Saturday, July 14, 2007

The Daily Triplicate

Position: Managing Editor

When: 2006-current

Where: Crescent City, Calif.

Duties:
g Staff - Measure and monitor productivity of nine staff members (five reporters, two editors, one photographer, one intern); enforce newspaper policies; train staff in AP/company styles and journalism skills; implement procedures to create efficient newsroom operation

g News content – Ensure timely, accurate, balanced and thorough local news coverage across various print and online platforms; maintain daily news budgets

g Budget – Oversee $250,000-plus departmental budget

g Departmental planning – Write and implement weekly, monthly and yearly departmental plans; coordinate between newsroom and other departments on varying projects from special section production to circulation drives

g Editorial pages – Write daily editorials through discussion with publisher; oversee editorial page production; write weekly column about newspaper’s coverage

g Outreach - Represent the newspaper in the community through coffees and attendance of local civic club meetings; represent the newspaper in the industry by attending conventions and workshops

g Coordination with sister papers – Plan and share coverage of news events and special projects with other papers in our company

g Management team – Sit on operating committee, discussing and planning projects and issues that are inter-departmental or affect the newspaper as a whole

Achievements:
g Award-winning staff – My newsroom won eight awards in the 2006 California Newspaper Publisher’s Association Better Newspaper Contest; the awards range from our coverage of business, breaking news, government and features to the design and content of the paper’s front and editorial pages

g More local news content – The amount of local news in our paper has more doubled while improving in quality and variety

g Cost-effective department – My department currently is spending under its budget by about 1 percent a month

g Improved quality through planning – Through long-term planning and implementation of projects, we’ve redesigned the front page and various sections, based on industry trends and reader input, to ensure readers can get the kind of news they want in the way they like it

g Leadership through our editorial page – We write a daily editorial on a local topic; have launched a “10 Issues to Address” platform for which we seek local residents and experts to write columns about

g Extensive outreach – The newsroom frequently and regularly interacts with local civic, business and government leaders and readers through coffees, luncheons and guest-speaking appearances

g Mutually beneficial relations with our sister papers – We’ve coordinated and shared coverage of news events and special projects with our neighboring sister paper and with a company news bureau staff in Washington, D.C.

g Outstanding relations with other departments – While maintaining a wall to ensure objectivity, we’ve improved efficiency of advertising-driven special sections, improved printing production quality and used marketing information to adjust content and design

g Reader’s respect – The most frequent comment I hear from people in the community is “The paper has never been better!” The proof is a 6.6 percent increase in subscriptions during an eight-month period and a 56 percent increase in monthly hits on our Web site since December 2006

Awards: We won eight awards in the 2006 California Newspaper Publisher's Association better Newspaper Contest. Complete list

The Daily Triplicate's home page

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Thursday, July 12, 2007

The Desert Sun

Position: Opinion Page Editor

When: 2005-2006

Where: Palm Springs, Calif.

Duties: I headed paper's eight-member editorial board, wrote daily editorials (typically seven a week), oversaw pagination of 1.5 pages Monday through Saturday and 2 pages on Sunday (usually full color four or five times a week), solicited and edited op-ed columns, selected and edited letters to the editor and selected syndicate editorial cartoons. In addition, I organized public forums (usually once a quarter) and regularly conducted public outreach meetings (usually twice a week). I was able to get a number of political candidates to meet with our editorial board, the most prominent being Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Awards: Complete list

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Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Iowa City Press-Citizen

Position: Editorial Page Editor

When: 2002-2005

Where: Iowa City, Iowa

Duties: I headed paper's seven-member editorial board, wrote daily editorials (typically seven a week), designed and paginated pages, solicited and edited op-ed columns, selected and edited letters to the editor, developed local editorial cartoons with our two cartoonists (one staff and one freelance), selected syndicate editorial cartoons and wrote a weekly column (Cornfield Soul, which appeared Sundays). In addition, I organized public forums (usually once a quarter) and regularly conducted public outreach meetings (usually three a month). During the Iowa caucuses, I helped connect out-of-state media with local residents and represented the Press-Citizen during interviews on the BBC and National Public Radio (a second NPR broadcast). As a staff editor, I headed the newsroom’s Diversity Committee. During one year, our All-American score, given by Gannett, rose nearly three points thanks to outreach, additional training, new hirings and improved tools that our committee developed for the newsroom.

Awards: Complete list

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Monday, July 9, 2007

Herald Times Reporter

Position: News Editor

When: 2000-2002

Where: Manitowoc, Wis.

Duties: As the Herald Times Reporter's news editor, I headed the copy desk and routinely paginated all sections of the paper except sports. During my tenure, I oversaw the newsroom’s conversion to new software and Web site, tweaked our newspaper design and rewrote our stylebooks for reporters and copy editors. My staff won headline and special projects awards from Wisconsin Newspaper Association. In addition, I served on the Herald Times Reporter's editorial board, writing an editorial about once a week and an op-ed column every two.

Awards: Complete list

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Sunday, July 8, 2007

Prescott Journal

Position: Managing editor

When: 1999-2000

Where: Prescott, Wis.

Duties: As the Prescott Journal's managing editor, I headed the weekly paper's newsroom, overseeing reporters, photographers, freelancers and pagination. Accomplishments included reshaping and strengthening news content and coverage, redesigning the paper and creating internship programs for a reporter a graphic artist.

Awards: The Journal was named the Wisconsin Newspaper Association's Weekly Newspaper of the Year for 2000. The Journal chalked up 15 state and two national awards during my tenure. Complete list

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Saturday, July 7, 2007

Merrill Area Public Schools

Position: Journalism/English teacher

When: 1994-1998

Where: Merrill, Wis.

Duties: I taught English and journalism to eighth and ninth graders. Among my accomplishments are serving as team leader and on various committees, organizing an annual Career Day for eight graders and coordinating a student writing program with the local weekly.

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Friday, July 6, 2007

Deming Public Schools

Position: Journalism/English teacher

When: 1992-1994

Where: Deming, N.M.

Duties: I taught journalism and English to eighth-12th graders in a desert town just 30 miles from the Mexico border (most of my students were minorities and many possessed language barriers). Accomplishments include starting a student news bureau that wrote for local newspaper, developed a departmental awards program at middle school and heading my building's Academic Improvement Committee. I was named Middle School Teacher of the Year in 1993.

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