bring your family and take advantage of all Chattanooga offers for family fun. A partial listing of area attractions is located on page 4 of this section. www.chattanoogafun.com TPA, as usual, will mail packets containing various kinds of information about the convention. One also can consult www.tnpress.com for registration information. The Tennessee Press Area Attractions History of Chattanooga Chattanooga Ducks—Unique ex-military amphibious vehicles made for the US Army to land troops on beaches during wartime. The Ducks are equally at home on land as well as water. www.chattanoogaducks.com The name “Chattanooga” comes from the Creek Indian word for “rock coming to a point.” This refers to Lookout Mountain, which begins in Chattanooga and stretches 88 miles through Alabama and Georgia. The city itself started out with two different names: Ross’s Landing and Lookout City. Ross’s Landing was established in 1816 by John Ross, chief of the Cherokee Indians. This area consisted of a ferry, warehouse and landing. With the organization of Hamilton County in 1819, Ross’s Landing served not only the Cherokee trade, but also as a convenient business center for the county. In 1838, the city officially took the name of “Chattanooga.” That same year, Cherokee parties left from Ross’s Landing for the West on what became known as the Trail of Tears. The bloodiest 2-day battle of the Civil War… In addition to its important location with the mountains and the river, the city was a vital railroad center, with tracks leading from Atlanta to Nashville, Memphis to Charleston and Knoxville to Virginia. Strategically placed at the “Gateway to the Deep South,” Chattanooga’s nickname during the war, troops were able to not only transport supplies, but also reinforcements. In addition, if the Union won here, they would have easy access to the Confederates’ “home turf.” What started off as a skirmish along the banks of the Tennessee River in the spring of 1863 resulted in the Confederates retreat to Chickamauga, Georgia. Here, the bloodiest two-day battle of the entire Civil War was fought, with a staggering 37,000 casualties. The Confederates were the first to regroup after the devastating Battle of Chickamauga, and they proceeded to lay siege to the Union forces holed up in Chattanooga. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant was sent in after the Union’s defeat at Chickamauga to regain control of the campaign. Under Grant’s leadership, and with the help of Gens. Thomas, Hooker and Sherman, the Union was able to win the next five battles in the Campaign for Chattanooga. Upon the Union’s victory at the final battle in the campaign for Chattanooga, the Battle of Missionary Ridge, the gateway was opened, allowing for Sherman’s famous march to Atlanta the following year. Shortly thereafter, the war ended. In 1890, veterans from both the Union and the Confederacy came back to the Scenic City. They placed tablets and erected monuments in what became the nation’s first national military park. The Chickamauga-Chattanooga National Military Park is still the largest of its kind in the nation with districts at the Chickamauga Battlefield, Point Park and Lookout Mountain Battlefield, Missionary Ridge, Orchard Knob and Signal Point. The Chattanooga National Cemetery was created in 1863, after the battles in the Campaign for Chattanooga, due to the enormous number of casualties at the Battle of Chickamauga. By 1865, more than 12,000 Union soldiers had been buried. The cemetery was officially designated as the first national cemetery in 1867 when Congress passed “An Act to Establish and Protect National Cemeteries.” Oldest truss bridge of its size in the South… Built in 1891, the Walnut Street Bridge became the first multiuse structure to span the Tennessee River, and for almost three decades, it served as the only way to cross the river. The Walnut Street Bridge served as a busy thoroughfare to the citizens of Chattanooga for many decades. Almost 100 years after its construction, the bridge was closed on the advice of engineers who feared its collapse. Committed citizens spoke out against its destruction, and the funds were then committed to preserve this historical landmark by turning it into a “walking bridge.” Today, the Walnut Street Bridge con- Coolidge Park—On the north shore of the Tennessee River, this park features a A fountain at Coolidge Park restored antique carousel and delightfully sculpted water fountains that are as much fun to play upon as they are refreshing on a hot summer day. Creative Discovery Museum—What child does not want to dig for dinosaur bones, take apart stuff that works, beat on drums and hide in a tree? All of this and more awaits visitors at this interactive museum. Designed for ages 2-12. www.cdmfun.com ES Hunter Museum of Art—Explore a beautiful mansion housing one of the finest collections of American art in the southeast. Located in the Bluff Arts district. Imax 3D Theater—Imax is the largest and most exciting film format in the world. Go to www.tnaqua.org for information on movies and schedules. ES Incline Railway—The world’s steepest passenger railway, a grade of 72.7% near the top, the Incline Railway will take you on a one mile trip to the top of historic Lookout Mountain. International Towing and Recovery Museum—a unique museum where you One of many views at Rock City can learn the history of the worldwide industry with exhibits of equipment that date back to 1916. www.internationaltowingmuseum.org Lake Winnepesaukah—Located just minutes from downtown Chattanooga, this amusement park has 30 rides. www.lakewinnie.com CMYK The Passage—An underground passageway leading to the river, marking the Trail of Tears and celebrating Chattanooga’s Native American culture. Point Park—Thirty-eight miles of hiking trails leading to overlooks, waterfalls, and historic ruins. A panoramic mural of the Battle of Lookout Mountain, painted by a witness of the historic event, is on display at Point Park. Rock City—A true marvel of nature featuring massive rock formations, gardens and “See 7 States” panoramic views. www.seerockcity.com Ruby Falls—Discovered in 1928 by Leo Lambert and named after his wife Ruby, take this cave adventure to view the spectacular waterfall and rock formations. www.rubyfalls.com Southern Belle Riverboat—cruise on the Tennessee River past urban parks, bluffs and maclellan Island, an 18-acre bird sanctuary. Sightseeing and dinner cruises offered. www.chattanoogariverboat.com Tennessee Aquarium—The Aquarium’s new $30 million Ocean Journey building is an expansion of the Aquarium’s popular Gulf of Mexico exhibit. It added 700,000 gallons of saltwater exhibits to what is currently the world’s largest freshwater aquarium. www.tnaqua.org ES Walnut Street Bridge—the world’s longest L ake Winnepasaukah’s pedestrian bridge connects the north and south Cannon Ball rollercoaster shores from Ross’s Landing to Coolidge Park. Warehouse Row—unique downtown shopping with over 25 stores in a beautiful, historic urban setting. Set in renovated turn-of-the century railroad warehouse. ES Do You Seek More Adventure? Ocoee River Rafting—Take a wild ride down the roaring whitewater rapids of the Ocoee River, site of the 1996 Olympic Canoe and Kayak Slalom Competition. Lookout Mountain Flight Park—Where visitors can hang glide off the top of the mountain. The place to go for hang gliding adventure, or to simply be a spectator. www.hanglide.com Rafting on the Ocoee River ES = a stop on CARTA, the free electric shuttle serving downtown Chattanooga. MAY 2006 Special section TPA Summer Convention Preview May 2006 CHATTA’NEW’GA, HERE WE COME! CHATTANOOGA CVB Experience the world’s steepest passenger railway at the Incline Railway nects downtown Chattanooga to the north shore’s Coolidge Park and Frazier Avenue. The first Gold Record… The famous Chattanooga Choo Choo Terminal Station was built in 1908. The station still stands today as a testament of the golden age of railroad with its 85-foot freestanding dome, the world’s largest free-standing dome. In addition, the song “Chattanooga Choo Choo,” which was made famous by Glen Miller in the 1940s, became the first gold record. See Rock City... Historical evidence shows that Native Americans once inhabited Lookout Mountain. It was in 1823 that two missionaries, Daniel S. Butrick and William Chamberlain, arrived in the area to minister to these Indians. On Aug. 28, 1823, Rev. Butrick made an entry in his diary describing “a citadel of rocks” atop the mountain, noting the immense size of the boulders and stating that they were arranged in such a way “as to afford streets and lanes.” By the time the Civil War reached the slopes of Lookout Mountain, more and more people had discovered what was already being called “the Rock City.” During the famous Battle of Lookout Mountain, both a Union and a Confederate nurse speculated in separate diary entries that one could see seven states from atop the summit. Rock City remained known to hikers and geologists throughout the latter portion of the 1800s, but it would take the dawning of a new century before the fabulous Rock City would reach its full potential. Frieda Carter set out to develop this property into a rock garden to end all rock gardens. She had taken string and marked a trail that wound its way around giant rock formations, ending at the giant outcropping known as Lover’s Leap. She had also collected wildflowers and other plants and had them transplanted along her trail. Garnet Carter realized his wife had something there and that lots of people might be willing to pay to see it. The rest, as they say, is history. Ruby Falls… In 1928, Leo Lambert began digging