Issue 1 Elimination of Public Notice in Newspapers …...JANUARY, 2017 Issue 1 “While I relish our...

JANUARY, 2017Issue 1

“While I relish our warm months, winter forms our character and brings out our best.”

- Tom Allen

Elimination of Public Notice in Newspapers Second Bill Introduced this session

Are your rates changing in 2017? Be sure to send new rate cards and any other demographic data as soon as they are available. MP1 needs a 30-day notice to fulfill existing quote requests so please don’t delay. Send information by email to [email protected]. Earn easy revenue for your newspaper Find out how easy it is to upsell your classified clients into our networks and retain 50% of the sale. Go to www.cnaads.com/mpadownloads for media kits, sales tools, order forms and other ideas on how to make the newspaper network make your newspaper money!!

Call the Networks Manager at 800-227-7636 ext 126 or [email protected] to answer any additional questions. Questions?

For more information on services offered through Michigan Press Association Services please visit our web site at michiganpress.org/member-advertising/ where you can also find answers to Frequently Asked Advertising Questions. Or call Roselie Lucas at 517-372-2424 or email [email protected].

Representative Rob Verheulen (R-Walker) introduced HB 4002 yesterday during the first day of session for the 99th Legislature.

HB 4002 is a re-run of Amanda Price’s effort to remove ALL public notice from newspapers in Michigan and allow local governments to publish them exclusively on their websites.

The Michigan Press Association public policy team urges you to TAKE ACTION IMMEDIATELY by doing the following:

1. Contact your state representative and explain how harmful this bill is to the public’s right to know.

2. Consider running the op-ed at michiganpress.org from MPA President Doug Caldwell in your newspaper

3. Run one of the house ads found at michiganpress.org/control-of-what-you-know in your newspaper to let your readers know that this is an important issue.

MPA will be posting other op-eds on this issue from members on our website to help you keep the public informed.

In other legislative news, the public policy team has been working on our legislative agenda. Public notice is one of the top issues as will be pursuing passage of legislation that will remove the exemptions to FOIA currently held by the Governor and legislators. A package of bills to remove these exemptions passed through the House last fall but failed to advance in the Senate.

MPA will also be working with New Voices, the

Michigan Interscholastic Press Association and Senator Rick Jones (R-Grand Ledge) to reintroduce the Student Free Press and Civics Readiness legislation that would allow freedom of speech for student journalists. Similar legislation has been passed in other states.

As always MPA staff will be monitoring the

P R O M O T I N G P R E S S F R E E D O M S I N C E 1 8 6 8

Content Subscriptions Available to MPA Members

Bridge is an online magazine publishing content throughout the week focused on six key facets of life in Michigan:

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analysis of state government delivered in written reports detailing the activities of the House, Senate, Judicial and Executive branches of Michigan state government. MIRS’ Capitol Capsule features news on what is happening with key legislative initiatives, prospects for action, in-depth coverage of elections and coverage of key news events such as party conventions, public policy conferences and the like. Their reporters also bring you keen insight on what’s happening on issues, how those issues may impact state elections and politics and much more.

Also included in MIRS’ service are regular calendars of committee meetings, political fund raisers and executive branch meetings as well as a regular report on the state’s administrative rules process. They will cover what’s happening in Lansing with access to their bill tracking program which can help you tailor content to your area.

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If you are interested in obtaining these content services for your publication, please contact MPA Executive Director James Tarrant at 517-372-2424 or email [email protected] for more details and information.

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Look in your February Bulletin, for highlights on the 2017 MPA Annual Convention!

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JANUARY, 2017

www. M I CH I G AN PR E SS.org

A Note from MPA Executive Director, Jim Tarrant

Don ’t Let Government ontrol What You know.KEEP PUBLIC NOTICES WHERE THE PUBLIC NOTICES: IN NEWSPAPERS

MPA Members Must Be United in Grassroots Education.

It’s a new year and a new legislative session with 40 new members in the state House. The second bill introduced the first day of the new 2017-18 session was a renewal of the Amanda Price Public Notice bill to take public notices out of newspapers. Many of you may think it’s just another political cycle of the same old thing and in two years it will happen again.

Stop and take a look at what is happening across the country. Public Notice is under attack like never before. It will be critical for you to begin a dialogue with your members of the House and Senate immediately. You may have read what happened in New Jersey when Governor Chris Christie initiated a drive to remove public notices from newspapers proposing they be placed on government websites. The newspapers came together with a united voice opposing the legislation and were able to defeat the proposed legislation. There is a lengthy list of other states who are challenging the traditional public notice.

Forty (40) of the freshly sworn members of the House have not been through this before and need to know why maintaining public notices in print is critical to a transparent government. Some of newspapers strongest allies in the legislature have been term limited and your issues will be unfamiliar to these new representatives. MPA will be working to educate them on this in Lansing. MPA needs your help to shore up support from

your representative making the case for public notices in print with those representatives who appear to advocate for this new bill.

