Ohio Newspaper Association | The trade association for more than 250 Ohio daily and weekly newspapers and more than 150 Web sites. | Page: 8

Paulding Progress’ “Spice Girl” passes away at 91

January 24, 2013 · Add Comment

From The Paulding Progress

Dortha E. Schaefer, 92, of Payne, willingly accepted death when she passed away Wednesday, Jan. 23.

She was born Nov. 21, 1920 in Payne, the daughter of John and Vivian (Outland) Bonner. On Feb. 3, 1940, she married Roy Schaefer, who survives. Dortha was a substitute mail carrier for 17 years and a rural newspaper carrier for 16 years. From 1970 to 2012, Dortha entertained us in her Paulding Progress column "The Spice Rack."

Dortha was an active member of Divine Mercy Catholic Parish, where she was a member of the Altar Rosary Society; served as secretary of Paulding County Red Cross and the Payne Chamber of Commerce. After serving on the Bicentennial Committee of 1976, she worked to establish the John Paulding Historical Society. Dortha also was a member of the Visiting Nurses Auxiliary, Daughters of the American Revolution, Ohio State Historical Society, First Families of Paulding County, Friends of the Library, editor of the Ohio Contester Association for 10 years, Ohio Press for Woman, Dallas Lamb Foundation Auxiliary and PARC Lane School Board when the school was established.

Her hobby since 1957 was entering prize contests, winning many prizes for her family. She made many friends along the way, including Evelyn Ryan, mother of Terry Ryan, the author of The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio. Dortha helped start the contest club The Affadaisies, which became part of the movie based on the book.

Read the Obituary>>

Read Full Article →

70 papers respond to reality series casting call

January 24, 2013 · Add Comment

Read Full Article →

Boston Globe gives iPads to classrooms, reimagines NIE for the digital age

January 24, 2013 · Add Comment

The Boston Globe is giving iPads, projectors and free Boston Globe digital subscriptions to local public school classrooms in a digitally reimagined version of the Newspapers In Education program.

A major goal of longstanding NIE efforts has been to hook young readers on the print habit by dropping off free newspapers in schools and incorporating their content in lesson plans.

But that logic has faltered in recent years, the Globe’s Robert Saurer told me.

“We kind of walked away from NIE a little bit — we didn’t know what to do with it. We didn’t really believe that a 10- or 15-year-old reading print in school is going to continue on later to be a print reader in their 20s and 30s,” said Saurer, who is director of customer experience and innovation. “But a digital Globe reader in schools today might, in fact, turn into a digital Globe reader in their 20s and 30s.”

So the iPads-in-the-classroom approach gives the Globe a fresh angle to hook young readers in a digital format. But it’s also a chance for the Globe to learn about how the next generation uses digital media.

Read the Full Story>>

Read Full Article →

Cox Media Group Ohio announces improvements to weekly newspapers serving Northern Cincinnati region

January 23, 2013 · Add Comment

From a Cox Media Group press release

In December, Cox Media Group Ohio challenged industry trends by increasing the page count of the Hamilton JournalNews and The Middletown Journal daily newspapers. Now, building on its tradition of serving the media needs of the region, Cox Media Group Ohio is expanding two weekly newspapers and adding a companion website focused on Butler and Warren counties.

On Sunday, January 20, 2013, Cox Media Group Ohio will introduce two expanded county news weekly editions in the regions currently served by The Western Star, Pulse-Journal Little Miami/Kings, PulseJournal Mason, Fairfield Echo, Pulse-Journal West Chester and Pulse-Journal Liberty Township editions. The papers, called Today’s Pulse of Warren County, a product of The Western Star and Today’s Pulse of Butler County, a product of the Fairfield Echo, will encompass the current weekly editions within each region. Cox Media Group Ohio is also launching a regionally focused website, www.todayspulse.com, to complement and augment both newspapers by providing daily updates of local and county information.

Today’s Pulse of Warren County, a product of The Western Star will expand distribution into South Lebanon, Morrow, Blanchester and Oregonia; Today’s Pulse of Butler County, a product of the Fairfield Echo will expand distribution into Monroe and extend to more homes in Fairfield and Fairfield Township. In all, the county news editions will reach more than 17,000 additional homes.

Continue Reading>>

Read Full Article →

Judge in Steubenville rape case won’t release motions filed

January 23, 2013 · Add Comment

From The Plain Dealer

Officials at the Jefferson County Juvenile Court said Tuesday they would no longer release motions filed in the case of two 16-year-old student athletes charged with raping a Weirton, W. Va teen.

The court's probation officer, Fred Abdalla Jr., last week released a motion via email filed by attorney Walter Madison asking that future proceedings be closed to the public. Abdalla also released a notice of the hearing.

On Tuesday, Abdalla said Visiting Judge Thomas Lipps decided not to release any motions that have been or will be filed, including motions by other attorneys involved in the case who also want it closed to the public.

Abdalla said written requests or motions would have to be filed to inspect those as well as to inspect the court's docket in the case.