an elevator shaft down to the original cave within the Lookout Mountain Caverns. After 92 days of drilling through 420 feet of solid stone, the crew reached its target. But, some 260 feet down, Lambert was overtaken by an unfamiliar gust of air. Searching for the source, Lambert traveled for 17 hours before he stumbled upon a spectacular waterfall and breathtaking scenes of rock formations and mineral deposits within a large cavern. His description of his discovery seemed so preposterous that the group refused to believe him until he returned to the falls a second time with his wife, Ruby. When she repeated Lambert’s story to the engineers, work began to enable visitors to view this natural wonder, and Ruby Falls opened to the public in 1929. June 14-16 agenda: SNPA-TPA training, business and play BY ELENORA E. EDWARDS Managing editor The TPA Summer Convention coming up in June sounds like it will be one of the most training-packed ever. Drawing on our own expert, Kevin Slimp, and an array of standouts in various newspaper fields, conventioneers will be engaged for three days of training by Southern Newspaper Publishers Association and TPA. SNPA schedules several training occasions, called Traveling Campuses, in the states that comprise the regional organization. SNPA and TPA are cooperating to present this event during convention time. Convention attendees can take advantage of Traveling Campus training at no additional cost. The 137th Annual Summer Convention will run Wednesday through Friday, June 14-16, with all training and business sessions taking place at the Chattanooga Choo Choo Holiday Inn. In addition to all that brainwork, the normal TPA, Tennessee Press Service and TPA Foundation meetings will take place. And on Thursday night, conventioneers will attend the annual Riverbend Festival, where there will be all kinds of activities to please. Thanks to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, TPAers will have VIP seats and refreshments. Friday morning will bring an event that a good contingent of press association members wouldn’t miss except for high water: the golf tournament. It will be held at Bear Trace golf course at Harrison Bay State Park, Harrison. The afternoon agenda includes a session on Newspaper in Education. On Friday night, a reception, the Installation Banquet and a dessert reception are set. New officers of TPA, TPS and TPAF, as well as other principals, will be recognized. Steve Lake, 2005-06 TPA president, will say his farewell and turn over the gavel to Henry Stokes. Stokes has served two years as vice president for dailies. VIP treatment for TPAers at Riverbend Festival It’s not what you k n ow. . . i t ’s wh o you know. Tom Griscom and the Chattanooga Times Free Press invite TPA convention attendees to a VIP experience at the Riverbend Festival. On June RIVERBEND FESTIVAL 15, the Chattanooga Chattanooga at night during Riverbend 2005 Times Free Press is hosting TPAers at the city’s popular evening’s headline entertainment music festival. The evening will begin will be reserved for you. (See page 3 with a tour and refreshments in the for the current Riverbend line up for hospitality tent. VIP seating for the June 15.) Dear TPAer: Looking for a great trip at a time of higher gasoline prices? An opportunity to combine business with pleasure, bring family and be with friends, and have memories to share for years to come? The answers await you in Chattanooga at the 2006 Tennessee Press Association Summer Convention. From June 14 to 16, your host, the Chattanooga Times Free Press, invites you downtown to experience our town. CMYK 4 - Summer Convention Preview The TPA will recognize the best in our state and offer timely in-class training courses. There will be time to share best practices and realize that size does not matter when it comes to providing a quality newspaper either in print or online. Then you will be able to experience the summer music festival on the river bank —Riverbend. The Times Free Press and the TPA invite you to be our guest where you will enjoy good music on the banks of the Tennessee River. All this and more await our visitors to the TPA Summer Convention in Chattanooga. Welcome aboard. Sincerely, Tom Griscom Editor and Publisher Chattanooga Times Free Press Chatta’new’ga—what’s new about it? Chatta’new’ga is one of the city’s current promotional themes. What’s new? Ocean Journey, a $30 million expansion to the Tennessee Aquarium, opened in 2005. It features 700,000 gallons of saltwater exhibits. Dive beneath the waves through a coral reef teeming with fascinating 10-foot-long sharks, fierce barracuda and graceful stingrays. You will have hands-on encounters with tiny bamboo sharks and stingrays. Other enchanting exhibits will showcase amazing creatures like octopus, jellyfish and giant crabs. The Hunter Museum of Art and the Creative Discovery Museum completed renovations in 2005. The Passage provides a pedestrian connection from downtown to the Tennessee River. It marks the beginning of the Trail of Tears and celebrates Native American history and culture. One can learn about Chattanooga’s improvements and attractions at www. chattanoogafun.com. INSIDE SCHEDULE TRAINING LEADERS ACTIVITIES HEADQUARTERS CHATTANOOGA HISTORY 2 2 3 3 4 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 Special section Advertising/Circulation Conference & Ideas Contest CMYK ‘Free classifieds’ puzzle publishers The issue of free classifieds won’t go away any you see is what you get”) capabilities on your site, time soon. so customers who are tempted to spend $5, $10 or It’s a tremendous challenge for publishers, $15 for increased visibility online or a print upsell because they’re used to getting paid for the ads have great reason to do so. Readily, easily and by they run. credit card. But Google, Microsoft and many other compa•Should you allow aggregator/indexer sites like nies–including Craigslist, the site that’s not really Google Base and Oodle to include your listings in a business–don’t plan to get paid for the classified their databases? This is another tricky question, ads they carry. At least not directly. And that makes and I could easily make the argument either way. every traditional classified advertising publisher INTERACTIVE But in general, our answer is yes. With more caveats crazy. Publishers have to adapt to the new business and “ifs/maybes” than just a straight yes. rules while still keeping the old business going INSIDER The bottom line, in my opinion: No one calls and growing. your newspaper because they want to “place an Peter Zollman ad.” They want results. They want to sell that It’s not easy. Not at all. Here are a few questions: car/rent that apartment/sell that house/find that •Should you offer free classifieds? new employee—quickly, easily, effectively and as •If so, what/how/why? inexpensively as possible. •Should you allow your ads to be aggregated into Google If you’re the place they call to place the ad, good for you. Base/Indeed.com/Oodle.com/Vast.com/etc.? If you’re the place consumers turn to, you’re doing your job. Unfortunately, there’s no single answer to any of those You’re serving as the marketplace. questions. For each newspaper/market/category, the answer As long as the advertiser pays you for the results, you’re is different. We work with our clients to answer those ques- the winner. As for all the free sites, sure, advertisers could tions specifically for them. post ads on their own—but they’d have to deal with the But since I’ve raised the questions, I should at least give you complicated and time-consuming task of knowing which my “generic” answers with a very short synopsis of why my sites to visit, actually placing, managing and expiring the colleagues and I at Classified Intelligence believe as we do. listings, and so forth. •Should you offer free classifieds? Yes. Sometimes. Are there But if your brand is the “one-stop advertising source” for marketplaces you’ve lost? Like “merchandise under $500” or finding a job/home/car/etc. in your market, you’ll do well. personals or “used cars under $3,000”? If so, that’s a good Again: This is not a blanket endorsement. For more pros place to start. But make sure you build in revenue streams, and cons, invite one of us from Classified Intelligence to such as section sponsorships or options for advertisers speak at your association meeting; have us work with your who want to sell to the audience you’re reaching (low-end company on the specifics of your market, and your objectives; used-car dealers, for example, adjacent to “used cars under or just call me with specific questions. I’ll be happy to try to $3,000”). And upsells into print. And upsells online. Best: answer them. No charge. Because these are important issues All of the above. and publishers should consider them carefully. Before they “Why” offer free classifieds? To recapture categories you’ve lose the marketplace. lost, and/or to hold on to your “endangered species.” Make sure you use those free classifieds to promote your newspa- PETER M. ZOLLMAN is founding principal of Classified per, to build “community” on your Web site (and in print, Intelligence LLC and the AIM Group, consulting groups if possible), and to increase traffic on your Web site. All of that work with media companies to help develop profitthose generate revenue through local ad sales. able interactive media services. Zollman can be reached at When you offer free classifieds, make sure you’re not sub- pzollman@aimgroup.com or (407) 788-2780. stantially increasing costs. Use them to drive ad placement online. And make sure you include upsell WYSIWYG (“what Ideas Contest first runner-up, Best