Your Government Affairs team of Dirk Milliman, Brad Thompson and Lisa McGraw monitor the MPA legislative priorities. In addition to Public Notice, MPA is concerned with expansion of FOIA to the Legislature and Governor, protection from lawsuits by a government entity when a FOIA request is made and an increase in the folio rates.

These legislative efforts will require a strong grassroots effort by all newspapers in Michigan.

Still not convinced of the increasing danger of losing public notices? In early January, the Presque Ile County Commission voted to place public notices on the County website and not in the newspaper. in the past several years we’ve fought efforts in Wayne, Trenton, Novi and Owosso. We were unable to prevail in a fight against Ann Arbor.

MPA has talking points for you to help you educate your representatives and provide a consistent message.

DON’T wait until the eleventh hour to talk with your representatives. This should be an ongoing dialogue educating them about the importance of your newspaper keeping the representatives’ constituents informed about what government is doing at all levels.

When you talk to your representatives PLEASE send Lisa an email to let her know you met and what your representative’s position is on these critical issues.

MPA Executive Director, Jim Tarrant stopped by The Straitsland Resorter in Indian River late last summer and met with owners L. Scott Swanson & Kathy Swanson.

Julie Stafford of The Greenville Daily News has been serving on the MNI board for a year and will join the MPA Board in February.

Dave Clark, Director of Student Publications, Central Michigan University will also be joining the board. Dave has served as Central Michigan University’s Director of Student Media since May 2013. Dave manages all

Student Media professional employees and student workers, but specializes in editorial and news development. He also coordinates CMU Journalism Hall of Fame activities and is president of the Michigan Collegiate Press Association board of directors.

Previously, Dave was editor in chief of the Pioneer of Big Rapids, MI. and The Daily Telegram of Adrian, MI. He also worked as business editor and assistant metro editor of The News-Sentinel of Fort Wayne, Ind., associate editor of the Hillsdale Daily News in Hillsdale, MI, and education reporter of the Huron Daily Tribune of Bad Axe, MI.

He and his wife, Jennifer, reside in Canadian Lakes with their 13-year-old son Tyler and two cats.

Richard Crofton has been elected to the 2017 MPAS Board replacing Willie Peterson, Munising News, whose second 3-year term ended this year.

Crofton is President and Publisher of the Sault News and Cheboygan Daily Tribune. Prior to that he was publisher of the Escanaba Daily Press.

He is married to Lucy and has three grown step-children and five other

MEMBER

NEWSNew Board Members for 2017

Julie Stafford

Dave Clark

The Nominating Committee of the MPA Board has nominated two new members to the board with terms beginning 2017.

Richard Crofton

Curt Guyette MPA Foundation Journalist of the Year for his work on the Flint water crisis at last year’s MPA Annual Convention Awards Dinner.

#TBT


PAGE 3 JANUARY, 2017

Dear Mr. President-elect and Mr. Vice President-elect, In December 2015, a delegation representing more

than 50 journalism and open government organizations met with Josh Earnest, President Obama’s press secretary, urging greater openness and transparency from the federal government.

The group shared its concerns to Earnest and his staff regarding the administration’s communications policies, including: officials blocking reporters’ requests to talk to specific staff people;

• excessive delays in answering interview requests that stretch past reporters’ deadlines;

• officials conveying information “on background,” refusing to give reporters what should be public information unless they agree not to say who is speaking;

• federal agencies blackballing reporters who write critically of them;

• and other policies that prevent information from flowing to the public.

Since that meeting, however, little has been done to improve these issues.

Our Founding Fathers knew the importance of a press that is free to report on the activities of our government and elected officials. “Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being

lost,” said Thomas Jefferson in a January 28, 1786, letter. Yet here we are, almost exactly 231 years after Jefferson wrote those words, and attempts to stifle the flow of information to citizens of the United States continue.

But 2017 is a new year, and you are at the helm of a new administration. We would like to pick up where we left off with the Obama Administration and continue the discussion regarding issues relevant to freedom of the press.

Most important on that list are: • the ability of reporters to directly interact with

government employees who are subject matter experts, rather than interacting with Public Information Officers (or having all conversations monitored by PIOs);

• access to the activities of the President; • and ensuring that the Federal Freedom of Information

Act remains as strong as possible. In addition, we would like to have a conversation

regarding how we can work together to ensure that self-government as outlined by the Constitution survives and flourishes, and that a free press remains a cornerstone of our nation and our liberty.

Information-control practices have gone too far and must be curtailed for the good of our democracy and reputation in the world. You can act now, as you begin

your term, to shift the federal government away from secrecy toward transparency and accountability.

Here are links to some of the letters sent to President Obama: The first letter, sent Nov. 21, 2013, addressed concerns regarding White House restrictions on photographers. The next letter, sent July 8, 2014, and a follow-up letter sent Aug. 5, 2014, regarding PIO and transparency issues were met with a response from the White House on Aug. 11, 2014, that the groups found unsatisfactory. This white paper and other articles also provide background on the issue.

