It always amazes me, when I speak to community groups and others about what we do here at the Central Kitsap Reporter and the Bremerton Patriot, how little is known about community newspapers.
For many, how the newspaper is produced is a mystery. There are those who wonder where we get our story ideas, how we decide what Letters to the Editor to run and why some things get covered and other things do not.
Sometimes, the answers are easy — breaking news trumps everything else. Other times the answers aren’t so easy — staffing situations, competitive events, community priorities.
For the past several years, many of the papers in Sound Publishing have had community advisory boards made up of readers who give constructive ideas on how to make our newspapers better. These groups usually meet over a lunch hour once a month for pizza and conversation.
These groups are advisory, a sounding board of sorts, to help us know how we’re doing and how we are perceived in the community. The group may be asked to suggest topics for stories and/or editorials. The group may help reporters and editors interview candidates, or weigh in on ballot measures affecting residents of Kitsap County. Advisory board members may be asked to suggest areas of coverage that need improvement, how our websites could do a better job, and other topics.
If you read our papers, either in print or online, and would like to be on an advisory panel for the Reporter and the Patriot, let us know. Email your name, address, phone and other contact information to lkelly@soundpublishing.com. Let us know about you: How long you’ve been in Central Kitsap or Bremerton, what you do for a living, activities you participate in, etc. Give us a brief statement of why you’d like to be a part of this group. Use the subject line “Advisory Group.” And remember, this would require a commitment of an hour or two a month for a meeting, and a pledge to keep up to date with our papers.
We hope to have our first meeting in July.
— Leslie Kelly is editor of the Bremerton Patriot, Central Kitsap Reporter and Veterans Life. Contact her at 360-308-9161 or lkelly@soundpublishing.com.