If the case is closed, no further information, including hearing dates, would be released, according to Abdalla.

Read the Full Story>>

Read Full Article →

Even if it enrages your boss, social net speech is protected

January 23, 2013 · Add Comment

From The New York Times

As Facebook and Twitter become as central to workplace conversation as the company cafeteria, federal regulators are ordering employers to scale back policies that limit what workers can say online.

Employers often seek to discourage comments that paint them in a negative light. Don’t discuss company matters publicly, a typical social media policy will say, and don’t disparage managers, co-workers or the company itself. Violations can be a firing offense.

But in a series of recent rulings and advisories, labor regulators have declared many such blanket restrictions illegal. The National Labor Relations Board says workers have a right to discuss work conditions freely and without fear of retribution, whether the discussion takes place at the office or on Facebook.

... The N.L.R.B. had far less sympathy for a police reporter at The Arizona Daily Star.

Frustrated by a lack of news, the reporter posted several Twitter comments. One said, “What?!?!?! No overnight homicide. ... You’re slacking, Tucson.” Another began, “You stay homicidal, Tucson.”

The newspaper fired the reporter, and board officials found the dismissal legal, saying the posts were offensive, not concerted activity and not about working conditions.

Read the Full Story>>

Read Full Article →

Digital First inks content deal with GlobalPost

January 23, 2013 · Add Comment

Read Full Article →

Editorial: Seclusion-room policy is improved, but a few more steps are needed

January 23, 2013 · Add Comment

Editorial from The Columbus Dispatch

With a new State Board of Education policy limiting the use of “seclusion rooms” for students whose behavior is out of control, Ohio schools and students will be better off than they were before.

But the issue won’t be fully resolved until the board applies similar rules to charter schools and makes clear that the use of such rooms must be publicly documented.

As an investigation last summer by The Dispatch and the public-radio collaboration StateImpact Ohio found that, among schools using the rooms — often small, cell-like enclosures — only a small minority used them in the way they’re intended: as a short-term safe space to confine a physically violent child who poses an immediate danger to himself or someone else.

More often, teachers or aides put students in such enclosures to punish them, often for relatively minor infractions such as yelling, slamming a book or cursing at a teacher. In some cases, adults used methods of restraint that harmed students or could have harmed them; often parents weren’t told of the incidents.

The state had no policy on their use and didn’t even keep track of which schools have them.

The new policy makes clear that seclusion rooms are to be used only when students are violent, requires schools to notify parents within 24 hours and to report when they’re used, and why, to the state.

What it fails to do is expressly state that those reports will be public records. The public needs to be able to monitor when and how seclusion rooms are used. Naturally, the children involved should not be identified.

After the Ohio Newspaper Association and the Ohio Coalition for Open Government pressed this issue, board members removed the wordconfidential from the section about records. But the policy still refers to them as “ educational records,” which some schools could try to use as justification for keeping them secret.

The school board should make clear that information about the use of seclusion rooms must be reviewable by the public. And while they do that, they also should seek legal advice on how to extend the policy to charter schools, which operate under laws different from those governing conventional public schools.

Imposing the same restrictions and accountability on charters is important, especially considering that a high proportion of charter schools serve special-needs students, including some with records of difficult behavior.

Read Full Article →

Dispatch board promotes top executives

January 23, 2013 · Add Comment

From The Columbus Dispatch

The Dispatch Printing Company announced the promotion of two key executives yesterday following its annual board meeting.

Michael J. Fiorile, company president, has been elevated to chief executive officer, and Joseph Y. Gallo, executive vice president at the company, was named chief operating officer. Both promotions were made by the company’s board of directors.

The promotions were announced by John F. Wolfe, formerly CEO, who will continue in his present role as chairman of the board and publisher ofThe Columbus Dispatch.

“Our company is fortunate to have such proven executives and community leaders to guide the future growth of our businesses,” Wolfe said.

Wolfe, 69, has been company chairman since 1994. He was named president in 1973 and Dispatch publisher in 1975.

Read the Full Story>>

Read Full Article →

NNA looking for community newspaper to be in documentary

January 22, 2013 · Add Comment

Read Full Article →

CantonRep.com announces digital subscription offers

January 22, 2013 · Add Comment

Read Full Article →

Kennedy: No papers getting it right in digital

January 22, 2013 · Add Comment

From Net News Check

Newspapers are all missing the mark in digital, says veteran media critic Dan Kennedy, hampered in many cases by clumsy paywall adoptions and too much debt on their books to succeed.

Kennedy, whose book on community journalism, The Wired City, will be published this spring, has most recently focused his attention on nonprofit and hyperlocal news models. His conclusions: Nonprofits can be formidable but not necessarily a fit for every market. Hyperlocals, meanwhile, must find more non-advertising revenue solutions in order to produce a higher volume of meaningful content.

Now an assistant professor at Northeastern University’s School of Journalism, Kennedy said journalism students today need to think of themselves as the tech workers of the past two decades — nomadic between startups, ready for frequent failures and adaptable to an increasingly niche-oriented landscape.