We urge you to publicly affirm your commitment to transparency, to issue an executive order prohibiting the restrictive public information policies that have been the status quo, and to engage in a public discussion with us about the Trump Administration’s commitment to the free flow of information from the White House and all federal government, to the American people.

Get to know THE LEGISLATURE

Transparency in the new administration?

What’s happening in

WASHINGTON?

RepresentativeSue Allor1. What newspapers are in your district?

• The Alcona County Review• The Alpena News• The Cheboygan Tribune• The Iosco County News-Herald• The Oscoda Press• The Presque Isle County Advance• The Straitsland Resorter

2. Can you tell our members in 100 words or less why you think that the Open Meetings Act and the Freedom of Information Act are important?

The Freedom of Information and Open Meetings Acts are essential to our system of government - a system acknowledged as, “a government of the people, by the people,for the people”. The need for open, transparent government is essential for people tobe aware and well informed of the government’s decision-making process and actionsour government is taking.3. Can you tell us something you think newspapers do well?

Plain and simple, newspapers communicate well. Through the written word, anessential service is provided to the community and while the type of information communicated can vary a great deal - such as information on sports, politics,government, or

entertainment - an opportunity exists for readers with differentinterests to typically find something that is relevant to their needs.4. Can you tell us something you think newspapers need to improve upon?

Youth readership is an area that could be encouraged and developed. Quite often ouryouth seek information from web based platforms and believe what they are reading is factual. In doing so, they are missing the journalistic talents found in newspapers.

In an effort to attract youth, a newspaper could encourage youth who desire to write, to submit stories of interest for a once weekly page in the publication. The printing of astory on that page would encourage the youth to continue developing writing andjournalism skills and generate additional interest in reading the newspaper. At the same time, newspaper readership by parents, relatives, and other youth may be increased.5. Do you feel that providing public notices of governmental activities in a printed newspaper is important to Michigan citizens?

I am opposed to the elimination of the requirement that public notices be placed in newspapers of general circulation. Maintaining open government is essential and communication is essential to ensuring all citizens have accessibility to government actions that may have a direct or indirect impact on them.

Currently, government entities are required to publish public notices in a local paper. Posting of

such notices is somewhat of a “gold standard” and has been for years; this is how relevant information within a community is communicated to the public. Other forms of communication such as radio, television, and web sites also share relevant information and while using these forms of mass media to communicate a public notice is an option, it requires an individual to have radio or television on at the “right time” to hear the public notice. Internet access must also be available if desiring to search the web for a public notice but unfortunately, not all areas within this District have reliable Internet access and there are individuals who are not comfortable with and/or familiar with the Internet or surfing the web.and that such information should also be freely available in as many areas as possible.

Contact info:Representative Sue AllorS-1485 House Office BuildingP.O. Box 30014Lansing, MI 48909

517-373-0833 | [email protected]

MPA joined with the Society of Professional Journalists and other advocates for governmental transparency in sending a letter to President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence urging more access to information in their administration.

JANUARY, 2017


Students from Marquette in the north to Hillsdale in the “mid-south,” joined oth-er journalism honorees on the podium at the MPA Convention as the Foundation awarded scholarships to 12 college and university student interested in pursuing careers in community journalism

Since 1990, when the Foundation pre-sented its first $1,000 scholarships to stu-dents from five public universities, to this year, when 12 students were honored, 233 promising young journalists earned MPAF awards.

Five students from the original uni-versities in the program (Central, Ferris, Michigan State, Wayne State and Western Michigan) are designated Richard and Donna Milliman Community Journal-ism Scholars honoring the Foundation’s co-founding president, who died in March 2016, and his wife, who died three years before.

The Foundation’s summer Match In-tern Program, inaugurated in 1999, pairs graduating high school seniors and community college students with MPA member organizations. At the end of the paid internship, students receive a schol-

arship co-funded by the Foundation and the hiring newspaper.

To date, the Foundation has awarded more than $345,000 in scholarships.

This year’s scholarship winners:CMU journalist and Milliman Schol-

ar Evan Sasiela of Saginaw began his career in high school; besides his work for CM Life, he’s a part-time report-er for the Midland Daily News and last summer was an intern at the Petoskey News-Review. This summer he heads to a reporting internship at MLive/The Bay City Times.

Shelby Taylor from the Eastern Echo. Starting out she applied for a copy desk position, was named chief copy editor before the end of the year. When the managing editor left unexpectedly, the Echo editor-in-chief asked Taylor to as-sume both roles. By her senior year, she was the Echo’s top editor before volun-tarily returning to the managing editor’s spot as she prepares for graduation.

Milliman Scholar Keith Salowich of Ferris State is a junior, whose family now lives in Gladwin. He began his career at The Torch the first week of classes; he’s

been editor-in-chief since April 2015 .Jessica Hodge is associate editor of

Grand Valley’s Lanthorn. The Canton resident started her GVSU journey as a writing major before quickly heading into journalism. At the Lanthorn, is serv-ing in her current role as associate editor.