of Show, an ad fromThe News-Examiner, Gallatin, “Your First Newspaper” May 2006 News Sentinel wins Best of Show BY ROBYN GENTILE Member services manager Artie Wehenkel, advertising director of The Greeneville Sun, and Laura Dougherty, advertising director of The Paris Post-Intelligencer and conference co-chairman, draw the name of the winner of the $50 cash prize from among conference evaluations turned in by attendees. The winner was Betty Davis, The Erwin Record. Wal-Mart says, No more ads Wal-Mart announced in early April that it will not buy further advertisements in local newspapers, saying a test in two states showed the expense is not justified. Wal-Mart’s test run in Midwestern papers was watched by publishers who at the 2005 convention of the National Newspaper Association complained Ideas Contest second runner-up, Best of Show, a special section from The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro, “Last Minute Gift Guide” that Wal-Mart sought free publicity from their newspapers but would not buy ads, at the same time driving out businesses that were solid advertisers. During the holiday shopping season, Wal-Mart placed full-page color ads for its electronics department in 336 smaller papers in Missouri and Oklahoma. “Our test showed that it did increase product sales but our margins are so thin that we didn’t even come close to offsetting the cost of the ads,” Wal-Mart spokeswoman Mona Williams said. Mike Buffington, a Georgia publisher who has been the point man in talks with Wal-Mart by the NNA, said WalMart told him the return wasn’t high enough. At the Newspaper Association of America meeting April 4 in Chicago, Wal-Mart Chief Executive Lee Scott said newspaper advertising “didn’t give us a return.” Buffington, past president of the NNA and co-publisher of MainStreet Newspapers, Jefferson, Ga., said not all publishers would agree that a company could reach a decision on costs versus benefits after a single ad. “Our view is that a one-time test is probably not a true way to evaluate community newspapers. In fact we understand they had quite a bump in sales. But the advertising itself, the full-page color ads, were expensive and they were advertising loss-leader type items,” he said. Buffington wrote an open letter in 2005 accusing Wal-Mart of ignoring community newspapers. Wal-Mart has said it has strong customer traffic without advertising. (Partially based on an AP story by Marcus Kabel) Awards in the annual Tennessee Press Association Ideas Contest were presented April 7 at Paris Landing State Park Inn in conjunction with the Advertising/Circulation Conference. The News Sentinel, Knoxville, won the Jack Freeland Memorial Best of Show Award. The ad, designed by Tim Bowers and Laddy Fields, was a self-promotion to encourage the purchase of color with classified ads. It was entered in the best rack card category. “Awesome use of color; perfect amount of white space; dynamic graphic photo,” wrote the judges. First runner-up for Best of Show was The News-Examiner, Gallatin, for its ad, “Your First Newspaper.” Second runner-up was The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro, entry, “Last Minute Gift Guide,” a special section. The Kingsport Times-News and the Rogersville Review tied for the most first place awards with eight each. The Kingsport Times-News and The Erwin Record tied for the most awards with a total of 23 each. Members of the Louisiana Press Association judged contest entries March 9 in Baton Rouge, La. A total of 990 entries was received from 41 newspapers. The contest has 27 categories, with each divided into five circulation divisions, two for nondailies and three for dailies. Jack Freeland, for whom the Best of Show award was named, was advertising manager of The Daily Herald, Columbia, and was active with the TPA Advertising Committee. The Ideas Contest was established in 1978. Artie Wehenkel, advertising director of The Greeneville Sun, coordinated a PowerPoint presentation of the contest winners, and he served as the emcee during the presentations. All conference attendees and Ideas Contest entrants will receive a CD of the PowerPoint presentation. The following is the complete list of winners. Ideas Contest Winners 2006 BEST OF SHOW News Sentinel, Knoxville •First runner-up–The News-Examiner, Gallatin •Second runner-up–The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro Tim Bowers Laddy Fields Tim Bowers and Laddy Fields, News Sentinel, Knoxville, created the Best of Show ad, purpose of which was to explain that color was available for classified ads. It was entered in the best rack card category. Bowers came up with the copy, and Fields designed it. Bowers is product promotions manager and has been with the News Sentinel for 26 years. Fields is a graphic designer. He has been with the paper for three years. Best special section Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 2nd – The Lebanon Democrat 3rd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette Tom McCarter, News Sentinel, Knoxville, left, and Keith McCormick, Herald-Citizen, Cookeville, conference co-chairman, with the Best of Show plaque and certificate. McCarter represented the News Sentinel at the conference. SEE CONTEST, PAGE 2 NEWS SENTINEL, KNOXVILLE Laddy Fields, left, and Tim Bowers $50 goes to ad idea winners Lillian Abernathy and Vicki Carl were winners of the advertising idea exchange for a special section, “Hometown Christmas.” They are with The News-Examiner, Gallatin. Best of Show was a rack card ad, for use “ColorYour Classified Ads,” designed for the News Sentinel, Knoxville, designed by Tim Bowers and Laddy Fields. Voting on the best ad idea is a traditional part of the Ad/Circ Conference. The prize was $50. PHOTOS IN THIS ADVERTISING/CIRCULATION SECTION WERE MADE BY ROBYN GENTILE | TPA, EXCEPT AS NOTED. CMYK 8 - Ad/Circ Conference The Tennessee Press 2 - Ad/Circ Conference MAY 2006 MAY 2006 The Tennessee Press Lu Shep Baldwin, Jones Media, and Carl McCarter, The Daily Times, Maryville, talk about NIE materials. Deborah Yant, Martha Horn and Kathie Yant, all with Pulaski Publishing. Horn threatens to squirt Keith McCormick, Herald-Citizen, Cookeville, with her water gun. Ad/Circ Conference- 7 Customer service, selling are Ad/Circ topics Advertising and circulation personnel from TPA member newspapers gathered April 6-8 at Paris Landing State Park Inn for the annual Advertising/Circulation Conference. Steve Wagenlander, circulation director of The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C., was the featured presenter for the conference. His sessions on the relationship between advertising and circulation and on customer service received high scores on the conference evaluations and were specifically listed as the most beneficial part of the conference on 43 percent of the forms. The second most popular conference benefit listed was the Idea Exchange, followed by networking. During “Customer Service: Real Calls to Real Newspapers,” live phone calls were made to newspapers that had volunteered to receive calls. Before the calls were placed, the volunteers explained how the call should be answered and what should be offered. Some went very well and others did not, but the point is to know what kind of service your customers receive. The amusing conclusion to the session occurred when a call was placed to The Paris Post-Intelligencer. The call went very well and CONTEST CMYK FROM PAGE ONE Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro 2nd – Citizen Tribune, Morristown 3rd – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville was concluded with, “Have a good conference.” Mark Dicus, circulation assistant, had been at the conference and returned to the newspaper to work. He recognized the setup and the session attendees had a good laugh at his response. Other conference sessions included selling against direct mail and cable; legal issues; Newspaper in Education; and Audit Bureau of Circulations updates. Another highlight of the conference was the presentation of the annual Ideas Contest awards. Artie Wehenkel, advertising director of The Greeneville Sun, served as the emcee for the awards presentation. The Best of Show was awarded to the News Sentinel, Knoxville. Tom McCarter was present to accept the award. Attendees arriving on Thursday were invited to participate in a tropical-themed dinner. Tropical shirts were the suggested attire, with a prize offered for the best. The winner of the contest was Paula Sisco of The Paris Post-Intelligencer. Great River Road, a local band, provided the evening’s entertainment. Moody Castleman, new business development manager for Tennessee Press Service, played the keyboard during one of the sets. The band was sponsored by The Paris Post-Intelligencer. The P-I also sponsored Bill McCutcheon, reporter and local DJ, as Friday evening’s entertainment. Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Chattanooga Times Free Press 2nd – Bristol Herald Courier 3rd – News Sentinel, Knoxville Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review Print, online ads up in 2005 Advertising expenditures at newspapers and their Web sites totaled $14.3 billion for the fourth quarter of 2005, a 1.4 percent increase over the same period a year earlier, according to preliminary estimates from the Newspaper Association of America. Spending for print ads in newspapers totaled $13.7 billion, up 0.4 percent ver- 2 0 0 7 sus the same period in 2004, while ad spending online continued its doubledigit growth in the fourth quarter, increasing by 32.5 percent from the same period a year ago to $552 million. For the full year, ad spending on newspaper Web sites jumped 31.5 percent, reaching a new record of $2.0 billion. Please give us your input to help the committees plan an even better Advertising/Circulation Conference for 2007. A brief survey is online at www.tnpress.com. Please tell us what topics you would like to have covered at the 2007 Conference. And, please let us know if you would like to serve on the Advertising or Circulation Committees. Bill Williams told a Lewis Grizzard story to entertain during lunch on Friday, and preschool children involve d in the Henry County reading program presented a certificate of appreciation to TPA for its help in bringing the Imagination Library to Henry County. The conference was hosted by The Paris PostIntelligencer. Laura Dougherty, ad manager of The P-I, chairs the advertising committee and co-chaired the conference. Through Dougherty’s efforts, local businesses contributed to the conference with goody bags, prize donations, sponsorship and themed décor. Keith McCormick, circulation manager of the Herald-Citizen, Cookeville, chairs the Circulation Committee and co-chaired the conference. Martha Horn, advertising manager of the Pulaski Citizen, served as prize coordinator. The conference is planned each fall at a retreat of Advertising and Circulation committee members. If one is interested in serving on one of these committees, please contact me at (865) 584-5761 or rgentile@tnpress.com. All TPA members are invited to attend the planning retreat. In 2004, the committees decided to rotate the conference, traditionally held in Nashville, among the east, middle and west divisions of Tennessee. For 2007 the conference will be scheduled in Middle Tennessee. 2nd – Rogersville Review 3rd – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 2nd – The Expositor, Sparta 3rd – The Expositor, Sparta Best self-promotion of a newspaper Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 2nd – The Lebanon Democrat 3rd – The Lebanon Democrat Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro 2nd – Cleveland Daily Banner 3rd – Cleveland Daily Banner The P-I’s new mascot awaits an introduction. The mascot is so new that he or she doesn’t have a name. Laura Dougherty said The P-I will have an NIE contest to name him or her. Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 2nd – The Covington Leader 3rd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Best sales promotion for an advertiser Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Paris Post-Intelligencer 2nd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette CMYK BY ROBYN GENTILE Member services manager 3rd – The Paris Post-Intelligencer Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Erwin Record 2nd – The Hartsville Vidette 3rd – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Crossville Chronicle 2nd – Crossville Chronicle 3rd – Crossville Chronicle STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN The Great River Road band entertained, courtesy of The Paris Post-Intelligencer. STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN Kathie Yant, left, and Martha Horn admire Madeline, 9-month-old daughter of Steve and Kathy Lake. She is in the arms of Donna Yant. SEE CONTEST, PAGE 3 Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – News Sentinel, Knoxville 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Honorable mention – Bristol Herald Courier Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – Rogersville Review 3rd – Rogersville Review STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN Hugh Jones, Shelbyville Times-Gazette, looks at a publication Bill Williams, The Paris Post-Intelligencer, tells a Lewis Grizzard story. while chatting with Artie Wehenkel, The Greeneville Sun. STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN Carol and Victor Parkins dance to the music of the band, Great River Road. The band was sponsored by The Paris P-I. Vicki Carl, left, and Lillian Abernathy, The News-Examiner, Gallatin, won $50 for the best advertising idea. The Tennessee Press 6 - Ad/Circ Conference MAY 2006 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 (Left photo) Attendees await the results of the tropical shirt contest. (Middle photo) Tropical shirt contest down to the final Ad/Circ Conference- 3 two. (Right photo) Tropical shirt winner: Paula Sisco, The glad she had not won when she saw the prize—a ceramic Paris Post-Intelligencer, left. Martha Horn, runner-up, was parrot cookie jar. Sisco looks unsure about it. CONTEST FROM PAGE 2 Lawyer Jimmy Patterson speaks to attendees on legal issues. CONTEST FROM PAGE 5 CMYK Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Southern Standard, McMinnville 2nd – The Covington Leader 3rd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Honorable mention – Southern Standard, McMinnville Best single copy promotion Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 2nd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Expositor, Sparta 2nd – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 3rd – The Expositor, Sparta Best NIE promotion Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens 2nd – The Daily PostAthenian, Athens 3rd – The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – Cleveland Daily Banner Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – News Sentinel, Knoxville 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 2nd – The Expositor, Sparta 3rd – The Expositor, Sparta Best carrier recruitment Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun Best overall Web site Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Bristol Herald Courier Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Mountain View, Spencer 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – Livingston Enterprise Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Crossville Chronicle 2nd – The Expositor, Sparta 3rd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Best Internet banner or tile ad for an advertiser Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – News Sentinel, Knoxville 2nd – Bristol Herald Courier 3rd – News Sentinel, Knoxville Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Expositor, Sparta 2nd – The Expositor, Sparta 3rd – The Expositor, Sparta NIE sponsorship recruitment Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens 2nd – The Daily PostAthenian, Athens 3rd – The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – Cleveland Daily Banner Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – News Sentinel, Knoxville Best reader contest Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun 2nd – The Newport Plain Talk 3rd – The Paris Post-Intelligencer Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Bristol Herald Courier Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Erwin Record 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – Macon County Chronicle, Lafayette Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Tullahoma News 2nd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Left, Laura Dougherty,The Paris Post-Intelligencer, conference co-chairman, and Sissy Smith, Shelbyville Times-Gazette, take a moment to catch up. 3rd – Crossville Chronicle Best classified section Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Paris Post-Intelli gencer Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Bristol Herald Courier Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater 2nd – Livingston Enterprise 3rd – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Expositor, Sparta 2nd – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 3rd – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski Subscriber retention program Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun 2nd – The Greeneville Sun 3rd – The Greeneville Sun Subscriber retention program Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Pulaski Citizen 2nd – Crossville Chronicle Internet subscription promotion Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Mountain View, Spencer Read The Tennessee Press —then pass it on! Best use of multi-color ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun 2nd – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 3rd – The Newport Plain Talk Honorable mention – The Greeneville Sun Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – Citizen Tribune, Morristown 2nd – Citizen Tribune, Morristown 3rd – Citizen Tribune, Morristown Honorable mention – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Steve Wagenlander shares an example during the marketing session. Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Bristol Herald Courier 3rd – Bristol Herald Courier Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – Rogersville Review 3rd – The Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Southern Standard, McMinnville 2nd – Robertson County Times, Springfield 3rd – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski Best use of single color ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Paris Post-Intelligencer 2nd – The Mountain Press, Sevierville 3rd – The Paris Post-Intelligencer STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Artie Wehenkel asks a question during Steve Wagenlander’s session on marketing. 