In an interview with NetNewsCheck, he explored those students’ prospects in the field, along with the challenges facing the alternative newsweekly world from which he came to prominence through a longtime stint at The Boston Phoenix.

Read the Full Story>>

Read Full Article →

Benjamin J. Marrison: Innovations to ‘Dispatch’ will impress you

January 21, 2013 · Add Comment

By Benjamin J. Marrison, From The Columbus Dispatch

Reader Susan McCullough sent a note a week ago to ask an important question.

“I participated in a group chosen to look at the new smaller format of TheDispatch last summer. The paper was supposed to change on Sept. 10, but was postponed because of production issues. Is this going to happen sometime in the near future, or has it been canceled altogether?”

McCullough was happy to learn what I’m about to tell you: We’re ready. On Jan. 28, a mere eight days from now, the new format will hit the streets of central Ohio.

The production issues that prevented us from launching the new format in September are fixed. We knew the format change was unprecedented in the industry and could create challenges, but we wanted to create something one-of-a-kind. We were unwilling to announce a new launch date until we were absolutely sure we were ready.

We’ve tested the new equipment repeatedly and are confident that we’re ready to make your hometown newspaper the first in the world to use this size and technology, and do so in a way that will make you proud.

Read the Full Editorial>>

Read Full Article →

Digital First Media shifts Oneida Daily Dispatch to three-day print schedule

January 18, 2013 · Add Comment

From Digital First press release

Digital First Media, which operates MediaNews Group, Journal Register Company and Digital First Ventures, today announced The Oneida Daily Dispatch is launching a new digitally focused publishing schedule that includes expanded online, mobile and electronic offerings and a change to a three-day print schedule.

The Oneida Daily Dispatch’s digital offerings – including free access to www.OneidaDispatch.com, free downloads of tablet, iPhone and Android mobile applications, and access to The Dispatch’s e-paper replica edition – will be provided to all subscribers starting February 3. The website will remain free and accessible to all users.

“Changes in the marketplace have allowed us to accelerate our transition to a more comprehensive, multi-platform offering. The Oneida Daily Dispatch is expanding our digital platforms including our new mobile and tablet applications as well as expanded website content,” said Jan Dewey, Digital First Media’s New York Publisher. “We know this is where our readers are and we know this is where our future is.”

February 3 also marks the launch of The Oneida Daily Dispatch’s new Sunday print edition that, along with Tuesday and Thursday editions, will comprise its new three-day print schedule.

“We will continue to provide our community with news and information when, where and how they want it. The expanded digital platforms illustrate our commitment to reaching our audience online and on the go,” said Karen Alvord, General Manager of The Oneida Daily Dispatch. “With the shift in the print schedule we will continue to publish to our digital platforms every day so our readers will have more local news and information.”

The new print schedule is not the only change for the print edition. Aside from the Sunday launch – a first in the history of The Oneida Daily Dispatch – a complete print redesign including a rebranding of The Oneida Dispatch that includes expanded local news and features sections, an easy-to-read “Start Your Day Here” feature that includes national and world news digests, as well as multi-day comics, puzzles and horoscope sections.

The Oneida Dispatch mobile apps – for iPhone, iPad and Android – are available through app stores for free, or by visiting www.OneidaDispatch.com. In addition to access to The Oneida Dispatch’s mobile and tablet applications, print subscribers will also have full access to the electronic replica edition.

Read Full Article →

Inland’s Newspaper Industry Compensation Survey

January 18, 2013 · Add Comment

News release from Inland Press Association

Take advantage of Inland's Newspaper Industry Compensation Survey,
the industry standard in compensation planning.

The newspaper industry recognizes Inland's Newspaper Industry Compensation Survey (NICS) as the largest, most comprehensive survey of newspaper positions. Inland's professional research department has been producing the survey for 95 years and has an unblemished record in handling confidential financial data. No other tool in the industry provides newspapers with data this authoritative and powerful.

Determine how competitive you are
Track trends for future hiring plans
Compare by circulation, revenue, geographic region and the industry as a whole

We measure more than 100 newspaper positions and include a benefits survey as well. Custom and regional reports are available upon request, and your participation and final results forms can be used in most HRIS programs.

Download the 2013 NICS forms or request these to be sent to by contacting Karla Zander at (847) 795-0380 or kzander@inlandpress.org

Read Full Article →

Patch shifting from news to ‘community-based’ platform

January 18, 2013 · Add Comment

From The Columbia Journalism Review

Patch hopes that all 903 of its hyperlocal news sites will be profitable by the end of 2013, and that many of them will have migrated to a less-newsy, more community-based platform, company president Warren Webster said on Tuesday evening.

He was interviewed by Forbes media reporter Jeff Bercovici at the end of the first day of Street Fight Summit, the hyperlocal conference.