Nic Antaya of White Lake, another Milliman Scholar is focusing on digital journalism at Michigan State.

Winter Keefer of Northern Michigan regularly covers major stories on campus safety and security, she regularly writes some of the best articles to appear in the paper each week.

Nowshin Chowdhury of Oakland Uni-versity is the Oakland Post’s photo editor and member of its editorial board.

Max Bultman, a University of Mich-igan senior from Grand Rapids has served as managing sports editor of the Michigan Daily since September 2013. He’s helping craft a digital strategic plan for the Daily.

Milliman Scholar Addison Wallace’s journalism career spans seven years; the Birmingham resident edited her high school paper. And is now at Wayne State

University. Wallace joined the campus chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists as a freshman and served as the group’s social media director.

Laura Makarewicz is a Milliman schol-ar and Western Michigan student from Shelby Township. She’s passionate but realistic; she understands the need to ex-cel, to take advantage of every experi-ence that crosses her field of vision on the road to becoming a courts reporter.

Grace Kay of Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids. Last summer she was an intern at the Oakland Press, where it didn’t take long for editors to recognize her abilities and assigned her increasing-ly challenging stories, stoking her confi-dence, expanding her horizons.

Breana Noble, a junior at Hillsdale College and Daily Collegian news editor,

North, south, east and west, MPA Foundation honors the best

The Department Of Labor’s Overtime Pay Regulation Was Blocked – Now What?The Department of Labor’s overtime pay regulation was supposed to take effect on December 1, 2016. That regulation would have increased from $455 per week to $913 per week the salary level test for employ-ees to be “exempt” from time and one-half premium pay for hours worked in excess of 40 hours in a workweek. The regulation would have affected employees who are currently “exempt” and earn at least a sal-ary of $455 per week and less than a salary of $913 per week. In addition, the regu-lation would have automatically increased that salary level every 3 years starting in an increase in January 2020.

But on November 22, 2016, a federal judge blocked the regulation from taking effect by issuing a preliminary injunction. The DOL’s regulation did not take effect on December 1, 2016, so there has been no increase in the salary level from $455 per week to $913 per week.

What will happen next, and what should employers do?

That is a hard question to answer.

It appears, but it is not certain, that the incoming Trump administration is not in-terested in defending the new regulation. However, that does not automatically end the issue as despite being temporarily blocked, no final injunction has been hand-ed down and the regulation has technical-ly been issued. So, if unblocked, it would take effect, and then have to be formally withdrawn by the Department of Labor if it is to be done away with. Other entities have asked to intervene in the lawsuit and litigation is still proceeding even in light of the incoming Administration’s apparent lack of support and procedural wrangling

in court continues.

Where does this leave employers? In a place of uncertainty which is someplace no employer likes to be.

There is no single best course of action for all employers at this point. What to do now depends on what has been done already to prepare for the DOL rule and whether revisions are advisable or feasible. Each employer has to review its particular situation in terms of what it was already done in anticipation of the DOL regula-tion’s original December 1st effective date, what it has already implemented, the rea-sons for the actions that it has planned or implemented, and the perceived feasibility of rolling back any changes that have al-ready been implemented.

At this point, given the fact that the liti-gation is still pending and at least possible the injunction could be lifted in the near future, it is inadvisable to immediately roll back any changes which have already been implemented such as reclassification of employees or increases in salaries to ad-dress the new salary level amount. And, any employer who did not implement planned changes but budgeted for them should not redo their 2017 payroll budget just yet. Changes still could be coming.

There will be more clarity on this issue in the coming months. It is likely a legal decision will be reached on the prelimi-nary injunction in the next few months al-though there still could be an appeal after that. And, the new administration, once in place, will likely make clear its positon on the regulations.

In the meantime, keep your eye on the



Brandon is an advertising manager who wants his team to be prepared for all sales situations. “We spend a lot of time on sales strategy,” he said, “because that helps us cut down on unexpected surprises. To use a baseball comparison, we want to be able to hit the curveball.

“As any sales person will tell you, the most common curveball is an objection,” Brandon explained. “Most prospects have some kind of objection, even if they don’t say it out loud. Unspoken objections can be real sales killers. You’re sailing along thinking everything is going fine, then at the end of the conversation the prospect says, ‘I’ll think about it and let you know.’ That creates a real predicament for a sales person.

“There’s an old saying that silence is golden, but that’s not true in selling,” Brandon said. “Sometimes it’s your job to verbalize what the prospect is thinking. If you don’t, the objection that is lurking below the surface may never come to light. I disagree with the idea that you can’t answer an objection you don’t hear. An unspoken objection can sink your presentation just as fast as one

that is shouted.

Brandon explained that the key is to be prepared to weave answers to objections into the presentation. The good news is that most objections are predictable. If a sales person has done his or her homework, there’s no reason to be surprised to hear a question about price, readership statistics, ad position or production.

