Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
The Asheville Citizen-Times is looking to capitalize (in terms of content, and in terms of cash) on the inauguration of President Barack Obama by taking part in a new venture led by its corporate parent, Gannett Co. The strategy is called Content One, and it’s described at length over at Gannett Blog.
Gannett is creating a special inauguration Web site that every Gannett newspaper in America, including the Citizen-Times, will put on its own Web site. Gannett will sell national advertising on the site, which it hopes will be viewed from coast to coast. And individual newspapers will have the ability to print a special section to add to its newspapers, a special section filled with local advertising. Last year, one bright spot on the newspaper landscape was that sales of newspapers recording the historic election of Obama went through the roof. Everyone wanted a keepsake.
Locally, you’ll see the Citizen-Times asking for people’s past inauguration stories and photos. They’re already asking for people to tell them if they plan to attend the Jan. 20 inauguration. And there are plenty more strategies, all outlined by Gannett. Here’s a sample:
Here is a menu of some ideas gathered from around Gannett. We share these to encourage you to partner with your readers in interesting, fun ways. Several of these could attract advertisers’ interest in adjacencies or sponsorships.
- Essay contest for students: Students could be asked to submit essays around a theme you identify (a message to the president, an examination of the significance, etc.) You could gather them the first two weeks of January and run the winner in the special section on Jan. 18 (if you’re using it). All essays could be posted online.
- Students help write the speech: Invite classes to write the opening paragraphs of the inauguration speech. You could circle back afterward and see how theirs compared to Obama’s.
- Good old mugs and quotes: Gather lots of people-on-the-street vignettes asking what the inauguration means to them. Sprinkle liberally throughout the advance coverage.
- Readers share their ties to the inauguration: People throughout our communities have interesting connections – businesses are part of the event, residents are planning trips. Ask for readers to submit their photos and blogs to connect the dots across the community.
- Capture the interest in history: Ask for photos from past inaugurations. Ask for stories of encounters with past presidents. Ask for photos/anecdotes about interesting campaign memorabilia.
- Letters to the president: You could ask students to write letters about what they hope the president will accomplish. Or, could turn to adults for the same thing. The letters could be posted online, with selected one presented on the opinion page.
- Be sure to get all sides: Just as we balance our journalism, we need to balance our outreach to readers. Remember, whatever you do, to include people who didn’t vote for Obama and who retain skepticism. This may require special outreach.
- Seek readers’ editorial cartoons: Editorial cartoons can captivate readers. Ask readers to try their hand at sharing their perspectives via original artwork.
- Time capsule: Partner with the local library to fill and bury a time capsule. Enlist readers in nominating what should be in it, where it should be buried, when it should be opened.
We’ll have to watch and see what the Web site and local print product looks like to determine if it’s a success. It’s an interesting experiment.
makes sense that Gannett would finally realize the strength of one, don’t know why they didn’t do this sooner.