Huck Boyd National Center for Community Media

LouAnn Bowlin, left, co-publisher of the Peabody Gazette-Bulletin, discusses her business with Linda Gilmore. LouAnn and her husband, Gary, bought the paper from Bill Krause, who had owned the paper for 43 years retired last year.

Circuit ride rounds up good ideas, positive feedback

By Tara Potzler

Part of the mission of the Huck Boyd National Center for Community Media is to assist community newspapers. A circuit ride provides an excellent chance to help with that goal.

Basically, a circuit ride involves a trip into the field to visit with those involved in producing community newspapers. ItÕs an opportunity to see what publishers and editors have to say about the day-to-day operation of small-town newspapers. After a few phone calls to newspapers, Gloria Freeland, the CenterÕs director, Linda Gilmore, the assistant director, and Tara Potzler, graduate assistant, traveled to southeastern and south central Kansas for the visits. The conversations involved the problems of small newspapers and what the Center could do to help them. There were also some positive aspects mentioned about community newspaper publishing.

The first visit was with JoAnne Hartley Harper, the publisher of the Neodesha Derrick in Neodesha, Kan. Joanne said the paper is growing steadily. Like many people who run a thriving enterprise with limited staff, she said one of the ways the Center could help her was with the Media Temps Program. The Center is working on a summer pilot project in which students from Kansas State University will work with area newspapers. This program not only will give publishers a much-needed hand, but it will give students a chance to get some real newspaper experience. Additionally, Joanne expressed an interest in regional seminars focusing on "anti-burnout" techniques as well as instruction in making the most out of the Internet.

The second stop was in Independence to visit with Rudy Taylor and Andy and Amy Taylor, publishers of The County Chronicle, covering the communities of Caney and Cherryvale, Kan. At one time the communities each had their own papers, but they were recently merged. One of the TaylorsÕ concerns was how to ease readers into this transition. Additionally, they expressed an interest in techniques to increase circulation, gain new readers, and enlarge their advertising base. A common theme heard during the two days was first brought out here: competition from "shoppers" and other newspapers in the area.

The following day, Cheney was the destination for a visit with Paul Rhodes and Amy Crouch, a husband-and-wife team that publishes the Times-Sentinel. They expressed an interest in the Media Temps Program for the summer as well, in addition to seminars, particularly on how to set up a web site.

The next stop was to meet with Les Anderson, publisher of the Ark Valley News in Valley Center, and a journalism instructor at Wichita State University. Circulation for the paper has remained constant, but Les said one of the biggest problems he faces is a small advertising base. This is a concern of many small papers that sit close to a large city like Wichita, where most advertisers choose to run with the daily paper. However, Les's paper is two steps ahead of many other small papers. The Ark Valley News not only publishes a "shopper," thus eliminating competition in this area, but it already has a presence on the Internet with an online edition.

When a small-town newspaper publisher decides to retire, a community is often left to wonder how the paper will continue. The communities around Peabody in Marion County, Kan. recently faced this dilemma when Bill Krause, longtime publisher of the Gazette-Bulletin, retired Gary and LouAnn Bowlin took the chance, and have now been running the paper since April 1997. TheyÕre running a smooth operation, but one of the biggest problems they said they faced was getting local school news and general interest information about health, children and senior citizens.

The final stop on this trip was to Stacy StensengÕs Star-Journal in Hillsboro. The community is thriving, and Stacy said the newspaper has a strong advertising base, the result of aggressive work and a variety of promotional activities. Like many others running a small paper, she expressed an interest in the Media Temps Program, as well as a concern about competition from a new "shopper" being produced in the area.

The Center staff intends to plan more trips like this to meet publishers and discuss publishing concerns. For now the circuit rides are limited to Kansas, but the goal is to expand in the future. If you'd like to schedule a visit on the circuit ride program, are interested in any of the programs mentioned, or need any other information, please contact the Center.

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