“Take price, for example,” he said. “A prospect may be embarrassed to say, ‘I don’t think I can afford to advertise in your paper.’ You can address that by bringing up the objection yourself, then reassuring them that it’s natural to be concerned about price. I encourage our team to say something like, ‘Some advertisers wonder about the affordability of advertising in our paper.’ Or ‘People often ask how our rates compare to other media outlets.’ Or ‘You may be wondering how this could fit your ad budget.’ Then they answer the objection just like they would if the prospect brought it up.”

This is a variation of the old Feel-Felt-Found formula,

which says, “I understand how you feel about price. Other advertisers have felt the same way. And they found benefits such as…” The difference here is that the sales person brings up the topic. But as Brandon cautions, don’t use the words “feel, “felt” or “found.” That formula has been around so long – and those words have been misused by so many sales people – that they can make prospects think they are being manipulated.

“Some prospects actually seem relieved when a difficult objection is mentioned by the sales person,” he said. “I’ve seen them nod their heads and say, ‘Yeah, I was thinking about that.’ In a sense, it clears the air and makes them more receptive in the rest of the conversation.”

In other words, your prospects probably won’t object when you mention their unspoken objections.

The transition from 2016 to 2017 seemed to prompt a bit more email from folks who read my columns. I’m not sure if it was the upcoming solar eclipse pre-dicted by some to mark the end of the world, the death of Superman in “Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice” late in the year or, more likely, response to the U.S. presidential election. Whatever the cause, readers had a lot to say and most wanted me to join them in saying it.

The most common request was to write something about fake news.

“You should write something we can include in our newspapers,” wrote one publisher.

“Please, please let people know that newspapers are real,” wrote another.

One ad manager said, “You’ve got to do this. We have to let readers and advertisers know we provide needed resources to our communities.”

I thought about it. I found interviews of a couple of folks who made fortunes creating fake news sites in 2016. I even went so far as looking into the possi-bility of creating my own fake news site, just to get firsthand knowledge for a story.

What I learned was it’s really not very hard to make a few thousand dollars with one of these sites. It’s trickier, now that Facebook and Google are threat-ening to tighten down on providing advertising for them, but it is still possible.

I finally decided it just wasn’t worth the effort. Ev-eryone should know by now there are fake news sites out there, and anyone who doesn’t probably isn’t go-ing to believe anything I might write about the sub-ject anyway.

What’s been more interesting to me lately is all the news about big newspapers ramping up their staffs.

“Big Newspapers Are Booming: ‘Washington Post’ To Add 60 Newsroom Jobs” is a current headline on NPR.com.

It’s not limited to the United States. “Why India’s newspaper business is booming” is the headline in a 2016 column in The Economist.

You know what I think? I think most people don’t understand our business.

I sound like a broken record when I write that most newspapers I visit, and I probably visit more than anyone you know, are doing just fine. I’ve been at papers, like one I visited in Florida recently, look-

ing for five editors to fill staff vacancies while I was on-site. I receive messages daily from editors and publishers looking for writers, editors, salespeople, designers and others for their operations.

Just this week I helped a weekly in Tennessee and a daily in South Carolina fill staff openings.

Like most businesses and most years, we have newspapers doing well and others doing not so well, so I might not be as quick as NPR to write newspa-pers are booming.

It pains me to watch some big newspaper groups who aren’t doing well at all. I also know there are plenty of small papers out there having rough years. The truth, as I see it, is most papers are doing well, especially community papers. Some big papers I visit are doing well, but most aren’t.

Election season is always tough on advertising, ex-cept political ads. When I owned a newspaper a few years ago, we would grit our teeth in the months leading up to an election, knowing advertising would increase once a president was selected, no matter who it was.

Even my consulting business feels the pressures of

elections season. My phone didn’t ring a lot in Octo-ber and November. I knew not to worry. I’ve been at this too long. In the first week of January I received requests on one day from six different newspapers, asking when I could make a visit.

I try not to get on my soapbox too often these days. Call it a New Years resolution if you will, but I’m trying to look past my own initial observations and see what is really happening in our business.

Here’s what I see so far in 2017:- Just like other years, my email and voicemail are

filled with messages from newspapers and groups asking me to make a visit. Apparently our industry hasn’t gone anywhere.

- I’m hearing from newspapers, both small and large, who are updating their operations as they be-gin this new year.

- Attendance at my online events is very prom-ising. Hundreds of newspaper folks attend online training events each month.

I hope NPR is right. I hope big papers are boom-ing, and I hope that translates to small papers boom-ing. The truth, however, is probably somewhere be-tween “Newspapers are booming” and “Newspapers are dead.”

As I consider the hundreds of newspapers I worked with in 2016 and the thousands of emails I received

Finding the truth

How to handle unspoken objections

Kevin SlimpContact Kevin Slimp at:[email protected] seems to be on a lot of minds

John FoustJohn Foust has conducted training programs for thousands of newspaper advertising professionals. Many ad departments are using his training videos to save time and get quick results from in-house training. Email for information: [email protected].