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Honorable mention – Kingsport Times-News Special thanks to The Paris Post-Intelligencer for hosting the 2006 Advertising/Circulation Conference SEE CONTEST, PAGE 4 Laura Dougherty SPONSORED BY for her tireless efforts from chairing the Advertising Committee to goody bags to decorations and generally doing everything within her power to make the conference a great event for attendees Artie Wehenkel for preparing the Ideas Contest presentation and for once again serving as emcee of the awards event Keith McCormick for stepping in to chair the Circulation Committee and his work on the conference Paris-Henry County Chamber of Commerce 2508 East Wood Street • Paris, TN 38242 Phone - (731) 642-3431 www.paristn.org Conference Speakers and Entertainers Steve Wagenlander, Louisa Koken, Jimmy Patterson, Lu Shep Baldwin, Phil Hensley, Bill Williams, Bill McCutcheon and Great River Road TPA’s Advertising and Circulation Committees for planning the conference TPA thanks the Paris-Henry County Chamber of Commerce for sponsoring the Advertising/Circulation Conference’s continental breakfast Conference Attendees and their Publishers for including the conference in their budgets and schedules CMYK In Patterson’s session, Lori Waddle, The Greeneville Sun; Henry Stokes, The Germantown Appeal; Shannon Money, The Tullahoma News; Carl McCarter, The Daily Times, Maryville; and Keith McCormick, Herald-Citizen, Cookeville. The P-I mascot costume is on the table in the background. MAY 2006 CONTEST CONTEST FROM PAGE 3 FROM PAGE 4 Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Erwin Record 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – The Erwin Record Honorable mention – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski 2nd – The Expositor 3rd – The Expositor Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski 2nd – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 3rd – The Courier, Savannah Best black & white ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 2nd – The Lebanon Democrat 3rd – The Newport Plain Talk CMYK Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – Citizen Tribune, Morristown 2nd – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro 3rd – Citizen Tribune, Morristown Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski 2nd – Crossville Chronicle 3rd – The Courier, Savannah Best feature page or pages Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 2nd – The Paris Post-Intelligencer 3rd – The Greeneville Sun Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville 2nd – Cleveland Daily Banner 3rd – Cleveland Daily Banner Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Chattanooga Times Free Press Best automotive ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 2nd – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 3rd – The Lebanon Democrat Honorable mention – The Lebanon Democrat Phil Hensley, circulation director of the Johnson City Press, volunteered his newspaper to receive a call during the session. He explains how the call should be answered and what subscription rates should be offered. Wagenlander comments after the call to the Johnson City Press. Hensley makes notes on a few items to discuss with his department. 3rd – Chattanooga Times Free Press Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Southern Standard, McMinnville 2nd – The Tullahoma News 3rd – The News-Examiner, Gallatin Best 1/4 page or smaller ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 2nd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 3rd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville 2nd – Citizen Tribune, Morristown 3rd – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Chattanooga Times Free Press 2nd – Bristol Herald Courier 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro 2nd – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Chattanooga Times Free Press Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Macon County Chronicle, Lafayette 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – Rogersville Review Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – Rogersville Review 3rd – Livingston Enterprise Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Robertson County Times, Springfield 2nd – Robertson County Times, Springfield 3rd – The Expositor, Sparta Attendees during Steve Wagenlander’s customer service session Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – Smithville Review Best real estate ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 2nd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 3rd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Robertson County Times, Springfield 2nd – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 3rd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Best food store ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 2nd – The Greeneville Sun 3rd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville DonnaYant, Pulaski Publishing, Moody Castleman,TPS, Nashville, Martha Horn and Deborah Yant, both of Pulaski Publishing. Horn is the door prize coordinator and the cash drawing coordinator. Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Bristol Herald Courier Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – The Erwin Record SEE CONTEST, PAGE 5 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville 2nd – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro 3rd – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Kingsport Times-News Ad/Circ Conference - 5 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Advo cate & Democrat, Sweetwater 2nd – Smithville Review 3rd – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Covington Leader 2nd – Crossville Louisa Koken, Koken Consulting, Greenville, S.C., during her session on selling against Chronicle 3rd – The News- cable and direct mail Examiner, Gallatin In Koken’s session, Lu Shep Baldwin, NIE coordinator, Jones Media, and Hulon Dunn, Lewis County Herald, Hohenwald Best furniture/ appliance ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 2nd – The Greeneville Sun 3rd – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville Daily 15,000 - 25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville 2nd – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville 3rd – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville CMYK The Tennessee Press 4 - Ad/Circ Conference Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Chattanooga Times Free Press 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Erwin Record 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – The Erwin Record During the luncheon, area preschoolers presented a certificate of appreciation to TPA for its role in bringing the Imagination Library to Henry County. Lu Shep Baldwin, Athens, NIE coordinator for Jones Media, accepted the certificate on behalf of TPA. Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 2nd – The Covington Leader 3rd – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – Cleveland Daily Banner Subscription promotion idea Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun 2nd – The Greeneville Sun 3rd – The Greeneville Sun Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Smithville Review 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – Macon County Chronicle, Lafayette Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – News Sentinel, Knoxville Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Courier, Savannah 2nd – The Expositor, Sparta 3rd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – News Sentinel, Knoxville 2nd – News Sentinel, Knoxville 3rd – News Sentinel, Knoxville Best rack card Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun 2nd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 3rd – The Newport Plain Talk Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – Rogersville Review 3rd – The Erwin Record SEE CONTEST, PAGE 6 MAY 2006 CONTEST CONTEST FROM PAGE 3 FROM PAGE 4 Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Erwin Record 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – The Erwin Record Honorable mention – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski 2nd – The Expositor 3rd – The Expositor Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski 2nd – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 3rd – The Courier, Savannah Best black & white ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 2nd – The Lebanon Democrat 3rd – The Newport Plain Talk CMYK Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – Citizen Tribune, Morristown 2nd – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro 3rd – Citizen Tribune, Morristown Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski 2nd – Crossville Chronicle 3rd – The Courier, Savannah Best feature page or pages Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 2nd – The Paris Post-Intelligencer 3rd – The Greeneville Sun Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville 2nd – Cleveland Daily Banner 3rd – Cleveland Daily Banner Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Chattanooga Times Free Press Best automotive ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 2nd – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 3rd – The Lebanon Democrat Honorable mention – The Lebanon Democrat Phil Hensley, circulation director of the Johnson City Press, volunteered his newspaper to receive a call during the session. He explains how the call should be answered and what subscription rates should be offered. Wagenlander comments after the call to the Johnson City Press. Hensley makes notes on a few items to discuss with his department. 