News

Don Russell did everything to conjure up a buyer for Sierra County’s Mountain Messenger. He ran ads in his state press association newsletter (yes, this very one). He shopped the paper to other publishers. He alerted the media. And the media responded, publishing and broadcasting colorful features about a rural newsman and his inky weekly…

The first 25 to register for NewsTrain, March 27-28 at Fresno State, will get a free online AP Stylebook courtesy of sponsor Associated Press. Register for $75 until Feb. 27; the rate increases to $85 on Feb. 28. The NewsTrain workshop is for reporters, editors and other journalists from print, digital and broadcast newsrooms of…

“Today, Myles Mellor’s puzzles are syndicated in nearly 120 newspapers, and appear in more than 600 magazines,” a Sonoma Index-Tribune profile says. “He writes custom puzzles on a wide range of topics: sailing, engineering, even puzzles for individuals for anniversaries and whatnot. He recently mailed his 15,000th invoice, and has now published 45 word puzzle…

Included in the $1.4 trillion U.S. spending bill signed last week is the Save the Community Newspaper Act, which allows at least a dozen community newspapers in the U.S. to defer some of the contributions they make into their employee pension funds, The Seattle Times reports. “Community newspapers” in this case are defined as “publications…

Is there a journalism challenge you or your newsroom has wanted to tackle, but haven’t had the time or resources to focus on the idea? Could the project benefit the industry as a whole in some way and strengthen democracy through better journalism? Apply by Jan. 17 for the Reynolds Journalism Institute’s flexible fellowship program.…

The weekly Mountain Echo in Fall River Mills, Shasta County, will cease publication with its final 2019 edition, Editor and Co-Publisher Walt Caldwell told readers on Dec. 3. The Echo was founded in 1977, and Walt came aboard in 1982 as editor and manager. He and wife Donna acquired it that year. Donna told CNPA…

A quarterly column produced by Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office is being offered for publication to members of organizations including California Black Media and Ethnic Media Services, a news release said. The “On the Record” column, intended to reach diverse communities, will be translated into six different languages and is intended to be published online and…

Rallies, campaign events, protests: They are all part of the election beat, and they are also potential flashpoints for the journalists covering them. During elections, journalists are at increased risk of attack, arrest, and physical or digital harassment, the Committee to Protect Journalists has found. Ahead of the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 3, 2020,…

The O’Brien Fellowship in Public Service Journalism is accepting applications through Jan. 20 and will select three to five journalists to complete in-depth projects during their time at Marquette University in Milwaukee. Applicants must have at least five years of professional experience and produce journalism regularly as an employee or freelancer. Applicants may have experience…

With New Media Investment Group’s acquisition of Gannett, several GateHouse Media companies in California join the new Gannett. They include The Record in Stockton, Daily Press in Victorville, Daily Independent in Ridgecrest, Siskiyou Daily News in Yreka, Mount Shasta Herald and Taft Midway Driller. These properties join the Record Searchlight in Redding, The Salinas Californian,…