Archive for May, 2009
May 29th, 2009
Starting today on Page 2A of the newspaper, you’ll find a daily Midwest Report anchoring news from nearby states: Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Indiana and Michigan for the most part, since they have similar or pertinent issues to us in Illinois.
This will ensure we get this news to you consistently.
You’ll also notice that we’re anchoring the Illinois Report in Local&State on its fourth page for the same reason.
Of course, you can find wire news 24/7 on rrstar.com and customize your feeds.
May 28th, 2009
Reporter Kevin Haas is known around our newsroom for his sense of humor. He’s written some pretty funny columns for our Gen Y magazine goNOW. And he’s done some videos that, well, not just any journalist would do. (Watch this one on county fair poop if you don’t believe me.)
Last night, we published this story/video on a Winnebago man who instead of having a garage sale is having a “man sale” this weekend. Um, what’s that? Well, Kevin dug deep and uncovered the story. Check it out. And definitely take the time to watch the video that’s attached. It’s worth all 123 minutes of your time.
May 26th, 2009
Check out this blog post on the Nieman Journalism Lab blog at Harvard University. Dan Froomkin, who writes White House Watch for the Washington Post, shares his prescription for the newspaper industry. He says “we’re hiding much of our newsrooms’ value behind a terribly anachronistic format: voiceless, incremental news stories that neither get much traffic nor make our sites compelling destinations.”
Here’s more:
If we were to start an online newspaper from scratch today, we’d recognize that toneless, small-bore news stories are not the way to build a large audience — not even with “interactive” bells and whistles cobbled on top. One option might be to imitate cable TV, and engage in a furious volume of he-said/she-said reporting, voyeurism, contrarianism, gossip, triviality and gotcha journalism. But that would come at the cost of our souls. The right way to reinvent ourselves online would be to do precisely what journalists were put on this green earth to do: Seek the truth, hold the powerful accountable, expose the B.S., explain how things really work, introduce people to each other, and tell compelling stories. And we should do all those things passionately and courageously — not hiding who we are, but rather engaging in a very public expression of our journalistic values.
What do you think?
May 22nd, 2009
Good morning. Inside today’s Register Star, you’ll find the Great Stimulus Event Bonus Section — deals brought to you by more than 60 local businesses.
Just to be clear: The section is actually divided into three sections because we can’t print a 48-page section all in one.
For a repeat performance: On Sunday, you’ll see 56 pages across four sections packaged together.
You can enter for your chance to win $500 online here; you also can fill out the form in the section for another chance to win $500. Good luck!
May 21st, 2009
We all could use a break in this economy, right?
On Friday and Sunday, just in time for Memorial Day weekend, the Register Star is holding the Great Stimulus Event, bonus sections crammed with full-page ads from more than 60 local retailers. Friday’s section will be 48 pages; Sunday’s, 56.
In addition to finding great deals, you’ll have the chance to win $500 in print and $500 online.
Look for posters at participating businesses as well.
I gave you the basics. My boss tells the story more in depth here.
May 18th, 2009
The Rockford Register Star and rrstar.com is now on Facebook. Become a fan. Each day, we’ll share stories, photo galleries, videos and more with you. Check us out and tell us what you think.
May 14th, 2009
This week, the Council of Rockford Gardeners, an organization of six local garden clubs, honored five people at its spring luncheon, including our very own Geri Nikolai for writing about beautification and its benefits.
Nikolai has won numerous awards in the past for those efforts and her writing overall — and believe me, she has earned all of them. She left the Register Star in 2008 but continues to write her Saturday column and freelance from time to time for Rockford Woman. We are lucky to have her.
May 12th, 2009
Web readers love Our Remember When historical photo galleries. We garner thousands of page views on them. Today’s on August Bargren is no exception. Bargren was a former Rockford police chief who was promoted in 1894 to the top job after only four years as a patrol officer. The anniversary of Bargren’s death is Saturday and it’s National Police Week so it seemed fitting to offer this look back. (Don’t forget to click on the link to our Remember When page which features more than 30 past galleries.)
May 11th, 2009
We received 335 entries in our Rockford Woman perfume giveaway from Bergner’s.
Heidi Martens of Rockford has won the basket of Sarah Jessica Parker Lovely frangrance products. Congrats!
May 8th, 2009
Interesting NPR segment with three aspiring journalists about the future of the biz they want to be a part of. Good discussion about old media versus new media. They all agree they have learned the fundamentals of journalism in college. They want to learn how to be their own publishers especially as we continue to expand our digital base.
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