3rd – Chattanooga Times Free Press Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Southern Standard, McMinnville 2nd – The Tullahoma News 3rd – The News-Examiner, Gallatin Best 1/4 page or smaller ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 2nd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 3rd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville 2nd – Citizen Tribune, Morristown 3rd – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Chattanooga Times Free Press 2nd – Bristol Herald Courier 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro 2nd – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Chattanooga Times Free Press Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Macon County Chronicle, Lafayette 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – Rogersville Review Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – Rogersville Review 3rd – Livingston Enterprise Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Robertson County Times, Springfield 2nd – Robertson County Times, Springfield 3rd – The Expositor, Sparta Attendees during Steve Wagenlander’s customer service session Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – Smithville Review Best real estate ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 2nd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 3rd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Robertson County Times, Springfield 2nd – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 3rd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Best food store ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 2nd – The Greeneville Sun 3rd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville DonnaYant, Pulaski Publishing, Moody Castleman,TPS, Nashville, Martha Horn and Deborah Yant, both of Pulaski Publishing. Horn is the door prize coordinator and the cash drawing coordinator. Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Bristol Herald Courier Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – The Erwin Record SEE CONTEST, PAGE 5 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville 2nd – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro 3rd – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Kingsport Times-News Ad/Circ Conference - 5 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Advo cate & Democrat, Sweetwater 2nd – Smithville Review 3rd – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Covington Leader 2nd – Crossville Louisa Koken, Koken Consulting, Greenville, S.C., during her session on selling against Chronicle 3rd – The News- cable and direct mail Examiner, Gallatin In Koken’s session, Lu Shep Baldwin, NIE coordinator, Jones Media, and Hulon Dunn, Lewis County Herald, Hohenwald Best furniture/ appliance ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 2nd – The Greeneville Sun 3rd – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville Daily 15,000 - 25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville 2nd – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville 3rd – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville CMYK The Tennessee Press 4 - Ad/Circ Conference Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Chattanooga Times Free Press 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Erwin Record 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – The Erwin Record During the luncheon, area preschoolers presented a certificate of appreciation to TPA for its role in bringing the Imagination Library to Henry County. Lu Shep Baldwin, Athens, NIE coordinator for Jones Media, accepted the certificate on behalf of TPA. Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 2nd – The Covington Leader 3rd – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – Cleveland Daily Banner Subscription promotion idea Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun 2nd – The Greeneville Sun 3rd – The Greeneville Sun Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Smithville Review 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – Macon County Chronicle, Lafayette Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – News Sentinel, Knoxville Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Courier, Savannah 2nd – The Expositor, Sparta 3rd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – News Sentinel, Knoxville 2nd – News Sentinel, Knoxville 3rd – News Sentinel, Knoxville Best rack card Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun 2nd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 3rd – The Newport Plain Talk Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – Rogersville Review 3rd – The Erwin Record SEE CONTEST, PAGE 6 The Tennessee Press 6 - Ad/Circ Conference MAY 2006 The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 (Left photo) Attendees await the results of the tropical shirt contest. (Middle photo) Tropical shirt contest down to the final Ad/Circ Conference- 3 two. (Right photo) Tropical shirt winner: Paula Sisco, The glad she had not won when she saw the prize—a ceramic Paris Post-Intelligencer, left. Martha Horn, runner-up, was parrot cookie jar. Sisco looks unsure about it. CONTEST FROM PAGE 2 Lawyer Jimmy Patterson speaks to attendees on legal issues. CONTEST FROM PAGE 5 CMYK Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Southern Standard, McMinnville 2nd – The Covington Leader 3rd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Honorable mention – Southern Standard, McMinnville Best single copy promotion Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Shelbyville Times-Gazette 2nd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Expositor, Sparta 2nd – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 3rd – The Expositor, Sparta Best NIE promotion Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens 2nd – The Daily PostAthenian, Athens 3rd – The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – Cleveland Daily Banner Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – News Sentinel, Knoxville 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 2nd – The Expositor, Sparta 3rd – The Expositor, Sparta Best carrier recruitment Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun Best overall Web site Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Bristol Herald Courier Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Mountain View, Spencer 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – Livingston Enterprise Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Crossville Chronicle 2nd – The Expositor, Sparta 3rd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Best Internet banner or tile ad for an advertiser Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – News Sentinel, Knoxville 2nd – Bristol Herald Courier 3rd – News Sentinel, Knoxville Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Expositor, Sparta 2nd – The Expositor, Sparta 3rd – The Expositor, Sparta NIE sponsorship recruitment Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens 2nd – The Daily PostAthenian, Athens 3rd – The Daily Post-Athenian, Athens Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – Cleveland Daily Banner Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – News Sentinel, Knoxville Best reader contest Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun 2nd – The Newport Plain Talk 3rd – The Paris Post-Intelligencer Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Bristol Herald Courier Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Erwin Record 2nd – The Erwin Record 3rd – Macon County Chronicle, Lafayette Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Tullahoma News 2nd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Left, Laura Dougherty,The Paris Post-Intelligencer, conference co-chairman, and Sissy Smith, Shelbyville Times-Gazette, take a moment to catch up. 3rd – Crossville Chronicle Best classified section Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Paris Post-Intelli gencer Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Bristol Herald Courier Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater 2nd – Livingston Enterprise 3rd – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Expositor, Sparta 2nd – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 3rd – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski Subscriber retention program Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun 2nd – The Greeneville Sun 3rd – The Greeneville Sun Subscriber retention program Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Pulaski Citizen 2nd – Crossville Chronicle Internet subscription promotion Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Mountain View, Spencer Read The Tennessee Press —then pass it on! Best use of multi-color ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Greeneville Sun 2nd – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 3rd – The Newport Plain Talk Honorable mention – The Greeneville Sun Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – Citizen Tribune, Morristown 2nd – Citizen Tribune, Morristown 3rd – Citizen Tribune, Morristown Honorable mention – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Steve Wagenlander shares an example during the marketing session. Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – Bristol Herald Courier 3rd – Bristol Herald Courier Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – Rogersville Review 3rd – The Advocate & Democrat, Sweetwater Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Southern Standard, McMinnville 2nd – Robertson County Times, Springfield 3rd – The Giles Free Press, Pulaski Best use of single color ad Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Paris Post-Intelligencer 2nd – The Mountain Press, Sevierville 3rd – The Paris Post-Intelligencer STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville Artie Wehenkel asks a question during Steve Wagenlander’s session on marketing. 