Chicago Reporter Cultivating a Digital Future Medill Fall2011

8/3/2019 Chicago Reporter Cultivating a Digital Future Medill Fall2011

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Community Media Innovation ProjectFall 2011

wwTHE CHICAGO REPORTER:

CULTIVATING A DIGITAL FUTURE


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THE CHICAGO REPORTER:

CULTIVATING A DIGITAL FUTUREMedill Community Media Innovation Project Fall 2011

By Helen Adamopoulos, Patricia Hastings, Priscilla Kunamalla, Diana Novak,Donald Sjoerdsma, Brian Warmoth and Robert Wile


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TABLEOFCONTENTS

EXECUTIVESUMMARY......................................................................................3INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................4ABOUTTHECHICAGOREPORTER................................................................5AUDIENCERESEARCH.......................................................................................8WEBSITEREDESIGN........................................................................................13THEREPORTERSBLOG.................................................................................28 RECOMMENDATIONS:SOCIALMEDIA....................................................36RECOMMENDATIONS:COMMENTING.....................................................39RECOMMENDATIONS:ARCHIVES..............................................................42BUSINESSPLAN&REVENUERECOMMENDATIONS.........................43APPENDIX1:SEARCHENGINEOPTIMIZATION..................................52APPENDIX2:ADDINGFACTORSTOTHEDISPARITYMAP............53APPENDIX3:MAPSANDGRAPHICS........................................................55MEETTHETEAM...............................................................................................59THANKSTO.....................................................................................................61


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EXECUTIVESUMMARYTheCommunityMediaInnovationProjectclassatNorthwesternUniversitysMedillSchoolhasspentthefallquarterof2011examiningthewebsiteanddigitalstrategyoftheChicagoReporter,avenerableinvestigativebimonthlymagazinefocusingonissuesrelatedtoraceandpoverty.

Ourkeyfindings: ChicagoReporter.comhasasmallandtransientaudience,mostofwhomarrive

throughsearchenginesandleaveafterasinglepageview.

Theexistingsiteislargelyorganizedarounditemsfromtheprinteditionanddoesnotserveonlineuserswell.

TheChicagoMuckrakersblog,operatedbytheReporterontheTribuneCo.sChicagoNow.com,isagoodsourceofnewsupdatesonraceandpovertyinChicagobutisnotmaximizingitsaudiencenorsendingsignificanttraffictotheReporterswebsite.

ImprovementstotheChicagoReporter.comcouldsignificantlyexpandtheReportersaudience,extendtheimpactoftheorganizationsworkandaidinthe

developmentofnewrevenuesources.ThereportyouarereadinglaysoutaplanthatwebelievewillstrengthentheChicagoReporterbybuildingengagementwithonlineusers.WerecommendthattheReporter:

RedesignChicagoReporter.com,improvingitsappearanceandorganizingcontentinnewways.(WehaveexecutedkeyelementsoftheredesignusingtheDrupalcontentmanagementsystem.)

Improveitsemailnewslettersoitbecomesanessentialnewssourceforpeoplewhorelyonemailfornewsupdates.

MovetheReportersblogfromChicagoNow.comtoChicagoReporter.comandgiveitanewname,OnOurRadar.

ExpanditsuseofTwitterandFacebooktoreachyoungersocialmediauserswithanaffinityfortheissuestheReportercovers.

InstalltheDisquscommentingplugintoimprovethequalityofonlinecommentsandmakeiteasierfortheReportersstafftomanagethecommentingexperience.

RaisetheprofileoftheReportersBarberShopShowonChicagoReporter.com.

Developaninteractivedataapplicationfocusingondisparitiesassociatedwithraceandpoverty.(Wehavedevelopedaprototypeofsuchanapplication,whichwecalltheDisparityMap.)

Makegreateruseofalternativestorytellingtoolssuchasphotoslideshows,interactivegraphicsandtimelines.

Addstaffpositionsthatwillenabletheseimprovements:afulltimeWebproducer,aparttimephotographerandaparttimegraphicdesignerwithexpertiseindatavisualization.

Intheshortterm,werecommendthattheReporterseekfoundationgrantstopayfortheseimprovements.Overtime,webelievetheongoingexpensescanbecoveredbyincreasedindividualdonations,corporatesponsorshipsandevents.


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INTRODUCTION

BackinSeptember,theCommunityMediaInnovationProjectclassatNorthwesternUniversitysMedillSchoolofJournalismwastaskedwithformulatingrecommendationsforTheChicagoReportertoenhanceitspresenceonline.TheclasswassupportedfinanciallybytheChicagoCommunityTrust,whichsponsoredtwoMedillinnovationprojectsintendedtoimprovethedigitalstrategyforlocalWebpublishers.Prof.Rich

GordonselectedtheReporterasthefocusoftheclassafterconversationswithofficialsattheTrustwhobelieveintheReportersmissionbutthinkitneedsadigitalboost.Foranestablishedprintinvestigativenewsorganization,developinganeffectivedigitalstrategymeantthatwehadtolookatthebrand,magazineandwebsitewithanewsetofeyes.Wedeterminedwhothepotentialdigitalaudiencemightbe,andexaminedthewaysthisaudiencesneedsdifferfromthoseofcurrentprintreaders.Wealsofoundmanyinnovativeandsuccessfulmodelstolookatandlearnfrom,andreviewedreportshighlightingthewaysinwhichsimilarpublicationswerebecomingfinanciallyviable.Wecrunchedthenumbers,exchangedatsunamiofemailsandpickedthebrainsofsome

industryleadersatthe2011BlockbyBlockCommunityNewsSummit.Asthetermwenton,wereportedonourresearchandfindingsathttp://www.digiwatchdog.com.WealsoproducedawhitepaperNonProfitWatchdogNews:WhatsWorkingbasedonourresearchaboutotherlocallyfocusedwatchdogwebsites.Itcanbefoundathttp://digiwatchdog.com/whatsworkingfornonprofitwatchdognews/.ThisreportlaysoutacomprehensivesetofstepsforbuildingtheReportersonlineaudienceandincreasingitscapacityforlongtermsustainability.Asitturnedout,takingapartthewebsiteandputtingitbacktogetherwasonlythebeginning.Ourvisionincludesnotonlyavisualredesignofthesitebutalsorecommendationsfordatavisualization,blogging,socialmediapromotionandbusinessstrategy.Webelieveour

engagementplanwillgettheReportersworkinfrontofabrandnewaudience.

HelenAdamopoulos

PatriciaHastings

PriscillaKunamalla

DianeNovak

DonaldSjoerdsma

BrianWarmoth

RobertWile

December2011


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ABOUTTHECHICAGOREPORTER

BACKGROUNDANDHISTORY

TheChicagoReporterwasfoundedbytheCommunityRenewalSocietyin1972,inthewakeofthecivilrightsmovement,tocoverracialintegrationissuesinChicago.Ithas

sinceexpandeditsmissiontocoverallsubjectsrelatedtosocialinequality.Publishedbimonthly,itspecializesindatadriven,indepthinvestigations.In1997,itlauncheditswebsite,ChicagoReporter.com.Initscurrentform,thewebsiteconsistsalmostexclusivelyofmagazinecontentandisorganizedsimilarlytothemagazine.Themagazinehasapaidcirculationofabout400,withadditionalcopiesdistributedfreeofchargetoexpandtheaudienceforthecontent.TheReporterhasalonghistoryofhiringtalentedyoungstaffmembersandgivingthemachancetodoindepth,investigativejournalism.Thestaffissmall:aneditor,amanagingeditor,twofulltimereportersandapresentationeditorresponsibleforproducingtheprintmagazineandmanagingthewebsite.TheReporteralsoemploys

threeparttimebloggerswhoarepaidonacontractbasis.ThebloggersprovideastreamofupdatednewsfortheReportersChicagoMuckrakersblog,whichispublishedontheTribuneCo.sChicagoNowbloghub.ThedecisiontoputtheMuckrakersblogonChicagoNowwasdrivenbyadesiretoreachnew,youngeraudiencesand,potentially,newsourcesofrevenue.Atthattime,theTribuneCo.waspayingbloggersbasedontheamountoftrafficgeneratedbytheirblogs.Butrecently,thattrafficbasedcompensationwaseliminatedinfavorofa$50/monthflatpayment.


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AregularlyupdatedfeedofChicagoMuckrakersblogheadlinesandsummariesispublishedonChicagoReporter.com.Butifauserisinterestedinreadingthefullblogpost,aclicksendsthemovertoChicagoNow.ThismeansthatpeopleinterestedinthelatestnewsabouttopicscoveredbytheReporterleaveChicagoReporter.com,deprivingthesiteofattentionandtraffic.TheReporteralsobroadcastsaweeklyradioprogramTheBarberShopShow,

broadcastlivefromCartersBarberShopinLawndaleontheVocaloradiochannelandontheVocalo.orgwebsite.VocaloisoperatedbyChicagoPublicMediaasavehicleforreachingyounger,morediverseaudiencesthanthosewhonormallylistentopublicradio.TheBarberShopShowisalsoavailablethroughVocalo.orgasadownloadablepodcast.Thispastsummer(July5),ChicagoReporter.comwasrelaunchedonthepowerfulDrupalcontentmanagementsystem,whichprovidesmanycapabilitiesthatcouldnothavebeeneasilyimplementedontheold,custombuiltsite.OurrecommendationstakeadvantageofmanyofDrupalscapabilities.


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WEBSITEANALYTICSAlthoughChicagoReporter.comhasbeenonlinesince1997,thesitesanalyticsindicatethatthewebsitehasaverysmallaudience,averagingjust6,000uniquevisitorsand14,000pageviewspermonth.Bycomparison,OaklandLocal,anonprofitnewssiteservingOakland,Calif.,gets10timesthatmuchtrafficafterjusttwoyearsofoperation.

Oakland Locals website, just two years old, has 10 times the unique visitors and page views of

ChicagoReporter.com.