“We went into 2012 having built this enormous organization,” Webster said, and “now we’ve built this machine; this machine has to work.” About 100 sites are profitable, mostly the oldest ones, he said, news that has been reported elsewhere. But Patch’s unique visitors are up 30 percent in the past year, he said, and “it does take time to win the hearts and minds not only of these communities but also the small-business owners.”

Patch, founded in 2007, has long gotten negative coverage, with critics alleging that its reporters are overworked and that, while its PR line emphasizes local news, internally the company prefers clickbait-style content. The criticism has continued with regard to Patch’s effort to turn a profit, Webster said, including disparaging coverage of the company’s decision to merge sites and cut freelance budgets.

Read the Full Story>>

Read Full Article →

Newspaper readers are not graying as quickly as reported

January 18, 2013 · Add Comment

My friend Alan Mutter wrote something startling this week in his always thought-provoking blog, Reflections of a Newsosaur: “The population of people reading newspaper has aged dramatically in the last three years.”

By Mutter’s analysis, roughly three-quarters of newspaper readers are now over age 45. That, according to his calculations, is up dramatically from half in 2010 — a graying of newspaper readers by 50 percent in two years.

He based his analysis on data from the Pew Research Center that I was involved in producing from summer 2010 and summer 2012. (I left the Pew Research Center in December to take the helm of the American Press Institute).

The problem is, the analysis doesn’t reflect reality.

First, the numbers don’t track with any commensurate significant drop in newspaper readership in the Pew dataset. In the survey conducted in June 2012, 49 percent of adults said they read a newspaper “regularly,” the same percentage as in 2010. If you take the narrower number, the percentage of adults who read a newspaper “yesterday,” there is a slight change, a drop from 31 percent in 2010 to 29 percent in 2012, but nothing that would support the kind of dramatic structural shift Mutter estimates. Nor do recent circulation figures suggest it.

Read the Full Story>>

Read Full Article →

AG warns employers about background checks

January 17, 2013 · Add Comment

From The Mansfield News Journal

Criminal background checks processed by the attorney general’s office under a new state law no longer include information about arrests and charges that didn’t result in convictions. But the changes have some officials worried that employers are being given a false sense of security about applicants.

In reaction, the state’s criminal investigation agency will begin warning employers this week that background check information only includes convictions and guilty pleas. The law was designed to make it easier for ex-offenders to find work after paying their debt to society.

It shields information about individuals who have been arrested but not convicted, information that used to be included in the reports. That is affecting three categories of people: juveniles convicted of serious crimes that aren’t required to be reported, adults with recent arrests whose cases haven’t been concluded and adults who years ago violated their bail conditions and fled to avoid prosecution.

Read the Full Story>>

Read Full Article →

NY legislature restricts access to gun permit data

January 16, 2013 · Add Comment

From The New York Times

New York State’s new gun law seeks to restrict ownership of certain weapons. But it also restricts something else: access to previously public information about gun permits.

The new law, passed on Tuesday, requires that, for the next 120 days, no information about gun permit holders in a new statewide gun registration database is made available publicly, according to Robert Freeman, the executive director of the State Committee on Open Government. After that, gun permit holders will have the right to have their names and addresses removed from the database by contacting their local county clerks or police departments.

Legislators rushed to include this protection in its gun regulation proposal after the suburban newspaper The Journal News published on Dec. 23 the names and addresses of gun permit holders in Westchester and Rockland Counties, and put online a map showing the locations of the gun permit holders.

The article and map prompted outrage from gun owners, who said they felt they could be harassed or have their homes broken into.

Read the Full Story>>

Read Full Article →

Did you know? Times-Star Building is news icon

January 16, 2013 · Add Comment

From The Cincinnati Enquirer

Cincinnati has been home to dozens of newspapers, even a few in German. The grand Times-Star Building at 800 Broadway, Downtown, is perhaps the best monument to the city’s newspaper history.

The Cincinnati Times-Star began as the Spirit of the Times, published by C.W. Starbuck on April 25, 1840, a year before The Enquirer’s debut.

In 1880, the Times merged with the Evening Star under the ownership of Charles Phelps Taft, half-brother of William Howard Taft. Not suprisingly, it was a staunchly Republican paper.

The Times-Star and its rival, the Cincinnati Post, competed for the city’s evening readership, often with sensational headlines. The Times-Star’s offices were at 230 Walnut St., then moved to Sixth and Walnut streets in 1892.

Read the Full Story, and See Pictures>>

Read Full Article →

Schools’ use of seclusion now limited

January 16, 2013 · Add Comment

Editor's Note: The State Board of Education recently made a significant policy change on open records in response to a letter from the Ohio Newspaper Association and the Ohio Coalition for Open Government. As described in a Jan. 14th Columbus Dispatch article by Randy Ludlow, the State Board of Education was scheduled to vote on a rule to declare that "school reports on the use of seclusion rooms are confidential and prohibit districts from releasing any personally identifiable information about students under federal privacy law." After the ONA and OCOG raised concerns about this, the Board members removed the word "confidential" to "show the state wasn’t necessarily declaring the records private."