JANUARY, 2017


Give us the scoop!We’re really excited about this page in our new monthly Bulletin. We want to provide a place where members can tell us about the comings and goings at their newspapers.

We also want to feature the good things you’re doing in your community. Sponsoring a team? Hosting an event to help a charity? Please let us know and send pics!

Sending updates on changes in your family would also be appreciated…births, graduations, anniversaries…let your MPA family be part of the celebration.

Please send information and photos about the happenings in your world to [email protected].&

MemberNewsNotes

New Publisher at Crain’s Detroit BusinessRon Fournier, an award-winning journalist who returned home to Detroit after a 20-year career in Washington, D.C., has been named publisher and editor of Crain’s Detroit Business, replacing the company’s groundbreaking leader, Mary Kramer.

Kramer recruited Fournier to Crain’s four months ago, naming him associate publisher as part of her succession planning. She will remain with Crain’s as group publisher, consulting with Fournier and his team on major revenue initiatives such as the Detroit Homecoming and Crain’s Leadership Academy.

As publisher and editor, Fournier will be responsible for sales, audience development and editorial operations of Crain’s Detroit Business.

“This is an incredible honor,” Fournier said. “Building on Mary’s foundation, Crain’s will serve the Southeast Michigan business community in two ways: An indispensable source of business news and, through its independent custom content division, high-utility marketing and events consulting.”

Kramer is a seasoned expert with more than 40 years of reporting and management experience. She joined Crain’s Detroit Business in 1989, and in 1990 was named associate publisher. In May 1994, Kramer was named a vice president of Crain Communications, and in May 2005 she was named publisher.

Gratiot County Herald Publisher Tom MacDonald and wife Karla welcomed their new grandson Weston David Clerc on December 24, 2016.

to ourThank You

Sponsors



CLASSIFIEDSDo you have an ad you’d like to place in our MPA Classifieds?E-mail it to [email protected]

For more information and additional postings, visit us online at: members.

MANAGING EDITOR

The Gratiot County Herald a weekly newspaper, located in Central Michigan, is seeking a Managing Editor. We are looking for someone that would like to move from a general reporter to Editor. Candidates should have at least two years of experiences. Candidates will be re-sponsible for overseeing assignments and scheduling, utilizing social media plat-forms and write and take photos for our newspaper and specialty publications. Write headlines and layout pages. We are a family run weekly newspaper that offer a great working environment. Email re-sume, letter of interest, and wage expec-tations to [email protected] or mail the same to Tom MacDonald Publisher Gratiot County Herald 123 N. Main St. Ithaca, Mich. 48847

REPORTER WANTED

The Manistee News Advocate is a part of the Pioneer Group, a family-owned communications business publishing two daily newspapers, three weekly newspapers and a thriving commercial print division.

We are looking for an energetic news-hound to go after breaking news on the cops and court beat and keep officials at city hall on their toes on the city beat. The ideal candidate must have strong writing skills, be able to take photos and video and have social media skills. A journalism degree and previous newspa-per experience is preferred.

The News Advocate offers a benefit package that includes health insurance (medical and dental) and a 401k plan.

Manistee is the perfect place for some-one who enjoys the outdoors and all that northwester Michigan has to offer, with plenty of sandy beaches and trails. This position gives you the opportunity to live where others vacation.

Please send a cover letter explaining why you’re the perfect candidate for this po-sition, along with a resume and no more than 4 writing samples to editor Mi-chelle Graves at [email protected] P.O. Box 101, Manistee, MI 49660.

ASSISTANT EDITOR

Bridge Magazine, a nonprofit publica-tion of The Center for Michigan and the 2016 Michigan Press Association News-paper of the Year, is seeking candidates for the position of Assistant Editor.

This person will work directly with the editor to direct Bridge’s award-winning online coverage of issues critical to Mich-igan, from education to government ac-countability, the economy, environment, politics, health care, to those policies af-fecting residents who are still struggling, whether they live in rural townships or large cities.

The deadline to apply is January 10, 2017.

Candidates should have a proven abili-ty to make complex topics accessible and compelling to our smart, statewide readership, producing impactful journal-ism that gets read, and gets results.You will be joining a collegial, ambitious and growing team of top journalists.

Among the qualities we are seeking:

• A deep commitment to nonpartisan journalism, which means seeking per-spective and solutions from wherever the evidence and data take our report-ing, and not based on politics or ide-ology.

• An ability to analyze and present data, graphics and video and make smart use of online tools to produce inter-esting, innovative and creative story packages.

• An investigative mindset that will take Bridge stories from good to great by maximizing available investigative tools, including document searches (government, regulatory and legal),-public records requests and source de-velopment.

• A creative, enthusiastic producer of well-sourced enterprise ideas that are relevant and timely on critical issues facing the state; an ability to coax in-novative, game-changing story gener-ation from staff.

• A solid grasp of the institutions and public agencies in Detroit is a plus, as a fair share of this position would in-clude but not be limited to supervision of in-depth news and analysis out of the city.