SearchenginesarethebiggestsourceofinboundtraffictoChicagoReporter.com.Thismeansmostvisitorshavelittleaffinityforthesite.BetweenJuly5andNov.30,almostthreequarters(73.8percent)ofthesitevisitorshadnevervisitedthesitebefore.Sevenofevery10visitsendedafterasinglepageview.TraffictoChicagoReporter.comwasactuallyhigherbeforetheredesign,primarilybecausethesitepreviouslyreceivedmoresearchenginetraffic.Theanalyticssuggestthatthebiggestreasonforthedeclineintrafficwasalossofsearchbasedvisitorsthattookplaceafterthesitewasredesigned.

Traffic sourcesVisits

7/5/2010-11/30/2010Visits

7/5/2011-11/30/2011Change

2010-2011

Direct 6,150 6,275 +2.0%Referring 9,397 7,840 16.6%Search 48,357 15,867 67.2%

Comparing the five-month period since the Drupal relaunch to the same period in 2010, the majorchange in traffic drivers has been a significant decline in search-generated visits.


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AUDIENCERESEARCH

RESEARCHAPPROACH

TounderstandtheactualandpotentialaudienceforChicagoReporter.com,wereachedouttopeoplewhoareinterestedinthekindsoftopicstheReporterfocuseson.WiththehelpofthenPublisherAldenLoury,weemailedReporterprintsubscribers,people

whovesignedupfortheorganizationsemailnewsletterandtheemaillistsfortheChicagoCommunityTrustandforBeanSoupTimes(awebsiteandenewslettercreatedbyToureMuhammad,ajournalist,comedywriter,andmarketingspecialist).Theemailsinvitedrecipientstotakeashortonlinesurvey,whichincludedaquestionabouttheirwillingnesstobeinterviewedabouttotheChicagoReporter.Fromamongthosewhorespondedtothesurvey,weconductedindepthinterviewswithatotalof30menandwomenwhoworkand/orlivedintheCityofChicagoandwerecurrentorpotentialusersoftheChicagoReporterwebsite.Theseindividualsrepresentedadiversearrayofages,ethnicities,occupationsandincomelevels.

Thegoaloftheinterviewswastounderstandtheirgeneralnewsconsumptionhabits,viewsonlocalnewsorganizationsandtheirusageandimpressionsofChicagoReporter.comandtheChicagoMuckrakersblog.WealsoincorporatedrecentindustrystudiessuchasNewsthatMatters:AnassessmentofChicagosinformationlandscape,(July2011),PewResearchCenterstudy,Howpeoplelearnabouttheirlocalcommunity(September2011)andAudienceSegmentsinaChangingNewsEnvironment(August2008).Totranslatethisresearchintorecommendations,wedevelopedprofilesforpersonaswhomightuseChicagoReporter.com.Personasarefictionalcharacters,orarchetypes,whorepresentpotentialcustomers.Thepersonaapproachiscommonlyusedinmarketingandproductdevelopment.Bybuildingaproductforatargetpersona,younotonlydrawuserswhoarerepresentedbythatpersonabutreachalargergroupofpeoplewhosharesimilargoalsorinterests.Awellexecutedpersonaprojectcapturesyourresearch,encapsulatesyourdesignrequirements,andhelpsyouprioritizeyourinnovativeideasandinsights.JaredM.Spool,CEOandFoundingPrincipalofUserInterfaceEngineering.Everydecisionwemaderegardingdesign,placementandrepurposingofReportercontentwasdonewiththesepersonasinmind.


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INTRODUCINGOURPERSONAS

EllenMorrisonisa63yearoldAfricanAmericanresidentofHydeParkwhoretiredfromtheU.S.PostOfficethreeyearsagoandnowfocusesonherworkasanartist.ShefondlyrecallstheReportersheydayinthe1980s.SheusestheInternetoccasionallybutreliesprimarilyonprintnewspapersandtelevisionforherlocalnews.Ellenlikesto

contributetocausesshecaresabout,includingtheReporter.Whenshedoes,shewritesacheckandmailsittotheorganization.Unfortunately,shesrecentlyhadtocutbackoncharitabledonationsandreconsiderhersubscriptionbecauseherfinancesarepressedduetorecentmedicalissues.

ElleniswhatthePewResearchCenterwouldcallaTraditionalist,whousestraditionalmediasourcesalmostexclusively.ThisisthelargestofPewsnewsaudiencesegments(46percentofthepopulation),alsotheoldestandthemosteconomicallydownscale.Itiscommonfornonprofitlocalnewsorganizationstofindthatfinancialcontributorsoftenarenottheheaviestusersoftheirwebsites,accordingtoGettingLocal:How

NonprofitNewsVenturesSeekSustainability(aresearchreportpublishedinOctober2011bytheJohnS.andJamesL.KnightFoundation).BecauseEllenisnotlikelytobecomearegularuseroftheReportersdigitalproducts,wedidnotconsiderherfurtherasapossibletargetpersonaforourwork.

TerrySteinbachisa56yearoldlawyerattheCenterforEthicsandAdvocacyinHealthcare,aChicagobasednonprofit.HedescribeshimselfasanactivehippieandlivesinAndersonvillewithhiswifeDebbie.Histhreeadultchildreneachworkandliveinthecity.TerryiswhatthePewResearchCenterwouldcallanewsIntegrator,someonewhointeractsprimarilywithtraditionalnewssourcessuchasprintnewspapersandtelevision,butalsogetsnewsonline.HiscurrentprintsubscriptionsincludetheChicagoTribuneandCrainsChicagoBusiness.Terrysmainmotivationistostayasinformedaspossibleaboutlocalissues,especiallyrelatedtohealthcare,ashisjobrequiresit.MostofTerrysinteractionwiththeChicagoReportermagazinetakesplaceinhisinbox.HesubscribestotheChicagoReportersenewsletterandreceiveslinkstoReporterarticlesfromcolleaguesandfriends.Heoccasionallyreadsthemagazineatwork,wherecopiesaredeliveredtohisoffice.HeiscurrentlyonlyanoccasionalvisitortotheReporterwebsite.Terrydonatesannuallytoorganizationsthatalignwithhisinterestsandvalues.HesupportstheHealthandMedicinePolicyResearchGroupandtheBoysandGirlsClubof


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Chicago.Heisopentogivingtootherorganizationsthatarecommittedtomakingapositiveimpactinthecity.

EmmaBryantisa24yearoldgraduatestudentattheUniversityofChicagosHarrisSchoolofPublicPolicyStudies.ShecurrentlyliveswitharoommateinHydePark.Sheiseagertofindajobwhereshecanmakeadifferenceinthecity.AsawomanofmixedheritageherfatherisblackandhermotherisCaucasianEmma

hasaspecialinterestinissuesrelatedraceanddiscrimination.

EmmawouldbedescribedbyPewasaNetNewser,theyoungestofPewsnewsaudiencesegments.ShereliesexclusivelyontheInternetashermainnewssource.EmmasthreefavoritenewssourcesareHuffingtonPost,theChicagoNewsCooperativeandTwitter,whichshereliesonforbreakingnews.Socialmediaplays

amajorroleinEmmasdailylife.Shefollowsherfavoritebrandsandnewsorganizations,contributestodiscussiononFacebookandTwitterandvisitssitesthatherfavoriteorganizationsrecommend.EmmaisalsoaheavysmartphoneuserandwillfrequentlypostinterestingarticlestoFacebook,TwitterandherTumblrblog.

Whenitcomestonews,Emmawantstogobeyondthebasicheadlinesthateveryoneknowsabout.Shealsowantstobeabletodiscusslocalpublicpolicyissueswithherfriendsandcolleagues.Becauseshecaressomuchaboutresolvingthesocialinjusticesplaguingthecity,Emmawillgivetocharitiesandnonprofitsthatmakeacompellingcasetoher,evenonatightstudentbudget.DanBurkeisa36yearoldstaffreporterattheChicagoSunTimes.HeissingleandlivesinacondointheWestLoop.Danhasakeeninterestindatabasereportinganddoesalotofonlineresearchtoseehowothernewsorganizationsmakeuse

ofdata.

Stayingabreastoflocalissuesandknowingtopicsinsideandoutiscriticaltohissuccessintheworkplace,butgoingevendeeperwithpoliciesandurbanissuesthatareunderinvestigationwouldgivehimanevengreateredge.NearlyallofthenewsDanreceivesisthroughtheWeb.LikeEmma,heisoneofPewsNetNewsers.OnhisnewiPad,hevisitstheDrudgeReport,theNewYorkTimesandvariouswireservicesthroughouttheday.Dansupportsselectorganizations,suchasNPR.DanknowsoftheChicagoReporterprintmagazineandappreciatesitsinvestigativereporting,buthasneverbeentothewebsite.DanreceivesmuchofhisdailynewsfromemailalertandRSSfeeds,whichincludetheCatalystChicagoRSSfeed.


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ErnestJohnsonisa44yearoldfulltimecommunityorganizerwholiveswithhiswifeand6yearolddaughterinGarfieldPark,wherehewasbornandraised.HismaingoalasanorganizeristomakehisGarfieldParkcommunityabetterplaceforhisdaughterandfuturegenerationstolive.Ernesthasfeltthestingofracialdiscriminationandeconomicinjusticeinhislifeandwantstobetterequiphiscommunitytorespondtothoseinjustices.Healsowantstobeabletokeepcommunitymembers

informedofeducation,housingandcriminaljusticeissuessoErnestdevotesmuchoftimetoholdingcommunitymeetings.Healsoorganizesandattendsproteststovoicetheneedsofhis

community.Ernesthopestorunforofficeoneday.Ernestisprimarilyinterestedinlocalnews,whichhemostoftengetsbyvisitingnewswebsites.Healsolistenstonewsontheradioandreadsthenewspapereachmorning.PewwouldconsiderhimtobeanIntegrator.Ernestfrequentlycommentsonarticlesthroughnewssitesandsocialmedia,especiallywhenanarticleisbiasedorinaccurate.ErnestreadstheChicagoReporteranddeeplyappreciatesitsinvestigativework.Hewishesmorepeopleknewabouttheworktheydo.