From The Columbus Dispatch

State Board of Education members say their seclusion and restraint policy isn’t perfect, but they’re proud to have done something to protect Ohio’s children from abuse.

The board voted 12-4 yesterday to pass the state’s first-ever policy to stop schools from using seclusion rooms or physical restraint as a punishment for children or as a convenience for staff members.

Seclusion and restraint — most often applied to students with disabilities, though the policy applies to all children — will be allowed only if students pose a physical danger to themselves or others. The policy also requires schools to send parents a written report of incidents involving their children within 24 hours. Some parents have complained that their school never told them their children had spent time in seclusion.

The rules will be applied starting next school year.

Continue Reading>>

Read Full Article →

Register by Jan. 25 for AP’s Legislative Preview Session

January 16, 2013 · 1 Comment

From Michigan-Ohio AP News

Mark your calendars for Thursday, January 31, when we will host the annual Ohio Associated Press 2013 Legislative Preview Session.

The meeting is designed to give AP member journalists, particularly those who do not work in Columbus, access to the state’s key leaders during the legislative session. As you know from previous sessions, you’ll go home with spot news stories, as well as plenty of background material for feature stories, columns and editorials.

Key on this year’s agenda will be priorities for Ohio for 2013. Gov. John Kasich is scheduled to address the group and take questions, along with the Senate and House majority and minority leaders. The state’s executive officeholders also will discuss issues important to their offices and constituents. Dennis Hetzel, executive director of the Ohio Newspaper Association, will brief us on legislation that affects the media.

As in past years, the seminar will be held at the Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center at 65 S. Front St. in downtown Columbus from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The deadline to register is Friday, January 25.

The event is being co-sponsored by the Ohio Newspaper Association, Ohio Association of Broadcasters and the Ohio Associated Press Media Editors.

Registration materials are available here: Download 2013 Ohio Legislative Preview Session Agenda Download 2013 Ohio Legislative Preview Session Registration Form

While there is no charge for the seminar or lunch, please email a PDF of the completed registration form to Patti Baker at pbaker@ap.org so we can ensure an accurate head count for lunch. If you have any questions, please contact Patti Baker (pbaker@ap.org) at (614) 885-2727.

Read Full Article →

The President’s Corner: Why you should attend the 2013 ONA Convention

January 15, 2013 · Add Comment

By David E. Dix
Publisher, Ravenna/Kent Record-Courier
2012-2013 President, ONA Board of Trustees

An agreement that enables AdOhio to collaborate with the Florida Press Association, an entirely new and improved site to host to host public notices, a revision in our Constitution to encourage Ohio’s digital publications and more newspapers to join forces with us, and an ad network for Ohio’s eight largest newspapers represent major accomplishments that will be explained in greater detail at our upcoming Ohio Newspaper Association Convention in Columbus, Feb. 13 and 14, at the Polaris Hilton Hotel.

Your board is excited by the potential of collaborating with the Florida Press Association, whose sales last year exceeded $40 million for its Florida members. Their marketing expertise and back-office expertise will add firepower to the efforts of AdOhio’s fine staff and we believe will significantly boost placements with you, our members, both in print and digitally.

Representatives of the Florida Press Association and AdOhio will be on hand at the ONA Convention to explain their work and answer your questions.

Our new ONA Public Notice website, which Cox Newspapers, in a pioneering project, has agreed to market on our behalf, is debuting in its beta form and will roll out to all members this coming year. Executive Director Dennis Hetzel and Jason Sanford will explain our new public notice site at the Convention and provide demonstrations upon request.

Thanks to the leadership of Ken Douthit, who has a long association with the Ohio Newspaper Association board as a member, officer, and general purpose volunteer, proposed changes in our Constitution and Bylaws will be up for a vote by our members at the Convention. The updating was done to give the Ohio Newspaper Association more clout with the Ohio Legislature and to make it compatible with the digital world we inhabit.

We have excellent speakers and programs scheduled for our convention. Ken Doctor, the digital newspaper expert, will keynote the day. Caroline Little, the CEO of the Newspaper Association of America, will offer a perspective on issues facing us, including the recent agreement between the U.S. Postal Service and Valassis.

Everyone in our industry knows the challenges we face on numerous fronts. The convention is a good way for you to see the progress your Ohio Newspaper Association is making to assist all of us in meeting our challenges. I look forward to your attendance and believe you’ll find the time at the convention well spent.

Read Full Article →

Editorial: Schools should be instructed to be open about discipline issue

January 15, 2013 · Add Comment

Editorial from The Vindicator

There’s a saying that when God closes a door, He opens a window. But politics isn’t divine, and experience shows that when government cracks a window, it often tries to slam shut a door.

Consider what’s happening in Columbus in response to a series put together last summer by the Columbus Dispatch and StateImpact Ohio, a collaboration of NPR and Ohio public-radio stations, on the misuse of seclusion rooms in public schools to deal with unruly students.

The Dispatch reported that no law governs seclusion rooms — which can range from something akin to a bare oversized closet to a padded cell — and the Ohio Department of Education had provided little guidance and virtually no oversight to schools on their use.

