KPA Contests: $30,000 income highest since 2008

No records but KPA News, Ad Contests boast rebound from recession

There’s still some factoring and figuring remaining as the KPA News and Ad contests deadline is here but the number of entries and income for the 2016 version will be the highest since 2008. That’s about the time the recession set in, and just like all press associations, KPA saw a decline in contest participation. The 2016 contests will end […]

Going to a networking event?


A lot of newspapers encourage sales people to attend networking events. When one of these events pops up on your calendar, here are a few things to keep in mind: Have realistic expectations. C-level executives and sales people go to different events. As a sales person, you probably won’t meet many decision makers from your target companies. Frankly speaking, top […]

What she said


Renée Tanner is a designer at the News-Review in Petoskey, MI. A few years ago, Renée and I got to know each other well as we worked together on a redesign of the News-Review. It was a delight working with Renée because she was bright, quick and ready to learn. The News-Review is a better newspaper because of Renée’s work […]

How to report on your state’s economic health


The U.S. economy as a whole grew a healthy 2.6 percent last year. While this headline number paints a picture of an economy on a stable growth path, it doesn’t take into account discrepancies throughout the country. Some states are booming, while others haven’t been able to climb out of recession. Here are a few ways to analyze the economic […]

Short Shots from the Newspaper World

FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL  New York Times shuns banner ads in favor of proprietary ad format FROM BLOOMBERG  AT&T turns to media acquisitions as its video ambitions grow FROM THOMSON REUTERS  New Thomson Reuters Toronto Technology Centre to create 1,500 jobs in Canada FROM POYNTER  The Dallas Morning News is moving

Paxton’s purchase of three papers means more jobs for Owensboro


Paducah-based Paxton Media Group, which owns the Messenger-Inquirer, bought three newspapers in Indiana and Illinois last week. And that will mean more jobs in Owensboro. The purchase from San Diego-based Brehm Communications included the Princeton Daily Clarion in Princeton, Indiana; the Mount Carmel Register in Mount Carmel, Illinois; and The Standard in Boonville, Indiana. They will become part of the […]

KPA doing readership study to help newspapers with sales efforts

It’s been a few years since KPA undertook a statewide readership survey, part of the reason because of the cost of polling at least 600 residents. Costs can approach $20,000 to $25,000. Pulse Research, based in Oregon, is in the process of a national online “Pulse of America” readership study and has invited KPA and its member newspapers to participate. […]

Into the Issues


At The Rural Blog we watch events and issues, but also trends and ideas in rural America – especially those that offer opportunities for localizing stories. We’ve had several examples lately. The Wall Street Journal reported on a trend you also may have noticed, but didn’t see as a story: a rural boom in electronic commerce, which makes it easier […]

Spending on lobbying Kentucky General Assembly could approach $20 million by year’s end

Spending for lobbying set to eclipse record

Lobbyists and the businesses and organizations that employ them spent $15 million in the first eight months of 2016, and lobbying spending is on track to eclipse previous Kentucky spending records. The record for lobbying spending was set last year, when $19.3 million was spent. If spending continues at its current pace, at least $5 million will be spent in […]

Tom Eblen to discuss John Bradford who was much more than just the state’s first newspaper publisher

John Bradford is known as Kentucky’s first newspaper publisher, but he was so much more. While editing and publishing The Kentucky Gazette, Bradford also became the state’s first book publisher and historian. He helped start Kentucky’s first public library and was a key figure in the meteoric rise of Transylvania University, whose board he chaired for most of three decades. […]