AndrewRamirezisa31yearoldsocialscienceteacheratCamposHighSchoolinHumboldtPark,whichisalsowhereheliveswithhiswifeandtwochildren.Becauseofhissenseofhumorandabilitytorelatetohisstudents,AndrewistheteachereverysophomoreatCamposhopestohave.Asanewsconsumer,Andrewwantstoknowasmuchashecanaboutthecommunitiesthatheservesasateacher.Hecaresdeeplyabouthisstudentsandwantstoknowwhatkindsofissuestheyfacewhentheywalkoutofschooleachday.

Andrewalsostaysontopofnationalandlocalcoverageofeducationissues,suchaseducationreform.AndrewhasheardabouttheChicagoReporterfromhiscolleaguesandhasvisitedthewebsiteahandfuloftimestofindparticularstoriesthatfocusedoneducationissues.Hehasnevercomeacrosstheprintpublication.AndrewsfavoritenewssourcesareChicagoBreakingNews.com,GapersBlock.com,soPewwouldconsiderhimaNetNewser.HesalsoaregularlistenertoWBEZradiowhenheisinthecar.


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OURPRIMARYPERSONAS

WeselectedTerryandEmmaasourprimarypersonasfordevelopingtheReportersdigitalproducts.OurrationalewasthatTerryandEmmaaretypesofuserswhoshouldbeusersoftheseproducts,andaredistinctenoughfromeachothertoencompassawiderangeofonlinenewsconsumptionbehaviors.BycreatingawebsitethatmeetstheneedsandmotivationsoftheseTerryandEmma,webelievedtheChicagoReportercouldalsomeetmanyoftheneedsofothertypesofusersaswell.

Terry and Emma are in the center of the bulls-eye for the Chicago Reporters digital products. If theReporter meets their needs for online news and information, it will also satisfy many of the needs of

Ernest, Andrew and Dan.


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WEBSITEREDESIGN

REDESIGNAPPROACHTheexistingChicagoReporter.comsiteislargelyorganizedarounditemsfromtheprintedition.Thehomepagefeaturesarotatingseriesofmainfeaturestoriesfrompreviousissues.BelowthisarelinkstoChicagoMuckrakersblogpostsonChicagoNow.com.The

middlecolumncontainsamostread/mostcommentedmodule,thoughmanyoftheseendupbeingolderitems.Belowthismodulearelinkstopastfeaturearticles.Thewebsitewasrelaunchedthissummeronamorepowerful,flexibleplatformcalledDrupal.DrupalenablestheReportertopublishamorefunctionalsite.WehaveexecutedtheredesignontheDrupalplatform.Thenewwebsiteprototypecanbefoundathttp://reporter.markroyko.com.(ContactProf.RichGordonorMarkRoyko,theReportersWebdeveloper,forlogin/passwordinformation.)Wevebuiltfunctioningversionsofthehomepage,articlepages,topicsectionpages,andblogpages.Whiletheredesignedsiteisnotyetfullyfunctional,webelievewehaveprovidedthekeyfoundationalstepsneededtorelaunchthesitewithitsnewdesign.

WeconstructedtheReportersnewhomeandarticlepagesbasedonhowourpersonaswerelikelytointeractwiththem.Ourfirststepinvolvedcomingupwithiterationsofhanddrawnwireframesfeaturingvaryingelementsandarrangements.Ourdesignandusabilityleaders(HelenandPriscilla)usedthewireframestocreatethefinallayoutsforthepages,firstonpaperandthenasAdobeIllustratormockups.Aftertheteamfeltthatthemockupssufficientlyrepresentedthedesiredlayoutforthesite,weconductedusabilitytestingwithsubjectsrepresentativeoftheTerryandEmmapersonastoseeiftheirneedsweremet.

Inconjunctionwithusabilitytesting,wedevelopedaworkingHTMLmockupbasedontheIllustratorwireframes.ThismockupusedtheCSSframeworkBlueprint(http://blueprintcss.org/)forlayoutpurposes.Finally,ourdesignandusabilityleadersintegratedtheHTMLandCSSwiththeDrupalinterfacetocreatethefinalizedversionoftheredesignedReportersite.


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HOMEPAGE

Ourredesignofthehomepageretainstheoriginalsitesthreecolumnlayout,butthecontentemphasizeddiffersconsiderably.

Old

New


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HeaderandFooter

Weattemptedtokeeptheheaderrelativelyminimalandunclutteredwhilestillgivingviewersasenseofwhatthesiteisabout.OurredesignedheaderretainstheReporterslogoandtagline.Italsoincludesageneralsearchbar,asubscribelinkforthepublicationsRSSfeedandalinktothearchives.Emma,whofrequentlyconductsacademicresearchrelatedtotheReportersareaofcoverage,prioritizeseasyaccessto

thesitesarchives.AsidefromthegeneralRSSfeed,theheaderdoesntcontainsocialmediaiconsorlinks;weoptedtomovethoseintothebodyofthepage,wheretheyarecloselyassociatedwiththeircorrespondingsocialmediafeeds.

Wekeptthefootersimpleanduncluttered.Halfofitisdevotedtothestaffrosterwithlinkstomoreextensiveprofiles.WethoughtitwascrucialtoincludethisonthehomepagetomeetEmmasdesireformorepersonalityonthesite;thispointshertoinformationaboutwhothepeoplearebehindthestories.Therestofthefooterincludeslinkstothemaintopicpagesaswellasthehomeandaboutpages,sothatreaderswhoscrolltothebottomofthepagecannavigatetothedifferentsectionswithouthavingtoscrollbackup.Finally,werepeatedthesearchbar,archivesandsubscribelinksfromtheheaderforthesamereason.


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MajorElements:LeftColumn

Weoptedtoprominentlyfeatureonestoryforinstance,themaininvestigationfromtheReporterslatestissueastheleadarticleonthehomepage,givingitthelargestheadlineaswellastheonlyfullsizedimage.Thisissimilartotherotatingboxonthepublicationscurrenthomepage,butwedecidedtodisplayonestaticstoryatatimebecausesiteanalyticsindicatepeoplerarelyclickontherotatingbox.Furthermore,emphasizingonestablestorygivesviewersmoretimetoreadadescriptiveblurb.

Underneaththemainstory,ourdesigngivesthereaderanideaoftherangeoftheReporterscoverage,withstoryblurbsandthumbnailimagesfromeachmaintopiccategory,inaccordancewiththenewtaxonomyourteamdevelopedforthesite.Thecategoriesappearhereinsteadofinanavigationbaratthetopofthepagebecausepairingthemwiththeblurbsprovidesmorecontextandletsusersgetabetterideaofwhatkindofstoriesfallunderagivenclassification.Thetopicsectionsalsoincludelinkstooffsitearticlesrelatingtothatareaofcoverage.EmmaandTerrybothexpressedinterestinseeingaggregatedcontentfromotherlocalnewssources.WemodeledthispartlyontheChicagoNewsCooperativesDateline:

Chicagofeatureonitshomepage.MajorElements:CenterColumn

ThesecondcolumnemphasizesthemostrecententriesfromtheReportersblog.ThisismeanttocatchEmmasattention,sinceshehasahighinterestinblogsandsocialmedia.EmmaalsowantstoseemoreoftheReporterspersonalityonthesite,sotherecentblogentriesincludethumbnailpicturesofthebloggers.ThenextelementbelowtheblogfeaturesalinktotheReportersweeklyBarberShopShowradioprogram.Asignificantportionofouraudienceinterviewsubjectssaidthat

theyvisitedthesiteinsearchoftheradioshowbutcouldntfindit.Thenextelement,anImpactsection,containsanexcerptfromthemagazinesReporterNewssectionpertainingtohowthepublicationsworkhasmadeadifference.Aclearlylabeleddonatebuttonwithabriefpersuasivepitchandaquickandeasyemailnewslettersignupliveatthebottomofthiscolumn.TheseelementsexistprimarilyforTerry.MajorElements:RightColumn

Thisisthesocialmediacolumn,designedalmostexclusivelytomeetEmmasneedsasaheavyuserofnetworkslikeTwitterandFacebook.WemodeledthesocialmediacolumnonthenewsfeedFacebookimplementedintheupperrightcornerofitssite.SinceEmmaisanavidFacebookuser,shesaccustomedtolookingtothatareaofawebsiteforrecentnews.TheReportersTwitterfeedisatthetopofthecolumn,sinceitprovidesastreamoffrequentupdates,likethenewsfeed.Asevidencedbyourusabilitytesting,Terrywillprobablyignorethiscolumn,butitsunobtrusivesizeandlocation(aswellasthepresenceofothercontentthatdoesinteresthimonthepage)meanthatitwontdistractoralienatehimasareader.


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ARTICLEPAGE

OurnewdesignforthearticlepageaimstokeepreadersengagedwhilealsomotivatingthemtoexploreothercontentontheReporterssite.Aswiththehomepage,wedecidedwhatelementstoincludewithinarticlepagesbasedonTerryandEmmastoppriorities.

Old

New


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TopandBottomofthePage

InordertoserveEmmaandTerrysmutualdesiretogainanideaofthescopeofthesite,weincludedasimplenavigationmenuatthetopofthepage.Thisarticlepagefeatureservesthesamepurposeasthepreviewsectionsforeachtopiconthehomepage.Clickingonanyofthenavigationmenuitemswillleadreaderstothesectionpageforthattopic.