The series surveyed 100 school districts and found that 39 of them had seclusion rooms. But the Department of Education has no idea which districts have seclusion rooms and how they are used, because it has not asked.

The department does not know how often vulnerable children are locked alone in these rooms and does not intend to tell schools to stop doing whatever it may be that they’re doing.

But the department is poised to take some action this week, at a meeting tomorrow. And while some parents and child advocates may see the department’s action as a start, they’re likely to find that in the long run it will become more difficult to find out how some school districts are using seclusion rooms.

Read the Full Editorial>>

Read Full Article →

Editorial: Invasion of the data snatchers

January 15, 2013 · Add Comment

By Bill Keller, from The New York Times

YOU are the editor of a local newspaper. A reporter on your staff comes to you having obtained (by legal means) one of the following:

Police records of arrests for drunken driving;
The personal details of all the employees of local clinics that perform abortions;
The subscriber list of a survivalist magazine with pronounced racist overtones;
The names and addresses of food stamp recipients in your community;
The donors to a group that promotes L.G.B.T. rights;
The names of husbands accused of infidelity in divorce suits, along with the identities of the alleged lovers;
Addresses of homes where pit bulls are kept.

The reporter proposes to publish the names and home addresses and map them on a large graphic, all part of an article on “The [drunks/abortionists/racists/poor/gays/cheats/scary dogs] next door.”

Some of these lists might strike you as fair game. (Many community newspapers publish D.U.I. arrests, presumably to shame the accused into driving sober.) Others probably make you uncomfortable or indignant. You might find that the tricky part is articulating why: what is the boundary between a public service and an invasion of privacy?

My hypothetical editor’s choice is inspired, of course, by an unhypothetical event: the decision by The Journal News in White Plains to map the names and addresses of 33,614 handgun permit holders in two surrounding counties, for a project called “The gun owner next door.” I’ll return to that decision, but the striking thing was the volume and venom of the reader backlash: thousands of comments — and not only from gun owners — overwhelmingly outraged, some of them suggesting that Journal News journalists deserved to have their identities stolen, their homes burgled, their children taunted or, predictably, to be shot.

When it comes to privacy, we are all hypocrites.

Read the Full Editorial>>

Read Full Article →

Legislating live: Move to broadcast Ohio House hearings will be a public service

January 14, 2013 · 1 Comment

From The Columbus Dispatch

The Ohio House opened its 130th session on (Jan. 7) by vowing to be more open with constituents, by expanding the use of technology.

House Speaker William G. Batchelder announced that for the first time, some House committee hearings, particularly those involving the state’s next two-year budget, will be broadcast live online and on public-access television. The House also will broadcast those hearings on issues that are of special interest to the public, he said.

The broadcasts will make it easier for average Ohioans — who can’t just drop everything and come to Columbus to attend these sessions — to see in real time what their representatives are doing and saying on their behalf.

Knowing that the public is looking over their shoulder as they work might have a salutary effect on lawmakers. And the Ohio Senate should consider emulating the House.

The House committees also plan to move toward going paperless, with electronic tablets for bills and amendments. Not only does that cut expenses and waste, it also allows the public to access documents online more quickly.

Read Full Article →

Blade elevates Burkett, Merem as production managers

January 14, 2013 · Add Comment

Read Full Article →

AEP gave $2 million to help JobsOhio

January 14, 2013 · Add Comment

From The Columbus Dispatch

A line in a routine financial disclosure form reveals that American Electric Power is one of the big donors helping to fund Ohio’s private-development department — to the tune of $2 million.

The AEP filing with the federal Securities and Exchange Commission also divulges that JobsOhio, the private, nonprofit office set up by Gov. John Kasich to guide jobs and investment expansion in Ohio, has a little-known companion agency that serves as a clearinghouse for its funding.

How the $2 million donation, JobsOhio and its companion entity are all tied together is confusing. But their relationship sheds new light on Kasich’s JobsOhio — an entity hailed by some for its effectiveness in growing the state’s economy but that by design operates mostly in secrecy.

Shielded from public-records laws and enabled to keep its dealings with businesses private in a way the now-defunct Ohio Department of Development never could, JobsOhio secured commitments from companies to create or retain 70,000 jobs worth about $2.3 billion in annual payroll and $4.5 billion in capital in 2012, officials said.

Read the Full Story>>

Read Full Article →

Benjamin J. Marrison: District slow to give facts that public seeks

January 13, 2013 · Add Comment

By Benjamin J. Marrison, from The Columbus Dispatch

The cheating scandal that has enveloped the Columbus City Schools continues to grow.

As it does, the frustration of taxpayers is escalating along with calls for The Dispatch to dig even deeper into this mess that has raised questions about the truthfulness of the district’s attendance records, graduation rates, test scores, performance bonuses and much more.