2nd – Kingsport Times-News 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Honorable mention – Kingsport Times-News Special thanks to The Paris Post-Intelligencer for hosting the 2006 Advertising/Circulation Conference SEE CONTEST, PAGE 4 Laura Dougherty SPONSORED BY for her tireless efforts from chairing the Advertising Committee to goody bags to decorations and generally doing everything within her power to make the conference a great event for attendees Artie Wehenkel for preparing the Ideas Contest presentation and for once again serving as emcee of the awards event Keith McCormick for stepping in to chair the Circulation Committee and his work on the conference Paris-Henry County Chamber of Commerce 2508 East Wood Street • Paris, TN 38242 Phone - (731) 642-3431 www.paristn.org Conference Speakers and Entertainers Steve Wagenlander, Louisa Koken, Jimmy Patterson, Lu Shep Baldwin, Phil Hensley, Bill Williams, Bill McCutcheon and Great River Road TPA’s Advertising and Circulation Committees for planning the conference TPA thanks the Paris-Henry County Chamber of Commerce for sponsoring the Advertising/Circulation Conference’s continental breakfast Conference Attendees and their Publishers for including the conference in their budgets and schedules CMYK In Patterson’s session, Lori Waddle, The Greeneville Sun; Henry Stokes, The Germantown Appeal; Shannon Money, The Tullahoma News; Carl McCarter, The Daily Times, Maryville; and Keith McCormick, Herald-Citizen, Cookeville. The P-I mascot costume is on the table in the background. The Tennessee Press 2 - Ad/Circ Conference MAY 2006 MAY 2006 The Tennessee Press Lu Shep Baldwin, Jones Media, and Carl McCarter, The Daily Times, Maryville, talk about NIE materials. Deborah Yant, Martha Horn and Kathie Yant, all with Pulaski Publishing. Horn threatens to squirt Keith McCormick, Herald-Citizen, Cookeville, with her water gun. Ad/Circ Conference- 7 Customer service, selling are Ad/Circ topics Advertising and circulation personnel from TPA member newspapers gathered April 6-8 at Paris Landing State Park Inn for the annual Advertising/Circulation Conference. Steve Wagenlander, circulation director of The Post and Courier, Charleston, S.C., was the featured presenter for the conference. His sessions on the relationship between advertising and circulation and on customer service received high scores on the conference evaluations and were specifically listed as the most beneficial part of the conference on 43 percent of the forms. The second most popular conference benefit listed was the Idea Exchange, followed by networking. During “Customer Service: Real Calls to Real Newspapers,” live phone calls were made to newspapers that had volunteered to receive calls. Before the calls were placed, the volunteers explained how the call should be answered and what should be offered. Some went very well and others did not, but the point is to know what kind of service your customers receive. The amusing conclusion to the session occurred when a call was placed to The Paris Post-Intelligencer. The call went very well and CONTEST CMYK FROM PAGE ONE Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro 2nd – Citizen Tribune, Morristown 3rd – The Leaf-Chronicle, Clarksville was concluded with, “Have a good conference.” Mark Dicus, circulation assistant, had been at the conference and returned to the newspaper to work. He recognized the setup and the session attendees had a good laugh at his response. Other conference sessions included selling against direct mail and cable; legal issues; Newspaper in Education; and Audit Bureau of Circulations updates. Another highlight of the conference was the presentation of the annual Ideas Contest awards. Artie Wehenkel, advertising director of The Greeneville Sun, served as the emcee for the awards presentation. The Best of Show was awarded to the News Sentinel, Knoxville. Tom McCarter was present to accept the award. Attendees arriving on Thursday were invited to participate in a tropical-themed dinner. Tropical shirts were the suggested attire, with a prize offered for the best. The winner of the contest was Paula Sisco of The Paris Post-Intelligencer. Great River Road, a local band, provided the evening’s entertainment. Moody Castleman, new business development manager for Tennessee Press Service, played the keyboard during one of the sets. The band was sponsored by The Paris Post-Intelligencer. The P-I also sponsored Bill McCutcheon, reporter and local DJ, as Friday evening’s entertainment. Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Chattanooga Times Free Press 2nd – Bristol Herald Courier 3rd – News Sentinel, Knoxville Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review Print, online ads up in 2005 Advertising expenditures at newspapers and their Web sites totaled $14.3 billion for the fourth quarter of 2005, a 1.4 percent increase over the same period a year earlier, according to preliminary estimates from the Newspaper Association of America. Spending for print ads in newspapers totaled $13.7 billion, up 0.4 percent ver- 2 0 0 7 sus the same period in 2004, while ad spending online continued its doubledigit growth in the fourth quarter, increasing by 32.5 percent from the same period a year ago to $552 million. For the full year, ad spending on newspaper Web sites jumped 31.5 percent, reaching a new record of $2.0 billion. Please give us your input to help the committees plan an even better Advertising/Circulation Conference for 2007. A brief survey is online at www.tnpress.com. Please tell us what topics you would like to have covered at the 2007 Conference. And, please let us know if you would like to serve on the Advertising or Circulation Committees. Bill Williams told a Lewis Grizzard story to entertain during lunch on Friday, and preschool children involve d in the Henry County reading program presented a certificate of appreciation to TPA for its help in bringing the Imagination Library to Henry County. The conference was hosted by The Paris PostIntelligencer. Laura Dougherty, ad manager of The P-I, chairs the advertising committee and co-chaired the conference. Through Dougherty’s efforts, local businesses contributed to the conference with goody bags, prize donations, sponsorship and themed décor. Keith McCormick, circulation manager of the Herald-Citizen, Cookeville, chairs the Circulation Committee and co-chaired the conference. Martha Horn, advertising manager of the Pulaski Citizen, served as prize coordinator. The conference is planned each fall at a retreat of Advertising and Circulation committee members. If one is interested in serving on one of these committees, please contact me at (865) 584-5761 or rgentile@tnpress.com. All TPA members are invited to attend the planning retreat. In 2004, the committees decided to rotate the conference, traditionally held in Nashville, among the east, middle and west divisions of Tennessee. For 2007 the conference will be scheduled in Middle Tennessee. 2nd – Rogersville Review 3rd – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 2nd – The Expositor, Sparta 3rd – The Expositor, Sparta Best self-promotion of a newspaper Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 2nd – The Lebanon Democrat 3rd – The Lebanon Democrat Daily 15,000-25,000 circulation 1st – The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro 2nd – Cleveland Daily Banner 3rd – Cleveland Daily Banner The P-I’s new mascot awaits an introduction. The mascot is so new that he or she doesn’t have a name. Laura Dougherty said The P-I will have an NIE contest to name him or her. Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – The News-Examiner, Gallatin 2nd – The Covington Leader 3rd – Southern Standard, McMinnville Best sales promotion for an advertiser Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – The Paris Post-Intelligencer 2nd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette CMYK BY ROBYN GENTILE Member services manager 3rd – The Paris Post-Intelligencer Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – The Erwin Record 2nd – The Hartsville Vidette 3rd – The Erwin Record Non-daily More than 5,000 circulation 1st – Crossville Chronicle 2nd – Crossville Chronicle 3rd – Crossville Chronicle STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN The Great River Road band entertained, courtesy of The Paris Post-Intelligencer. STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN Kathie Yant, left, and Martha Horn admire Madeline, 9-month-old daughter of Steve and Kathy Lake. She is in the arms of Donna Yant. SEE CONTEST, PAGE 3 Daily More than 25,000 circulation 1st – Kingsport Times-News 2nd – News Sentinel, Knoxville 3rd – Kingsport Times-News Honorable mention – Bristol Herald Courier Non-daily Less than 5,000 circulation 1st – Rogersville Review 2nd – Rogersville Review 3rd – Rogersville Review STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN Hugh Jones, Shelbyville Times-Gazette, looks at a publication Bill Williams, The Paris Post-Intelligencer, tells a Lewis Grizzard story. while chatting with Artie Wehenkel, The Greeneville Sun. STEVE LAKE | PULASKI CITIZEN Carol and Victor Parkins dance to the music of the band, Great River Road. The band was sponsored by The Paris P-I. Vicki Carl, left, and Lillian Abernathy, The News-Examiner, Gallatin, won $50 for the best advertising idea. The Tennessee Press MAY 2006 Special section Advertising/Circulation Conference & Ideas Contest CMYK ‘Free classifieds’ puzzle publishers The issue of free classifieds won’t go away any you see is what you get”) capabilities on your site, time soon. so customers who are tempted to spend $5, $10 or It’s a tremendous challenge for publishers, $15 for increased visibility online or a print upsell because they’re used to getting paid for the ads have great reason to do so. Readily, easily and by they run. credit card. But Google, Microsoft