Onceareaderhasreachedthebottomofthearticle,wecompelthemtofurtherinteractwiththewebsiteinseveralways.Toinspirethoughtfuldialogue,thereisaboldedquestion;forinstance,Whatsyourstance?Doyouthinkpublichousingresidentsshouldbeevictedifamemberoftheirhouseholdischargedwithacrime?Wealsopresentreaderswithablockofrelatedlinksatthebottomofthepage,encouragingthemtoexplorethetopicfurther.Therelatedlinksfallintothreecategories:relatedstoriesontheReporterssite,AroundtheWeb/aggregatedarticles(satisfyingTerryandEmmasdesireforcuratedcontentfromothersites),andeventsconnectedtothearticletopic.


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LeftColumn:ArticleText

Weincludedseveralsupplementaryfeaturesalongwiththearticletexttoincreasereaderengagement.TheshareboxontheleftsideofthepageafewparagraphsintothearticlealsocaterstowardEmmashighinterestinsocialmedia.Weinsertedtheshareoptionsafewparagraphsintothestory(afterthenutgraph)sothatreaderswillhavealreadygotten

anideaofwhatthearticleisaboutbeforedecidingwhethertocirculateittoothersviasocialnetworkingoremail.Weaddedvarietytothearticletextbyincorporatingsidebarswithpowerpoints(adeviceusedbytheReporterprintmagazinetohighlightkeyfindings),maps,graphsandpullquotes.OurusabilitytestingconfirmedourhypothesisthatreadersfittingTerrysprofilewillfindtheseadditionstothemaintextinterestinganduseful.RightColumn:Blogging,SocialMedia,TakingAction

BecauseEmmaisveryinterestedinblogs(andtheReporterblogoffersthemost

frequentlyupdatedcontentonthesite),werepeatedtheblockofblurbsaboutrecentblogentriesatthetopoftherightcolumnonthearticlepage.Belowtheblogblock,weonceagainofferEmmathechancetoengagewithsocialmediabylikingtheReporteronFacebookand/orfollowingthepublicationonTwitter.WefeltitwasimportanttorepeattheseelementsonthearticlepagesbecauseofhowimportantEmmaconsiderssocialmediatobeaspartofheronlineexperience.ForTerry,weplacedtheemailnewslettersignupanddonationblocksbelowthesocialmediaelements.TheselivefartherdownonthepagebecausewewantTerrytoreadagoodchunkofthearticle(andbecomemorepersuadedthathewantstosubscribetoe

mailupdatesandhelpoutwithfutureinvestigations)beforeheencounterstheseoptions.


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TOPICLANDINGPAGE

Wedecidedtocreatetopicpagesthatpresentallarticlesfromthefivemaincategories:economy,education,criminaljustice,housingandimmigration.Userswillhavetheoptionofsortingthestoriesbyascendingordescendingorder.ThispagewillbeidealforbothEmmaandTerry,whomayneedtoresearchpolicyissuesforacademicorprofessionalwork.ThefactthatthesepagesarecategoryspecificalsotargetsoursecondarypersonaAndrew,whoisinterestedineducationarticles.


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MainStory

EachsectionpagefeaturesonemainstorythatcouldeitherbethemostrecentarticlepublishedbytheReporteroracoverstoryfromthemostrecentissue.TheteamdecidedtohighlightonestoryonthesectionpagetoallowtheReportertopointreaderstowardcontentthattheybelieveisparticularlyrelevantorimportant.RelatedEvents

Ontheleftsidebarsectionpageshaveablockwheretheywillseeupcomingcommunityeventsthatarerelatedtothecategorytheyareviewing.ForexampleifEmmaissearchingthroughthesectionpageforthehousingcategory,shewillseeupcomingCHAboardmeetingsthatshecanattendorresearchatalatertime.ThisisafeaturethatErnest,asecondarypersona,wouldalsogreatlyappreciate.Relatedeventswouldprovideawayforreaderstobemorecivicallyengaged;havingaplacetovoicetheirconcernscouldresultinpositivechangesforcommunitiesasawhole.ClickingontheRelatedEventslinkwilltakeuserstotheEventspage,whichhasabuiltincalendarthatuserscansubscribeto.

StoryForms

SinceourteammadethedecisiontoorganizeReportercontentbysubjectrelatedcategories,thedifferentstoryforms(NewVoices,whichwerenamedQ&A,andSpinoffs,whichwerenamedBehindtheNews)willbefoundonthesidebarofeachsectionpage.ThismakesitmucheasierforviewerstoidentifythedifferentstoryformsthattheReporteroffersandfindthemeasilyonthesite.SocialMedia

ForuserswhomightenterthesitewithoutfollowingtheReportersvarioussocialmedia

accounts,weincludedaFacebookwidgetthatallowsthemtoviewwhattheReporterhascurrentlypostedonFacebookandLikethepage.ThisisapriorityforEmmaswhokeepupwiththenewsthroughtheirFacebookaccounts.EnewsletterandDonate

TowardtheendofthesectionpageareblockswhereuserscansignupfortheReportersEnewsletterandcandonatetosupportfutureinvestigations.BothoftheseitemsweredesignedwithTerryinmind.Ourteamdecidedtoincludethemtowardthebottomofthepagetoallowuserstofullytakeinthecontentonthepagebeforedecidingwhetherornottoinvesttheirtimeandmoneytotheorganization.TheywerealsoeachincludedonthispagebecausetherepeoplelikeTerry,orAndrewwhoareinterestedinparticularsubjectsandmightcomespecificallytothispagetogetthelatestinvestigativenews.


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PODCASTPRESENCE

TheBarberShopShow,broadcastliveeachweekfromaWestSidebarbershop,isproducedbyVocalo.org,aunitofWBEZ.Currently,theradioshowiscompletelymissingfromtheReporterssite.Weheardfromseveralinterviewsubjectsthattheywenttothewebsiteinsearchoftheradioprogramandwerefrustratedtheycouldnotfindit.WerecommendthattheReportercreateafrictionlessprocessforuserstolistenand

subscribetotheradioshow,aswellasaccessarchives.First,werecommendapopupwindowindicatingwhentheshowisliveandfeaturingalinktoamediaplayer.Thiswillprovideinstantaccessforthoselookingfortheshowasitisbeingbroadcast,andcouldevenattractnewlisteners.Whilethepodcastislive,whilealsorecommendaflashingonaircomponentbeplacedonthetoprightcornertoattractuserswhomayclickthroughtheinitialpopuptogettoastorybutdecidetotuneinwhentheyhavefinishedreading.ForthosesearchingforChicagoReporterpodcast,wehavemockedupawebpagedevotedtotheBarbershopshowthatwillserveasalandingpageforthissearch.Thispagewouldfeaturearchivedepisodesandafunctiontosearcholderepisodes.WeusedthepodcastpagefromWBEZsSoundOpinionsasamodel.


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Werecommendembeddingacodablemediaplayersthatcanstreamaudiofeeds,includingliveones,ontothewebpage.Mediaelement.js,whichwrapsaroundanyaudiofeed,isthemostbasicamongthese.Alistofadditionalmediaplayerscanbefoundhere:http://creativefan.com/wordpressmusicplayerplugins/Alternatively,theReportermaysimplypreferlinkingtoVocalo.orgsplayer.

Finally,werecommendawidgetonthetopofthehomepagethatwillplaythemostrecentepisodeandcontainasubscriptionlinkdirectlytoiTunes.Forreferencepurposes,hereistheiTunesfeedURL.http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/thebarbershopshow/id427824890


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TAXONOMY

Werecommendmovingawayfromprintfocusedorganizationofcontentonthesite.Drupalofferspowerfultaxonomy(categorization)toolsthatcanbeusedtosurfacerelatedmaterialadjacenttoothercontent.OnlineuserslikeEmmaandTerryarelookingforanexperiencethatdoesntrequiregreatfamiliaritywiththeprintpublicationbeforedivingin.

MainThemes

Wevelimitedthenavigationbartofivemainthemes:education,economy,criminaljustice,immigrationandhousing.OurreviewofGoogleAnalyticsshowedthatabusynavigationbarlowersthechancesthatareaderwilluseit,andourcardsortingexerciseshowedthatourpersonasweremostlikelytodivideReporterstoriesintoasmallnumberofcategories.SubThemes

Thisvocabularycomprises(1)themesthataresospecifictheywontbringinmorethan

afewarticlesayear(religion,environment);and(2)broadthemesthatencompassagreatswathofwhattheReportercovers(race,poverty,community).Everyarticlecanbetaggedwithasmanysubthemesasdesired.Usedwisely,thisvocabularywillbecomeagreatwaytodynamicallyfeaturetopicsthroughoutthesite.StoryForms

ThisvocabularyisarefinedversionofthecurrentDepartmentsvocabulary.Termshavebeenrenamedtobemoreunderstandabletopeoplewhohavenotreadtheprintmagazine(NewVoicesisQ&A,SpinOffsisBehindtheNews,CoverStoriesisInvestigations,etc.).ReporterImpacthasbeenmovedtoadifferentsectionofthesite.WebExtrasisnolongernecessaryunderthenewdigitalstrategy.CommunityAreasandNeighborhoods

Severalofourpersonas,especiallyErnest,areinterestedinthenarrativesofspecificareasofChicago.WeveaddressedthisneedbycreatingCommunityAreasandNeighborhoodsvocabularies.CommunityAreasisanestedlistofgeographicterms.ItstartsbydividingthecityintofoursectionsNorth,South,WestandDowntownandthenintothe77officialChicagocommunityareas.Thesecondvocabularyisalistoftermsforunofficialcommunityareas,orneighborhoods.Again,thevocabularyhasbeendividedintoNorth,South,WestandDowntown,butitsbrokenintoamoregranularandnuancedviewofChicagothantheothergeographicvocabulary.HereyouwillfindneighborhoodslikeCabriniGreenandWickerPark.


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TaggingandMetadata

Metadataisinformationstoredwithinastory:time,date,author,multimedia,etc.Atagisapieceofmetadatathatdescribescontent(astory,event,blog,etc.).AfewdescriptivetagsforOneandDone,forexample,wouldbeChicagoHousingAuthority,evictioncourtandonestrikepolicy.Readersdontseethetags,yettagsplayahugeroleinassociatingcontent,whichhelpsthereadernavigatethesite.