Reader Nicholas Russell might have said it best:

“As a long-time Columbus taxpayer, I represent dozens of people I have spoken with about the Columbus Public Schools data-rigging investigation in asking The Dispatch to intensify its coverage of this investigation. While the information that has been reported thus far has been very well delivered, this situation is evolving daily and needs daily coverage.

Read the Full Editorial>>

Read Full Article →

Gov. Kasich to speak at ONA Convention opening reception

January 11, 2013 · Add Comment

Ohio Gov. John Kasich will speak at the opening reception for the 2013 ONA Convention, which will be held on Feb. 13 from 5 to 7 pm in the Hilton Columbus at Polaris.

Kasich, who is expected to run for re-election in 2014, last addressed the ONA at the 2011 convention. He is expected to make brief remarks and answer questions from ONA members. The governor will be joined by other invited legislative and executive branch leaders who will mingle with convention attendees at the opening reception.

“We urge ONA members to attend the reception. A good turnout really supports our efforts at the Statehouse,” said Executive Director Dennis Hetzel. “It’s a great opportunity to network with elected officials, discuss the issues that are important to us and, frankly, remind them that we’re paying attention.”

The complete convention program kicks off the next day, with a full schedule of speakers and panels. Among the headliners on Feb. 14 will be Caroline Little, president and CEO of the Newspaper Association of America; Phillip J. Castellini, chief operating officer for the Reds; Paul Dolan, chairman and chief executive officer of the Cleveland Indians; and Ken Doctor, the president of Newsonomics and one of the industry’s keenest commenters and observers. Castellini and Dolan will make a rare joint appearance at the kickoff breakfast.

Anyone attending the opening reception should consider arriving a few hours earlier for the ONA’s pre-convention workshop, “Competing and Winning Against Direct-Mail Competitors with Jim Hart.” The workshop will be held on Feb. 13 from 2 – 4:30 p.m.

For the complete convention schedule, and for more information on how to register, please go here.

Read Full Article →

ONA seeks volunteers for Professional Development Committee

January 11, 2013 · Add Comment

By Dennis Hetzel, Executive Director

The Ohio Newspaper Association is looking for volunteers to serve on its sort-of-new Professional Development Committee.

The committee is a reboot of the Human Resources & Education Committee. The name change is, we think, a better reflection of the committee’s role. The group’s primary job is to advise ONA staff and the Board of Trustees in developing our annual training program. This includes in-person seminars and webinars as well as our relationships with other media organizations in which we are able to offer additional training opportunities, often at a discount to members.

Larry Dorschner, publisher of the Lisbon Morning Journal and a member of the ONA Board of Trustees, has agreed to succeed Andrew R. Dix as committee chair. Andrew, the long-time chair and president of Dix Communications Internet, recently expressed a desire to step down.

With time and resources at more of a premium than ever, it also is more important than ever that we be smart and focused about training. We shouldn’t duplicate offerings that are readily available and easily accessible elsewhere, and we should offer unique, Ohio-focused training that you won’t get anywhere else.

For example, in 2013 we had successful programs that included a journalist’s guide to oil and gas drilling in Ohio and a webinar series on legal issues for Ohio journalists, advertising managers and human resources managers.

When we have a chance to do something really special, we go for it. Such an opportunity is coming on Feb. 13, when we will have a pre-convention workshop in Columbus with Jim Hart, the industry’s leading expert on competing with direct-mail, including companies such as Valassis that now have special deals with the U.S. Postal Service. We will be revealing more details about our 2013 programming plans soon.

The committee generally holds one or two meetings in the final three months each year and otherwise communicates via phone calls and emails. Committee members are asked to provide feedback at any time when they have an idea for a training program or a way to improve the program, which is done under the auspices of our tax-exempt Ohio Newspapers Foundation.

If you or someone on your staff is interested in being a member of this committee, just let me know at dhetzel@ohionews.org.

Read Full Article →

ONA backs Civitas in public notice case

January 11, 2013 · Add Comment

By Dennis Hetzel, Executive Director

The Executive Committee of the Ohio Newspaper Association Board of Trustees has authorized support of Civitas Media (formerly Ohio Community Media) with a “friend-of-the-court” brief in an appeal of a ruling in Darke County over qualifications to publish public notices under Ohio statutes.

The litigation involves The Daily Advocate, an ONA member newspaper, and the publisher of a weekly, Sunday publication, the Early Bird. The appeal will seek to overturn a ruling by Judge Jonathan P. Hein that upheld a finding by the county’s attorney that The Early Bird met the qualification standards that were revised in 2011.

The Executive Committee reviewed this case along with ONA Board Member and General Counsel Lou Colombo. The committee, chaired by ONA President David E. Dix, concluded that the issues raised in the case could be impactful on many ONA members, and that the case could clarify ambiguities in the law.

Civitas maintains that the Early Bird does not meet the requirements that say a qualifying newspaper must have a valid distribution list, the ability to add subscribers to that list and verification of mail or carrier delivery by postal statement or independent audit.

The lower court ruled otherwise. Click here to view a complete copy of the judge’s decision in Darke County if you would like more detail.