and many other compa•Should you allow aggregator/indexer sites like nies–including Craigslist, the site that’s not really Google Base and Oodle to include your listings in a business–don’t plan to get paid for the classified their databases? This is another tricky question, ads they carry. At least not directly. And that makes and I could easily make the argument either way. every traditional classified advertising publisher INTERACTIVE But in general, our answer is yes. With more caveats crazy. Publishers have to adapt to the new business and “ifs/maybes” than just a straight yes. rules while still keeping the old business going INSIDER The bottom line, in my opinion: No one calls and growing. your newspaper because they want to “place an Peter Zollman ad.” They want results. They want to sell that It’s not easy. Not at all. Here are a few questions: car/rent that apartment/sell that house/find that •Should you offer free classifieds? new employee—quickly, easily, effectively and as •If so, what/how/why? inexpensively as possible. •Should you allow your ads to be aggregated into Google If you’re the place they call to place the ad, good for you. Base/Indeed.com/Oodle.com/Vast.com/etc.? If you’re the place consumers turn to, you’re doing your job. Unfortunately, there’s no single answer to any of those You’re serving as the marketplace. questions. For each newspaper/market/category, the answer As long as the advertiser pays you for the results, you’re is different. We work with our clients to answer those ques- the winner. As for all the free sites, sure, advertisers could tions specifically for them. post ads on their own—but they’d have to deal with the But since I’ve raised the questions, I should at least give you complicated and time-consuming task of knowing which my “generic” answers with a very short synopsis of why my sites to visit, actually placing, managing and expiring the colleagues and I at Classified Intelligence believe as we do. listings, and so forth. •Should you offer free classifieds? Yes. Sometimes. Are there But if your brand is the “one-stop advertising source” for marketplaces you’ve lost? Like “merchandise under $500” or finding a job/home/car/etc. in your market, you’ll do well. personals or “used cars under $3,000”? If so, that’s a good Again: This is not a blanket endorsement. For more pros place to start. But make sure you build in revenue streams, and cons, invite one of us from Classified Intelligence to such as section sponsorships or options for advertisers speak at your association meeting; have us work with your who want to sell to the audience you’re reaching (low-end company on the specifics of your market, and your objectives; used-car dealers, for example, adjacent to “used cars under or just call me with specific questions. I’ll be happy to try to $3,000”). And upsells into print. And upsells online. Best: answer them. No charge. Because these are important issues All of the above. and publishers should consider them carefully. Before they “Why” offer free classifieds? To recapture categories you’ve lose the marketplace. lost, and/or to hold on to your “endangered species.” Make sure you use those free classifieds to promote your newspa- PETER M. ZOLLMAN is founding principal of Classified per, to build “community” on your Web site (and in print, Intelligence LLC and the AIM Group, consulting groups if possible), and to increase traffic on your Web site. All of that work with media companies to help develop profitthose generate revenue through local ad sales. able interactive media services. Zollman can be reached at When you offer free classifieds, make sure you’re not sub- pzollman@aimgroup.com or (407) 788-2780. stantially increasing costs. Use them to drive ad placement online. And make sure you include upsell WYSIWYG (“what Ideas Contest first runner-up, Best of Show, an ad fromThe News-Examiner, Gallatin, “Your First Newspaper” May 2006 News Sentinel wins Best of Show BY ROBYN GENTILE Member services manager Artie Wehenkel, advertising director of The Greeneville Sun, and Laura Dougherty, advertising director of The Paris Post-Intelligencer and conference co-chairman, draw the name of the winner of the $50 cash prize from among conference evaluations turned in by attendees. The winner was Betty Davis, The Erwin Record. Wal-Mart says, No more ads Wal-Mart announced in early April that it will not buy further advertisements in local newspapers, saying a test in two states showed the expense is not justified. Wal-Mart’s test run in Midwestern papers was watched by publishers who at the 2005 convention of the National Newspaper Association complained Ideas Contest second runner-up, Best of Show, a special section from The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro, “Last Minute Gift Guide” that Wal-Mart sought free publicity from their newspapers but would not buy ads, at the same time driving out businesses that were solid advertisers. During the holiday shopping season, Wal-Mart placed full-page color ads for its electronics department in 336 smaller papers in Missouri and Oklahoma. “Our test showed that it did increase product sales but our margins are so thin that we didn’t even come close to offsetting the cost of the ads,” Wal-Mart spokeswoman Mona Williams said. Mike Buffington, a Georgia publisher who has been the point man in talks with Wal-Mart by the NNA, said WalMart told him the return wasn’t high enough. At the Newspaper Association of America meeting April 4 in Chicago, Wal-Mart Chief Executive Lee Scott said newspaper advertising “didn’t give us a return.” Buffington, past president of the NNA and co-publisher of MainStreet Newspapers, Jefferson, Ga., said not all publishers would agree that a company could reach a decision on costs versus benefits after a single ad. “Our view is that a one-time test is probably not a true way to evaluate community newspapers. In fact we understand they had quite a bump in sales. But the advertising itself, the full-page color ads, were expensive and they were advertising loss-leader type items,” he said. Buffington wrote an open letter in 2005 accusing Wal-Mart of ignoring community newspapers. Wal-Mart has said it has strong customer traffic without advertising. (Partially based on an AP story by Marcus Kabel) Awards in the annual Tennessee Press Association Ideas Contest were presented April 7 at Paris Landing State Park Inn in conjunction with the Advertising/Circulation Conference. The News Sentinel, Knoxville, won the Jack Freeland Memorial Best of Show Award. The ad, designed by Tim Bowers and Laddy Fields, was a self-promotion to encourage the purchase of color with classified ads. It was entered in the best rack card category. “Awesome use of color; perfect amount of white space; dynamic graphic photo,” wrote the judges. First runner-up for Best of Show was The News-Examiner, Gallatin, for its ad, “Your First Newspaper.” Second runner-up was The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro, entry, “Last Minute Gift Guide,” a special section. The Kingsport Times-News and the Rogersville Review tied for the most first place awards with eight each. The Kingsport Times-News and The Erwin Record tied for the most awards with a total of 23 each. Members of the Louisiana Press Association judged contest entries March 9 in Baton Rouge, La. A total of 990 entries was received from 41 newspapers. The contest has 27 categories, with each divided into five circulation divisions, two for nondailies and three for dailies. Jack Freeland, for whom the Best of Show award was named, was advertising manager of The Daily Herald, Columbia, and was active with the TPA Advertising Committee. The Ideas Contest was established in 1978. Artie Wehenkel, advertising director of The Greeneville Sun, coordinated a PowerPoint presentation of the contest winners, and he served as the emcee during the presentations. All conference attendees and Ideas Contest entrants will receive a CD of the PowerPoint presentation. The following is the complete list of winners. Ideas Contest Winners 2006 BEST OF SHOW News Sentinel, Knoxville •First runner-up–The News-Examiner, Gallatin •Second runner-up–The Daily News Journal, Murfreesboro Tim Bowers Laddy Fields Tim Bowers and Laddy Fields, News Sentinel, Knoxville, created the Best of Show ad, purpose of which was to explain that color was available for classified ads. It was entered in the best rack card category. Bowers came up with the copy, and Fields designed it. Bowers is product promotions manager and has been with the News Sentinel for 26 years. Fields is a graphic designer. He has been with the paper for three years. Best special section Daily Less than 15,000 circulation 1st – Herald-Citizen, Cookeville 2nd – The Lebanon Democrat 3rd – Shelbyville Times-Gazette Tom McCarter, News Sentinel, Knoxville, left, and Keith McCormick, Herald-Citizen, Cookeville, conference co-chairman, with the Best of Show plaque and certificate. McCarter represented the News Sentinel at the conference. SEE CONTEST, PAGE 2 NEWS SENTINEL, KNOXVILLE Laddy Fields, left, and Tim Bowers $50 goes to ad idea winners Lillian Abernathy and Vicki Carl were winners of the advertising idea exchange for a special section, “Hometown Christmas.” They are with The News-Examiner, Gallatin. Best of Show was a rack card ad, for use “ColorYour Classified Ads,” designed for the News Sentinel, Knoxville, designed by Tim Bowers and Laddy Fields. Voting on the best ad idea is a traditional part of the Ad/Circ Conference. The prize was $50. PHOTOS IN THIS ADVERTISING/CIRCULATION SECTION WERE MADE BY ROBYN GENTILE | TPA, EXCEPT AS NOTED. CMYK 8 - Ad/Circ Conference