Manyofthevocabularieswe'vecreatedincludefreeformtaggingoptions,meaningastorysauthorwillbeabletocreatetermswhenheorshepostsanarticle.Oneoftheproblemswithfreeformtagsisredundancymostoftenhomonymsandsynonyms.ToensureyoudontendupwithbothaCHAandaChicagoHousingAuthoritytag,werecommendthatthesitesWebproducermonitorthelistcloselyandcombineanyrepeatedorsynonymousterms.Abloatedandimpreciselistoftagsunderminesthepurposeoftagging.


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THEREPORTERSBLOG

CURRENTAPPROACH

TheChicagoReporterscurrentblog,ChicagoMuckrakers,offersalotofwellreportedcontentthroughtheChicagoTribunesChicagoNowblognetwork.AlthoughitishostedoutsideoftheChicagoReporterswebsite,itsplacementonChicagoNowearnsitsome

attentionbeyondtheReporterscoreaudience.Atpresent,theReporterispaid$50amonthbyChicagoNow.ItscontractwithChicagoNowexpiresDec.31,2011.

MeganCottrell,MicahMaidenbergandSteveJohnsonwritearticlesthatcoverdailynewsontopicsthatmattertotheReportersaudience.Theblogswriters,inparticularMeganCottrell,oftentakeamoreexplicitlyleftleaningattitudethanisexpressedinthemagazine.TheblogprovidesaservicetoreadersoftheChicagoReportermagazinewhowanttoengagewiththeReporterbetweenissues.BecausetheReporteronlypublishesamagazineeverytwomonths,theblogiscriticaltomaintaininganaudience.Thename,ChicagoMuckrakers,hasalottodowiththeinvestigativetraditionoftheChicagoReporter,butitisslightlymisleadingwhenitcomestotheblogscontent.

OURRECOMMENDATIONS

Wehaveturnedtheblogintoafocalpointofthenewwebsite.WeenvisionitasthedrivingforcethatgetsreaderstothinkabouttheChicagoReporterduringthetwo

monthperiodbetweenissues.TheReporterhasalreadycommittedthreeparttimeemployeestotheblog.OurrecommendationswillmaketheblogareasonforpeopletoengagewiththeReporteronaweekly(orevendaily)basis,whichshouldsubsequentlyincreasetheearningpotentialofthesiteasawhole.First,werecommendthatChicagoReporterenditsbloggingagreementwithChicagoNowfortheChicagoMuckrakersblog.GiventheReportersnewpartnershipwiththeChicagoIndependentAdNetwork,traffictotheChicagoReporterwebsiteismorevaluablethanithaseverbeenbefore.Knowingthat,themeager569visitstothewebsitedirectedfromtheChicagoNowblogfromJuly5toNov.30isntaverygoodargumentforemployingthreebloggerstocreatenewcontentfivedaysaweek.

MovingtheblogcontenttoChicagoReporter.comgivespotentialWebaudiencemembersareasontovisitthesiteonaregularbasis,whichwillimproveitsvalueintheeyesofthereaderandintermsofadvertising.PuttingblogcontentdirectlyontheReporterwebsiteisawaytocapitalizeontheesteeminwhichtheReporterisheld.


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THENEWBLOG:ONOURRADARThebloggotatoptobottomredesign,startingwiththename.WechosetocallitOnOurRadarinanefforttotargettheEmmapersonaandappealtoayoungeraudience.Wethinkthisnamehasmoretodowithdailynewscoverage,theexistingcontentoftheblog,thanChicagoMuckrakers.WeneedtogetthewordoutthattheReporterisprovidingadailynewsupdatefromthemagazinesperspective.Thenewnameconveysanideaofeverwatchfulnessandawarenessofsurroundingsthatprovidesrealtime

contexttothelargerinvestigationswithinthemagazine.Thecurrentnamemightbeconstruedasjournalismjargonandsomewhatoldfashioned.WebelieveEmmaismorelikelytoengagewiththeonlineportionoftheReporterscontent,andwerecommendthenamechangeinanefforttoreachouttoher.Thelogo,designedbylocalgraphicartistDannySpitzerCohn,highlightsthemeaningoftheradarandtheblogsChicagofocus.Byusingthetraditionalgreenradar,wearealsoaddingsomemuchneededcolortothehomepageandcatchingthereaderseye.Theskylineportionofthelogo,whichwillappearontheblogsmainpage,remindsthereaderthatthefocusisalwaysonChicago.

Wedontfeelsubstantialchangestotheblogscontentandtonenecessary.WedorecommendtheuseofanAboutboxtoclearlydescribewhatthereadercanexpect.InoursampleAboutinourblogpagemockup,wehighlightboththedailyupdatesandthetoneoftheblog,anelementwefeelneedstobeexpressed.Currently,thebloghasadefiniteleftleaningattitude,whichissomethingthatwethinkmightappealtotheEmmapersona.However,itneedstobecleartoanypotentialreadersthatthereisaconsciousdecisiontowritewithadistinctopinionandtheplaceforthatisintheAboutsection.


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DATA:THEDISPARITYMAP

DATAAPPLICATIONSONWATCHDOGSITES

Ourindustryresearchshowedthatnewsorganizationsneedtogobeyondtraditionalstorytellingformatstosucceedinthedigitalage.SincetheReporterisadatadrivenpublication,providingdataapplicationstoillustrateinformationwillengageaudiences

innewways.SometimesshowingisbetterthantellingespeciallywhenitcomestothecomplicatedissuestheReportercovers.Somepeoplearevisuallearnersandgainqualitativeunderstandingofinformationfromdatavisualization.Evenforpeoplewhoarentvisuallearners,datavisualizationisstillacriticaltooltounderstandingcomplex,connectedinformation.

Wellcrafteddatavisualizationcanbringmorevaluetoanewsorganization.Forexample,digitalwatchdognewsorganizationTheBayCitizencreatedtheBicycleAccidentTracker.TheWebbasedappincorporatesmaps,charts,dataandusersubmittedinfotoprovideaninteractiveresourceforsomeonewantingtolearnaboutbikeaccidentsaroundSanFrancisco.Peoplereturntothisapplicationagainandagainbecauseithaslonglastingvalue.Thatrepeatedinteractionbringsmoretraffictoyoursite,makingitmoreattractivetoadvertisersandsponsors.

INTRODUCING:THEDISPARITYMAP

TheDisparityMapcomparesthe77Chicagocommunityareasintermsofrace,poverty,income,housingandeducation.ThemapissegmentedbycommunityareabecausethisisacommonwayfortheReportertoanalyzedatabasedonsectionsofthecity.ItisalsocommonlyusedbytheCityofChicagofordatagatheringandanalysis.Furthermore,itiseasytoaggregateU.S.Censusdatabycommunityarea.

Inadditiontovisuallyrepresentingthisdata,theDisparityMapranksthecommunitiesfrommosttoleastdisadvantaged.Theprototypeoftheapplicationcanbefoundathttp://map.medill.co.Itdrawsfrommultipledatasetsandcalculateshowtheyinteract.So,ifreadersselectmorethanonedisparitymarker,themapwillrerankbasedonwhatsselected.Bydefault,itdisplaysthecommunityareasbasedonthepercentageofpeoplelivingbelowthepovertyline.

Themapisnotonlyaresourceforreaders,butcanalsobeusedtovisualizeChicagoReporterinvestigations.ByaddingnewdatasetstothisapplicationtheReportercanquicklygaininsightsaboutChicagoandseetherelationshipsamongdifferentdisparity

factors.TheReportercouldaddanydatasetsortedbyChicagocommunityareasuchastheresultsofinvestigationsintoTIFspendingandforeclosuresonapartmentbuildings.

Thegoalisforreaderstogainanunderstandingofthedisparitiesintheirownneighborhoodsandaroundthecity.Wherearethemostdisadvantagedcommunities?Wholivesintheseareas?Howmuchdotheyearn?


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Anyiteminthefilterboxcanbecheckedandthemapwillchangedynamically.Thefilters weve built include the numberofresidentsbelowthepovertyline,thenumberofvacanthousingunits,householdsreceivingfoodstamps,renteroccupiedhousingunitsandadults25+

withahighschooleducationorless.Datacomesfromthe20052009AmericanCommunitySurvey5YearEstimates.Anydatathatisorganizedbycommunityareawillbeeasytoinclude.

Thecommunityareamapoperateslikeabasicheatmap.Whenoneor

morefiltersareselectedthenumberofpeopleinpovertyandvacanthousing,saythecommunityareasareshaded.Thegreaterthenumberofpeopleinpovertyandthegreaterthenumberofvacanthousingunits,themoreintensetheshadeofred.Itsdesignedtodrawfocustotheareasthathavethehighestlevelofthechosenfilters.Thesechange

automaticallywhenafilterisselected.

Therankingsboxshowsthetenmostdisadvantagedcommunitiesbywhicheverfilterorcombinationoffiltersareselected.Theyare

automaticallyrerankedwhenafilterisadded.


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Thelistofall77community

areas

isrankedbywhicheverfilterorcombinationof

filtersareselected.

DETAILS:INDIVIDUALCOMMUNITYAREAS

Whenyouclickonacommunitynameoroneofthecommunitypolygons,aninfoboxappearsthatshowsseveralelements.

Atthetopoftheinfoboxisthecommunityareanameandoveralldisadvantagedranking.Thisrankingisbasedonacombinationofwhicheverdisparityfiltersisselected.Beneaththatistheracialbreakdownofthecommunity.Nextispopulationandpercapitaincome.Bothareincludedforeverycommunityarea,butarenotranked.Thenaseriesofpiechartsshowthestatisticsandrankingsforeachdisparityfilter.Atleft,withthreefiltersselected:

PeopleinPovertyshowsthat43percentofthetotalpopulationofEnglewoodislivingbelowthepovertyline.