The ONA also is monitoring a court case in Coshocton in which the dispute involves whether a weekly newspaper is qualified if it does not publish every week of the year. The ONA is not taking a formal position because the outcome of this case could affect some members positively and others negatively.

The notice of appeal in the Darke County case was filed in late December, and a ruling will take several months. Colombo, a partner in Baker Hostetler’s Cleveland office and long-time advisor for ONA’s legal hotline, will represent ONA and coordinate efforts with the attorney for Civitas Media.

Click here for the Daily Advocate’s article on the appeal filing.

Read Full Article →

ONA’s new Public Notices Ohio website to launch Jan. 15

January 11, 2013 · Add Comment

The ONA’s redesigned and vastly improved public notice website, Public Notices Ohio, will launch on Tuesday, Jan. 15.

The new site, which can be previewed at http://ohio.publicnoticeillinois.com, will feature a new interface and a clean, classic design, and promises to bring even more traffic and attention to our members’ public notices.

There is no fee or cost for ONA members to post notices to Public Notices Ohio. However, ONA members must register at http://www.ohionews.org/public-notices/member-registration before they can begin posting legal notices on the site.

“We need complete cooperation from ONA members to support this initiative,” said ONA Executive Director Dennis Hetzel. “Our site must continue to be the best, most comprehensive place to find Ohio public notices on the Internet.”

As previously reported, the new site is a result of an agreement reached with the Illinois Press Association, which is providing the back-end technology modeled on the IPA’s recent launch of its own public notice site. ONA members who are currently posting notices should experience little difficulty in making the transition from the old site, but they must re-register. Users who go to publicnoticesohio.com will see the new site instead of the old one starting on Tuesday.

As the new site launches there will also be opportunities for members to monetize their digital notice listings and receive rebates if they help to promote the site and it becomes profitable. The ONA will even be able to provide a feed of your local notices to your newspaper’s site, allowing you to package them under your brand and sell around this content.

Most importantly, the new Public Notices Ohio website will be a vital tool for ensuring that Ohio public notices remain in newspapers. This website helps the ONA and our members argue against Ohio governments issuing their notices solely on government websites, where members of the public will rarely see them.

If you have any questions about the new website or the registration process, please contact the ONA’s Jason Sanford at jsanford@ohionews.org or 614-486-6677, ext. 1014.

Read Full Article →

Ohio court rules Bureau of Workers’ Compensation overcharged thousands of small employers for premiums

January 10, 2013 · 2 Comments

From Roetzel & Andress

A Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court judge ruled on Friday, December 28, 2012, that the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation ("BWC" or "Bureau") overcharged thousands of Ohio employers that did not qualify for membership in group rating programs from 2001 to 2008 for workers' compensation premiums during those years. The case was filed in 2007 by Corky & Lenny's, a suburban Cleveland deli, on behalf of a class that may include up to 270,000 small Ohio employers.

The plaintiffs claimed that employers that were not permitted into groups organized by third-party administrators throughout the state paid excessive premiums into the BWC's state insurance fund in order to subsidize deep discounts that were offered to employers that did qualify for group membership. While the complaint initially alleged that damages to those employers could exceed $1.7 billion, counsel for the plaintiffs conceded that the damages were actually more in the neighborhood of $800 million. Judge Richard McMonagle gave the plaintiffs until January 28, 2013, to provide an updated estimate of the current damage figure. In a 28-page opinion, Judge McMonagle relied on the testimony of current and former BWC employees, as well as outside consulting actuaries retained by the Bureau, to reach his decision; including a current actuarial director who testified that the "BWC knew that at least by 2001 that non-group employers were paying 'excessive premiums' beyond what should have been paid." Moreover, the opinion listed numerous exhibits and witnesses that referenced the BWC admitting that its faulty group rating plan was overcharging non-group employers during the years in question.

The court determined that the Bureau had violated statutes that called for it to develop an equitable and fair rating system for employers, along with other statutes that require a reasonable way of charging workers' compensation premiums. The court also ordered the BWC to "disgorge" the excessive premiums that it collected from non-group rated employers according to a formula discussed in testimony by the plaintiffs' actuarial expert. A final order has not been issued by the court, but it is certain that the BWC will appeal the decision to the Eighth District Court of Appeals.

Read Full Article →

Page 8 of 47« First «...6 789 10...20 30 40...»Last »

Important Dates

May 21
Understanding the Latest Analytics & Metrics
Local Media Association webinar

May 23
Collaborating and Competing: Newspaper Success Models
Online Media Campus webinar

May 28
Take it to the Limit: Three Unconventional Sales Streams
Local Media Association webinar

June 12
ONA Law School Webinar: Labor issues and Ohio newspapers
Exclusive ONA webinar

View the Full Training Calendar
Marketplace

Upload your job postings and resumes for free!

ONA members can post their job openings for free as a benefit of ONA membership. Job seekers can post their resumes for free for ONA members to see.

Submit Your Job Posting
Submit Your Resume
View Job Postings