• An interest in and ability to report and write your own stories on occasion. The ideal candidate has exemplary skills at being a coach and a player on our all-star team.

• An extensive network of knowledge-able, diverse, and well-placed com-munity, government, news, and public policy sources.

• A willingness to work closely, gener-ously and respectfully with Bridge staff and outside publications that Bridge collaborates with to produce compel-ling projects on multiple platforms.

• A willingness to embrace an entrepre-neurial start-up culture by not only helping produce great journalism, but by being invested in the Center’s pub-lic engagement efforts and commit-ment to improving the lives of ordi-nary residents across the state.

• Well organized, adept and disciplined in maintaining the story calendar and scheduling projects, and ensuring ar-ticles are reported, written and edited in a timely manner, well in advance of publication.

• Great working relationship with col-

leagues. This includes consistent, clear and honest communication with re-porters, an openness to their sugges-tions and ideas rather than a top-down approach, and overall transparency about expectations and concerns.

• An ability to help with strategic think-ing and planning with our social me-dia and marketing consultants on readership growth.

To apply for this position, please send a letter of interest, resume and up to five relevant clips (in links or by PDF) to Bridge Editor David Zeman at [email protected]

Bridge Magazine is an online, nonpar-tisan and nonprofit publication focus-ing on policies and issues that impact Michigan residents. We have offices in Ann Arbor, Lansing and Detroit and dis-tribute our content directly and through partnership agreements with other news outlets in the state.

Salary and benefits are competitive.

MEDIA SALES CONSULTANT

Michigan Press Association Services, the advertising arm of Michigan Press As-sociation, is looking for a highly-moti-vated and organized individual who un-derstands current day print and digital media and its benefits to expand our list of highly-satisfied clients.

The ideal candidate would have agency and client-side experience and contacts with the ability to open doors for both. They must be an advocate for the news media industry, both in print and digital, and should have a strong customer ser-vice focus with a passion to exceed cus-tomer expectations. Candidates should have the proven ability to generate new business through a consultative sales ap-proach. Previous experience selling in the print and/or digital arena is desired. Travel will be required.

Part-time independent contractor agree-ment.

Work from remote office necessary.

Retainer plus commission potential and bonus opportunities.

Previous experience and college degree preferred.

EOE. Please send resume and cover let-ter to: [email protected].

PRINT/DIGITAL REPORTER

The Gaylord Herald Times is seeking a print/digital reporter to join the news-room of Michigan’s Newspaper of the Year. Ideal candidates would have expe-rience covering news, taking photos and video and using social media. Key beats include the City of Gaylord and crime

and courts. Interested candidates are en-couraged to contact Jeremy Speer, ed-itor, at [email protected].

VERSATILE PAGINATOR/COPY EDITOR

The Monroe News is seeking a versatile paginator/copy editor with excellent news judgment. Candidates must be able to edit quickly and thoroughly for accu-racy, clarity, grammar and spelling; craft engaging page designs and write head-lines. Candidates should also have expe-rience with layout software, preferably Adobe InDesign. Must be comfortable posting content to Facebook and Twit-ter. Must have good working knowledge of AP style; at least three years profes-sional experience is preferred, but re-cent graduates with significant college experience and internships will be con-sidered. To apply, send a resume, a cov-er letter and links to your best work to Jill Nevels-Haun, executive editor, [email protected].

PAGINATORS AND GRAPHIC DESIGN ARTISTS

The Pioneer newspaper in Big Rapids, Michigan, is looking for the right person to round out our team of paginators and graphic design artists.

The Pioneer is a six-day daily located in west-central Michigan, a historic news-paper in a comfortable community - a great workplace in which to develop a career and hone your skills.

Home to Ferris State University and smack in the center of one of the most beautiful areas in the state, Big Rapids offers tons of outdoor recreational op-portunities, an active arts scene, and easy access to more urban centers. (We’re 45 minutes from Grand Rapids!)

Candidates for this full-time position should have several years experience with Adobe Photoshop and InDesign, prefer-ably with a background in, or at the least knowledge of newspaper page design. Experience working on WordPress-based websites is a plus. An associate degree in graphic design preferred, but candidates with equivalent experience will certainly be considered. We need team members who are detail-oriented and able to work on tight deadlines in a team-based envi-ronment.

We would like to talk to you and see your work.

Please contact editor Jim Crees at [email protected].