VacantHousingshowsthat26percentofthetotalhousingunitsinEnglewoodarevacant.

HighSchoolEducationorLessshowsthat60percentofpeople25andolderhaveahighschooleducationorless.


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FUTUREUSES

TheDisparityMapisamultipurposetool.Theappwasdesignedsothatpeoplewithrelativelylittlecodingexperiencecoulduseit.DatacanbeaddedtothemapbyaddingcolumnstotheGoogleFusionTablesbackendandbymodifyingtheJavaScriptcodetocreatenewcheckboxes.TheprocedureisexplainedfurtherinAppendix2.

WedevelopedtheappwithagoalofallowingtheReportertouseitforfuture

investigationsinwhichanalysisisorganizedbycommunityareas.Thishasbeenacommonapproachtodataanalysisinthepastforinstance,inlookingatTIFspendingandforeclosures.

Reporterscouldalsousetheappinternallytocomparedatasetsandidentifytrends.This,ofcourse,canbedoneinanExcelspreadsheetbutseeingthedistributiongeographicallymaygetyoutonoticetrendsyouwouldnthaveotherwise.ItcouldalsobeusedtoillustrateupcomingCensusdatareleases.

STORINGDATA

TheReporterdealswithlargedatabases,butoftenusesjustasmallportionofthedatacontainedthereintosupportastory.StaffersattheReporterhavetoldusthatworkingwithlargeamountsofdatasometimescrashestheircomputers.Toensurestafferscanaccessentiredatabaseswithoutanyblunders,theReportershouldbuildadatalibrary.Thiswouldrequirepurchasingmoreserverspacetostoredata.Fortunately,thecostsofdatastoragearedecliningquicklya1terabytebackupdrivecanbeobtainedforaslittleas$100.


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RECOMMENDATIONS:SOCIALMEDIA

CURRENTSTATUS

TheChicagoReporterhasaTwitteraccountandaFacebookaccountwithsomemodestfollowernumbersjustover1,000onFacebookand2,600onTwitter.TheTwitteraccounttweetsalmostexclusivelyduringtheBarberShopRadioShow,andonthose

daysmightpublishupwardsof20tweetsinaday.Ontheotherdaysoftheweek,thisaccountmighttweettwoorthreetimes.Thetweetsmostlyarefornewblogposts,butwithnospecificmentionoftheblogmakingithardtoknowifthesubjectisReportercontentorjustaninterestingarticlefromanothersource.Therearefewretweets,andminimalconversationandengagementoneitherFacebookorTwitter.TheBarberShopShowtweetsseemstrangeanddisconnectedbecausethereisnoleadin:TheReportergoesfromnotweetstomorethan20inaday,anditishardforfollowerstogetanideaofwhatisgoingoniftheReporterisntappearingintheirtimelinesmoreoften.

Liketheblog,thereisadefiniteleftleaningattitudetomanyofthetweetsinthelanguageused,theretweetsandinthehashtagsselected.ThisissomewhatinconsistentwiththeReportersdesiretoportrayitselfasanunbiasednewssource.WefoundthattheTwitteraccountdoesnottypicallymentionthemagazineoritscontent.Therearesomespellingandgrammarerrorsinthetweets,aswell.OnFacebook,therearealmostnocommentsorpostsfromotherpeopleontheReporterswall.AccordingtoFacebook,only13peoplearetalkingabouttheReporter.WhentheReporterasksquestions,theyareunspecificandfailtosparkdiscussion.TheReporterdoespostfairlyfrequentlyonFacebook,butshouldstrivetopostmoreconsistentlythroughouttheweek.ThepublicationshouldalsomakeuseoftheeventsfunctionalityonFacebookforeventssuchasthebimonthlyissuereleaseparty.

SOCIALMEDIARECOMMENDATIONS:THEPOWEROFTWITTER

TheChicagoReporterismissingoutonamajoropportunitytoengageitsaudienceandgetthemexcitedaboutthestoriestheyreport.OurmostsignificantTwitterrecommendationsaretargetedattheEmmapersona,becausesheismorelikelytorely

onsocialmediatokeepupwiththeReporterandsheprefersTwittertoFacebookforthatpurpose.WewouldliketousetheChicagoReportersTwitterpresencetopromotecontent,buildjournalistsbrandsandimproveaudienceengagement.Giventhesegoals,hereareourrecommendations.


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Promotingcontent

Tweetonaregularschedule,duringpeaktimes.ItiscommonlyacceptedthatTwitterusersaremostactiveintheearlymorning,midday,andlateevening.1Eveniftheblogpostscomeoutthroughouttheday,theyneedtobetweetedduringpeaktimes.

SetupatweetingscheduleforregularcontentpromotionusingHootSuite,andusetheirresultstrackingtooltocheckwhenyouaregettingthemostclick

throughsandadjusttweetingtimesaccordingly.Afterablogpostispublished,thebloggerneedstocomposeatweetfor@ChicagoReportertogooutduringpeaktimes.

Duringtheradioshow,tweetwhenitisstarting,indicatewhoisthereandifyouarelookingforaudienceinteraction.Livetweetingitthroughouttheshowcanfillupsomeonestimelinefortoolong,andifaTwitteruserisntlistening,heorshewontwanttoseethatmanytweetsaboutit.

Buildingjournalistsbrands

AllChicagoReporterbloggersandreportersshouldmaketheirfeedspublic,

promotethemselvesasaChicagoReporteremployeesintheirbiosandadheretostandardsoftopicsandlanguageusedthatareappropriateforanoutwardfacingChicagoReporterpresence.

Allbloggersandreportersneedtotweetduringtheirdailywork.Iftheyareoutcoveringanevent,theyneedtotweetsomethinglikeAttheChicagoPlanningCommissionMeeting,waitingtohearonX.Lookforablogpostlater!Mention@ChicagoReporterasoftenaspossible,respondtopeoplewhotweetatyouandaccumulatefollowers.

Allbiosshouldtoinclude:Retweetsdonotconstituteendorsements;allopinionsexpressedherearemyown.

Bloggersandreporterscanandshouldtweettheirarticlesassoonastheycome

out.Theydonotneedtoadheretothepeaktimerules.However,asmentionedabove,thebloggersalsoneedtowriteatweetabouteachposttogooutontheChicagoReporterduringpeaktimes.

AUDIENCEENGAGEMENT

TheReportercantakeanumberofstepstoenhancedirectengagementwithreaders.Thestaffshouldrespondtopeoplewhotweetwithquestionsorcomments.ThereshouldalsobeaninternmonitoringTwitterallday,stayingabreastofmentions;thisiseasilydonewithaniPhone,viaemailorthroughaprogramlikeHootSuite.StaffcanaskspecificquestionsaboutthingspostedtoTwitterandFacebook;avoidjustsaying,Telluswhatyouthink.ItsalsoessentialthattheReporterretweetrelevantstoriesfromotheroutlets,particularlyoneschosenaspartofthecuratedcontentontheReportershomepage.ThebestTwitterusersareknowninterlocutorswithotherpersonalitiesintheirgivenfield,

1Source:SysomosResourceLibraryhttp://www.sysomos.com/insidetwitter/


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andreaderscometolookforwardtominiexchangesanddebates.Letthereporter/outletthatyouarepromotingknowyouaredoingit:iftheyretweetyourtweet,itmeansmoreexposure.Wheneverpossible,usetheTwitterhandlesofthepeopleandorganizationsthatyouaretalkingaboutinyourtweets.Similarly,ifthereisablogpostontheReporterblogtalkingaboutamajorissue(likeOccupyWallStreet),searchTwittertofindoutwhathashtagisbeingusedandmakesuretofititin.AfinalnoteonFacebook.WhiletheEmmapersonaisunlikelytospendmuchtime

interactingwiththeReportersformalFacebookpage,manyreporterstodayleverageofficialpages(separatefromtheirpersonalaccounts)foryetanothereffectiveinteractionchannel.Thesavviestreporterspostwhatmightbecalledouttakestodrawinfollowers:tongueincheekmessages,interestingoramusingphotosandothermaterialtooinformalforpublishing(butnottoocandidforposting!).Mostimportantly,theyinterspersethismaterialwithlinkstoactualstories,boostingtraffic.


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RECOMMENDATIONS:COMMENTING

TheReporterenjoysalivelycommentingcommunity,withmultiplethreadsoneachstory.However,afewofthesecommentscontainoffensivematerialthatthecurrentcommentingsystemrendersdifficulttoadminister.Theprincipalpersonaslikelytocommentonchicagoreporter.comareEmma,thegrad

student,andErnest,thecommunityorganizer.Ascommenters,theyhavethreegoals:Swiftlyreactingtoastory,engagingwithotherChicagoReporterreadersinarelativelyfreeflowingconversationandmaintainingadegreeofanonymity.TheReportersgoal,meanwhile,istokeepdebateonthewebsitecivil,andremovecommentsdeemedoffensivebyothersintheonlinecommunity.OurrecommendationsbelowbalancepreservingarobustdiscussionontheReporterswebsitewithmakingmanagingunwantedcommentsassimpleaspossible.

RECOMMENDATIONS

WerecommendinstallingDisqus.com,apopularcommentingpluginthatcanbeusedontheDrupalplatform.Disqushasanumberofadjustablesettingsthatcanbeusedtomoderatecommentstoagreaterorlesserdegree,andwithmoreorlessresponsibilityfortheReportersstaff.Italsocanbeeasilymodifiedtomakethepluginmorestylisticallyappealing.ForinstructionsoninstallingDisqusonDrupal,consulthttp://drupal.org/project/disqus.Werecommendrelativelystrictcommentmoderationsettings,whichwillalsominimizetheworkrequiredofReporterstaff.

Commentsdonotneedtobeapprovedpriortobeingpublished However,userswillbeencouragedtoflagposts.Ifapostisflagged,anemailwill

besenttothecommentmoderatorandDisquswillautomaticallyhidethepostwhilethemoderatordetermineswhethertoapproveit.

Commentscontaininglinksorimagesmustbeapprovedbeforetheyarepublished.

ShouldtheReporterchoose,thereisaprocessfortransferringcommentsfromtheexistingsitetoDisqus;itcanbefoundhere.


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RECOMMENDATIONS:

ALTERNATIVESTORYTELLING

ManyactualorpotentialChicagoReporter.comusersarecommunityactivistsorteacherswhowouldwanttobringdatatotheirpeersorstudentsinaneasytoreadformat.Astrong,cleaninfographiccandoagreatjobofshowcasingtheimportantconclusions

drawnfromaninvestigationandcanhelpspreadawarenessaboutyourpublication.Weenvisionreaderssharingorprintingoutusefulgraphics.Theymayevenwanttobuythemifthedataofferedenoughvalue.

PHOTOSLIDESHOWSPeoplereadingnewsonlinehavemoreinformationavailabletothemthaneverbefore.AsNewYorkTimesMediareporterDavidCarrwroteina2010NiemanLabarticle:

Wehavethestream,afastmoving,evershiftingflowofbitesizedupdatesand

messages,Carrsaid.EverythingweveseeninthedevelopmentoftheNetand,

indeed,in

the

development

of

mass

media

indicates

that

the

velocity

of

information

willonlyincreaseinthefuture.

ConsideringthelengthanddensityofsomeoftheChicagoReportersstories,wethoughtwewouldgiveanexampleofawayastorycanbereimaginedforaWebaudiencethatneedsshorterbutstillhardhittingcontent.WetookAngelaCaputosNovember/December2011story,RazingHell,andthephotographstakenbyJasonReblandotoaccompanythestory,andmadeashortslideshowfortheWeb.Thestoryhasbeenshortenedsignificantlytomakethispossible,butthemaindatapointsarehighlightedinthephotocaptions.Theslideshowcanbefoundathttp://reporter.markroyko.com/razinghell.Slideshowsareamongthemostpopularitemsonmanynewssites,mainlybecausepeoplelovevisualizingstories.Wethinktheywouldbeeffectiveinstoriesthathighlightthehumancostofaparticularproblem.ForRazingHell,theviewercangetafeelforhowwidespreadtheforeclosureproblemisintheRoselandneighborhoodbyactuallyseeingmanyoftheboardeduphomes.Toimplementslideshows,theReporterwillhavetoaskphotographerstogetmanyvariedphotos.Thereporterwhowrotethestorymayhavetotellthephotographertogophotographvariouseventsorpeopletoproperlyillustratethewholestory,whichcouldcostmorethroughhoursofthephotographerstime.Throughtheslideshowcodewebuilt,anyonecanbetaughttoassembletheslideshowafterthestoryiseditedandthephotosselected.

DOCUMENTCLOUD

DocumentCloudisasetoftoolsforworkingwithandpublishingoriginalsourcedocuments.Itcanhelpjournalistsanalyzethecontentofdocuments,andhelp


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publicationsmakethemavailableonline.Makingkeydocumentsavailablewouldofferreadersacompleteexperiencewiththeinvestigativeworkyouproduce.Forexample,TerrymighthavebeeninterestedinviewingthecityhealthdepartmentdocumentsobtainedintheJuly2009WasteofChicagostory.

ONLINECHARTS

AquickandeasywaytoincludeinteractivechartsonyoursiteistouseGoogleCharts.

GoogleChartsisatoolthatallowsyoutoinputdataandautomaticallygeneratepie,line,columnandareachartsaswellastreemaps.OthertoolsincludeVidiandTableauPublic.

TIMELINESWhenrepresentingachronology,considerputtingtheinformationintoaninteractivetimeline.Timelinesincreasereadabilityandaremorevisuallyappealing.WebelievethattheHistoryofEnglewoodwouldbeamoreeffectiveandengagingstoryifputintoatimeline.WenoticedinGoogleanalyticsthatthispagehasheavytraffic,butpeopledonotstayonthispagebecausethelongblockoftextturnsthemaway.Amongtheavailableinteractivetimelinesites:Timerime,Dipity,SimileandxTimeline.

STORIFY

Inordertoengagewiththeircommunityofreaders,werecommendtheReporteraggregatecontentinadditionindividualstories.ContentwouldincludelinkstoReportercontentonoutsidesites,videosofinterviews,picturesofstaffmembers

atlaunchpartiesandtweetsfrominfluentialpeople.ThiscouldtaketheformofastorypostorblogpostthatdoesaweeklyreviewofwhattheReporterisdoingandthingsthatarehappeningwiththeissuestheReportercovers.Storifyisafreeservicethatcollectsthesepiecesofcontentandputsthemintoanembeddablestoryformat.

IftheReporterdecidestomaintainapresenceonChicagoNow.com,Storifycouldbeaneffectivetoolforaggregatingaregularupdateaboutwhatthepublicationisupto.


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RECOMMENDATIONS:ARCHIVES

Thecurrentarchivesdonotfollowthetypicalformatusedbymostestablishednewsorganizations.Theytakeupalotofspaceandincludealotoftext,whichcanoverwhelmyourreader.Wesuggestamoreorganized,intuitiveformatthathelpsyourreaderseasilylocatearchivedcontent.Theamountofteasertextshouldbelimitedtoacouplesentences.Also,thedate,authorandcommentcountshouldaccompanytheresults.We

alsorecommendidentifyingthetypeofcontent,whetheritsablog,storyorpieceofmultimedia.Anysortofpictureincludedwiththecontent,wouldshowupasathumbnailnexttothesearchresults.Tohelpreadersnavigatealotofcontent,wesuggestfilteringresultsbydateaswellassortingresultsbyrelevanceordate.Withthisnewstyle,youcaneasilyinclude10resultsperpage,makingyourarchivesmucheasiertoscan.

ExistingSearchResultsPage NewSearchResultsPage


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BUSINESSPLAN

&REVENUERECOMMENDATIONS

GettingLocal:HowNonprofitNewsVenturesSeekSustainability(aresearchreportpublishedinOctober2011bytheJohnS.andJamesL.KnightFoundation)saysnonprofitlocalnewsorganizationsneedtoactlikedigitalbusinesses,focusingasmuchattention

ondevelopingrevenuesasoncontent.Atthesametime,developingnewsourcesofrevenuesometimesrequiresmakinginvestments.TheChicagoReporterhasreliedforfinancialsupportprimarilyonitsparentorganization(theCommunityRenewalSociety)andonfoundationgrants,whichhavedeclinedinrecentyears.Itreceivesamodestamountofsupportthroughprintmagazinesubscriptionsandindividualdonations.BasedonourexaminationoftheWebanalyticsforChicagoReporter.com,andourinterviewswithpeoplefamiliarwiththeReporter,webelievetheorganizationsdigitalproductsrepresentsignificantuntappedopportunitiesforaudienceexpansionandfinancialsupport.

Inorder

to

take

advantage

of

these

opportunities,

it

is

essential

that

the

Reporter

significantlyimproveitswebsite,emailnewsletterandsocialmediapresence.

TheseinitiativeswillrequiretimeandattentionthattheReporterscurrentsmallstaffcannotprovide.Butwebelievetheinvestmentcanberepaidovertimethroughthedevelopmentofnewrevenuestreams.

STAFFEXPENSESOurlargestexpenserecommendationsareadditionalstaffmembers.ThefirstwouldbeafulltimeWebproducer,whichmightcostabout$40,000peryear.WefindthispositionespeciallyimportantsincetheReporterspresentationeditorcurrentlymanagesthelookofboththemagazineandwebsiteahugetaskforanyonetohandle.TheWebproducersprimarydutywouldbemaintainingyoursite.Otherdutiesincludepromotingthewebsitethroughsocialmediaandsearchengineoptimization,publishingandmanagingcontent,managingWebadvertising,collectinganalytics,monitoringstorycomments,securingthewebsiteandserverandeducatingReporterstaffmembersabouthowtousetheDrupalinterface.AWebproducerwithdesignskillscoulddesignpagesandmaketweakstothedesignofthewebsite.Theywouldworkwithreporterstomaketheirvisionforastoryarealityforinstance,byhelpingcreateslideshowsorvideo.Theircontributionswouldbecritical

toastreamlineduserexperience.Wealsorecommendhiringanewparttimephotographer.Weestimatethatagoodparttimephotographerwouldcostabout$24,000peryear.TheReporterscurrentstableoffreelancershasbeensufficienttofillabimonthlyprintmagazine,thoughwewouldnotethatmanyofthephotosarenotvisuallycompelling.Aparttimestaffphotographerwouldbebetterabletocollaboratewithreportersfromthestartofastoryandworkmorecloselywiththemtogetmorephotosandmorecompellingimagery.Photosarethefirstthingauserseesandtheyreflectyourorganizationsreputation.


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Photosshouldtellaspecificstorybygivingcontext.Ifastorydoesnthaveagoodphotoreaderswillglazeoverit.Infact,astudybyWebsiteconsultantJacobNielsenshowsthatpeopleignoregenericphotos.Thismeansstockphotosareignoredandcluttersites,whileusersengagewithrelevant,highqualityphotos.Usersarebombardedwithtonsofimagesonlineandsoyourphotographsneedtostandout.Ourthirdstaffrecommendationisaparttimegraphicdesignerwhowouldspecializeininfographicsorinformationdesign.Weestimatethatthiswouldalsocostabout$24,000

peryear.SincetheChicagoReporterisadatadrivenpublication,itscrucialtohaveexcellentdatavisualizationforboththemagazineandwebsite.Thegraphicdesignerwouldworkwithreporterstocraftstunningdatapackages.Theywouldknowthebestwaytotellastorythroughdata.Likegoodphotos,gooddesignincreasesbusinessvalue.Asyourorganizationgrowsanddevelopsitsbusinessstrategy,youmayconsiderredesigningyourmainlogo.Agraphicdesignerwouldtakeintoaccountthemissionandtoneofyourpublicationbeforemakinganysortofchangetoyourlogo.