REPORTER

The award-winning Petoskey News-Re-view is seeking a digital-focused report-er to join its staff. The News-Review is one of the premier small newspapers in Michigan, having been named as honor-able mention for the Editor and Publish-er’s Newspaper’s that do it right contest

JANUARY, 2017


• Purchase/purchase consideration• Visit the advertiser’s website• Check out the advertiser’s social

media• Visit a store, dealer or other location• Bring newspaper insert to the store• Clip coupons and special offers• Have a more favorable brand opinion• Save the ad for future reference

• Gather more info about the product/service

• Text someone about the product/service

• Ask someone about the product/service

• Recommend the product/service• Check out an online review• Pass along the ad to someone• Search online for the product/service

MICHIGANPRESS.ORG | [email protected]

is published monthly by Have The MPA Briefing delivered each week

in your e-mail: [email protected]

James Tarrant [email protected] MPA Executive Director

Roselie Lucas [email protected]

MPA Services Manager

Lisa McGraw

[email protected] Public Affairs Manager

827 N. Washington Ave Lansing, MI 48906

Phone: 517.372.2424 Fax: 517.372.2429

[email protected]

2016 Officers & Board of Directors 2016 Officers & Board of Directors

“World Headquarters”

Doug Caldwell [email protected] President Petoskey News-Review

Brad Thompson [email protected] Treasurer Detroit Legal News

Grace Perry Vice President [email protected] Observer & Eccentric Media

Bill Speer [email protected] Immediate Past President The Alpena News

Paul J. Heidbreder [email protected] Traverse City Record-Eagle

Rich Lamb [email protected] Presque Isle Advance

Jewel Gopwani [email protected] Detroit Free Press

Helen Stojic [email protected] Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan

Kelly Frick [email protected] MLive

Kevin Hook [email protected] Grand Haven Tribune

Teresa Brandell [email protected] Three Rivers Commercial News

John Bebow [email protected] Bridge Magazine

Alan Campbell [email protected] Leelanau Enterprise

Elaine Myers [email protected] C and G Newspapers

Wes Smith

Richard Perlberg President MPA President 2002

Ron Dzwonkowski Vice President MPA President 2010

Wes Maurer Secretary-Treasurer MPA President 1988

Dirk Milliman Past President MPA President 1996

Marcia Loader Trustee at Large MPA President 2006

Paul Bedient MNI President 1998

Lonnie Peppler-Moyer MPA President 2008

Jenny Anderson MPA President 2011

Chris Huckle MPA President 2013

Bill Speer MPA President 2015

Jim Young MPA President 2012

Mickey Hirten MPA President 2014

Doug Caldwell MPA President 2017

Jim Sherman Sr. Trustee Emeritus

Bill Speer [email protected] President Alpena News

Kevin Hook [email protected] President-Elect Grand Haven Tribune

Jim Stevenson [email protected] Vice President Spinal Column Newsweekly

Marcia Loader [email protected] Past President Blissfield Advance

Rebecca Steckler [email protected] Lansing State Journal

Willie Peterson [email protected] Munising News

Lonnie Peppler-Moyer [email protected] Monroe Evening News

Julie Stafford [email protected] Greenville Daily News

2016 Officers & Board of Directors

How Effective Are Newspaper Print Ads? Just Ask Readers.Do traditional newspaper display ads and preprinted inserts work for advertisers? Readers reveal the answer ... they do.

According to the Triad Newspaper Ad Effectiveness Service, more than seven out of 10 readers take action as a result of issue-specific ads and inserts. And the variety of actions that readers take – offline and online – are impressive.

Triad effectiveness norms demonstrate that newspaper readers recall, respond to, and enjoy reading ads and inserts – across ad categories, sections and ad sizes.

Many ads really deliver results. Like this one from Macy’s that appeared in a Triad measured issue of The Philadelphia Inquirer. More than eight out of 10 readers recalling the ad took action (81%). Visiting a Macy’s store and purchase

Actions Readers Take as a Result of Ads & Inserts

Triad Newspaper Ad Effectiveness Norms

Source: The Triad Newspaper Ad Effectiveness Service (Aug 2015-June 2016)

Base: Ad Recall based on issue-specific readers, Reader Actions/Ad Likability based on readers recalling specific ads

Triad measures the effectiveness of issue-specific ads and preprints appearing in the leading newspapers on an ongoing basis. For more information, contact Tom Robinson at (615) 645-0202 or [email protected].

Ad Recall Reader Actions Ad LikabilityAll Ads 55% 71% 77%All Inserts 67% 73% 75%

Top Scoring Ad SizesMulti-page units 66% 76% 78%2-page spread 61% 71% 76%½ page spread 60% 69% 80%Full page 56% 71% 78%Section cover ads 56% 71% 77%

Top Scoring SectionsFood/Culinary 61% 75% 79%Health 61% 71% 76%Money/Finance 60% 75% 82%Business 59% 75% 81%Travel 59% 69% 82%Living/Style 59% 70% 78%Sports 58% 73% 78%

Ad Recall Reader Actions Ad LikabilityTop Scoring CategoriesDrug Stores 69% 76% 75%Sporting Events 67% 73% 85%Office Supplies 67% 76% 81%Grocery Stores 66% 78% 83%Retail 61% 75% 79%TV & Movies 61% 72% 80%Computers & Tech 61% 75% 83%Electronics 60% 74% 80%Restaurants 60% 78% 84%Concerts 59% 69% 80%Telecommunications 58% 69% 76%Crafts 57% 75% 76%Lawn & Garden 57% 70% 79%Specialty Foods 57% 80% 84%Sporting Goods 56% 75% 76%

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