EXPENSESLINKEDTOREVENUES

Asdiscussedintherevenuesection,webelievetheReportercansignificantlyincreaserevenuesfromindividualdonationsandevents.Inordertodoso,therewillbesomeadditionalexpensesfordonorpremiums(coffeemugs,Tshirts,etc.)andfortheeventsthemselves(spacerental,food,etc.).Weestimatetheseexpensesat$5,000peryear.Donorpremiums

Havinganexperienceorgiftattachedtoadonationwillmakesomepeoplemorelikelytodonateaswellasmoresatisfiedaftertheydonate.Theywillseethemselvesaspartoftheorganization.UsingamembershipmodelsimilartothatofCatalyst,theReporterssisterpublication,membersshouldbeoffereddifferentkindsofgiftsdependingontheleveloftheirdonation.Asabyproduct,promotionalitemssuchascoffeemugs,windowdecalsandTshirtsalsoserveasmarketingforthepublication.Experiencescouldbeanotherclassofgifts.Thesecouldincludelunchwiththeeditororadonorsfavoritereporter.Events

Hostingeventstakessomeplanningandresources.However,hostingsimpleeventsshouldntcosttoomuch.NextDoorCafisafreelocationtohosteventsoryoucouldconsiderhostingsomethingattheReporteroffice.Largerevents,forexample,afundraisingball,wouldcostalotmoretohost.Thesecouldbesponsoredbyattendeesorbusinesses,butwouldstillcostalotoftimetoplanandexecute.However,youwillfindpeoplelookforwardtoeventsandmaybecomeregularattendees,readersanddonorsfullyimmersedintheChicagoReporterexperience.


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OTHEREXPENSES

Werecommendpurchasingthefollowingdomainnamesthatredirecttochicagoreporter.com:

thechicagoreporter.com

chicagoreporter.org thechicagoreporter.org

Accordingtotheanalytics,thetoptwokeywordsvisitorssearchforarechicagoreporterandthechicagoreporter.Theseadditionaldomainswillhelpsomepeoplefindyourwebsite.AsmentionedintheDatasectionofthisreport,wealsorecommendthepurchaseofa1TBnetworkedharddrivetoenablethecreationofadataarchivefortheReporter.

REVENUERECOMMENDATIONS

WeseektomakeTheChicagoReportersustainablebyfurtherdiversifyingitsrevenuestream.Diversificationhasbeenthekeytosustainabilityforothernewsnonprofits,asthisgraphshowingrevenuebreakdownforothernewsnonprofitsdemonstrates:

The Knight Foundations 2011 Getting Local report shows that successful nonprofit news ventures

have a diverse mix of revenue streams.Inaddition,developmentexpertssayfoundationsarelesswillingthaninthepasttobedonorsoflastresort.Largephilanthropiesneedtobelievetheyareingoodcompanyinsupportinganorganization.Andfoundationsincreasinglywanttoseetheirgrantsas


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investmentsthatbuildorganizationalcapacityratherthananongoingsourceofoperatingfunds.TheChicagoReporterprintmagazinehasadevoted,longstandingfollowing.OurrecommendationsforimprovingChicagoReporter.comareintendedtoincreasethenumberofpeoplewhowillbewillingtodonatetotheorganizationandtodemonstratetoindividualsandfoundationsthattheReporterisincreasingitsreachandimpact.

Inthissection,wediscussstrategiesforboostingrevenue:

Improvingdonoroutreachandoutput Cultivatingcorporatesponsors Maximizingrevenuefromtheindependentadnetwork IdentifyingadditionalfoundationstheReportershouldtarget

IndividualDonors

Werecommend,first,thattheReporteraskfordonationstofinancecoverageofparticulartopicsorissues.

Thismodelincorporatesseveralsuccessfultrendsusedbyotherorganizationstoraisefunds.Kickstarter.com,forinstance,hasbecomeasuccessfulfundraisingventurefordocumentaryfilmmakers.Injournalism,thewebsiteSpot.Ususesacrowdsourcedfundingmodeltopayforenterprisestories.Independentandfreelancejournalistsgivedetaileddescriptionsofwhattheirstorieswillbeabout,andtheSpot.Uscommunitystepsuptoprovidemoney.Mostofthedonationsarefor$7orless,butthereareover6,500Spot.Ususers,andfewstoriesremainunfunded.

Mockup of a solicitation of donations to support reporting a story.


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WealsorecommendthattheReporteradoptamembershipbasedmodelsimilartothatofCatalyst,theotherpublicationfromtheCommunityRenewalSociety.Thisapproachencouragesuserstodonatebyprovidingincreasedbenefitsforincreaseddonations.

Catalysts membership model has six tiers.

Toincreasedonorsupport,werecommendthattheReportergiveincreasedemphasistodonationsanddonorsonitswebsite.Nonprofitnewssiteshavefoundgreatsuccesssigningupindividualdonors.Forinstance,theSt.LouisBeaconlastyearcollected$1.3millioninindividualdonations,andMinnPostcollected$486,000.Bothofthesesitesprominentlyhighlightedindividualdonationsontheirhomepages.TheBeaconalsohasmadeIBacktheBeaconamajorfundraisingcampaignslogan,evencreatingaseparatesectionofthewebsitetoprofileindividualcontributorsandwhattheylikeabouttheBeacon.Wethinkthisisanapproachthatshouldbeemulated

onChicagoReporter.com.

The St. Louis Beacons I Back the Beacon campaign profiles individual donors.


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CorporateSponsorships

FromtheUniversityofTexasPressadvertisingnewbooksontheTexasTribunessitetoChevronunderwritingprogrammingatthePBSNewsHour,itispossibletomakesponsorshipswork.IntheChicagoareaalone,therearenumerouscompanieswithvisiblepresencesandpubliclystatedgoalsthatcouldmakethemdesirablesponsorshippartnersforTheChicagoReporter.

Walgreens,forinstance,recentlyredesigned10storelocationsonChicagosSouthandWestSidestooffermorefreshfruitsandvegetablesaspartofanefforttopositionitselfasasolutiontofooddesertissuesincertainneighborhoods.AnorganizationseekingtoassociateitsbrandwithsocialorcivicmindedcausessuchasthiswouldbeacandidateforwebsitesponsorshipsthatmakeitseffortsknowntoanengagedreadershipinterestedinthetypesoftopicsthattheReporterfocuseson.CompaniessuchasIntelligentsiaandArgoTea,whichpridethemselvesonpromotingcommunityorientedvalues,mayalsorepresentnaturalpartnersforsponsorships.Wealsoidentifiedlawfirmsasacommonsponsoramongotherwatchdognewssites.

ThemoretheReporterexpandsanddiversifiesitsmultimediacontent,themoreopportunitiestherewillbetocustomizeanddevelopsponsorshipoptions.Inadditiontosponsoringpodcasts,videoandslideshowcontentanddatavisualizationtools,theReportermaywanttoconsiderlesstraditionalconcepts.Forinstance,specificstoriesorseriesofinvestigativereportscouldbeunderwritten.Sincewearealreadyrecommendingsolicitingstoryfocuseddonations,itcouldbeworthpitchingsponsorstofullyorpartiallyfundaprojectandbefeaturedalongsideindividualswherevercreditisbeinggiven.

Establishingafellowshiparoundaspecificstaffposition,suchasareporter,photographerorWebproducer,couldalsomakesense.KeepingtheReportersbrandandethicalintegrityintactshouldalwaysbeaprimaryconsideration,sincepoorlychosensponsorscouldpotentialerodebothinreaderseyes.Ifsponsorshipsareselectedwiselyandleveragedproperly,however,theycanprovideexcellentsourcesofrevenue.Onlineadvertising

WewereexcitedtolearnabouttheReportersparticipationintheChicagoIndependentAdNetwork(chicagoindyads.com).TheexistenceofthenetworkprovidestheReporterforthefirsttimewithafinancialincentivetogrowtheaudienceforChicagoReporter.com.WhenwemodeledtheadrevenuespossiblefortheReporterthroughthenewadnetwork,however,weconcludedthatthiswillnotbeasubstantialsourceofnewrevenueinthenearfuture.Forinstance,weprojectedadrevenuesbasedontheseassumptions:


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Quadruplingofpageviewswithinthreeyears

A$6.00RPM(revenueperthousandpageviews)representingrevenueestimatesprovidedbythedirectoroftheadnetwork

Asteadilyincreasingshareofavailableadinventorybeingsold:50%inthefirstyear,60%inthesecondyear,70%inthethirdyear.

Withtheseestimates,theReportercouldexpecttocollectjust$5,000innewrevenueoverthreeyears.Morethanhalfofthatrevenuewouldbeinthethirdyear,sothereis

certainlypotentialforgrowthovertime.ButthisrevenuesourceisnotgoingtofundamentallytransformtherevenuepicturefortheReporter.Foundations

Foundationsthatareactiveinthenonprofitnewsindustryarebecominglessandlessinterestedinprovidinggrantsthatmerelykeepdaytodayoperationsafloat."We'vegonebeyondthetimewhenfoundationswerewillingtosubsidizecontent,"VivianVahlberg,aprojectdirectorattheChicagoCommunityTrustsCommunityNewsMattersprogram,toldusinaninterview.

Thiswidespreadattitudeamongfoundationsappliestonewsorganizationsofallsizes,includingThePBSNewsHour,whichrecentlyfailedtoreceivearenewedroundoffundingfromtheJohnS.andJamesL.KnightFoundation.KnightprovidedcashwhentheNewsHourupdateditswebsitein2009,butbalkedatsubsequentgrantrequestin2011thatdidnotprovideenoughnewideas.However,foundationsareinterestedinhelpingnewandestablishednewsoutletsevolveintomoresustainableoperations.Approachingfoundationswithgrantrequeststhatarticulateclearpathstofuturesustainabilityproducethebestresults.Developingnewrevenuestreamsanddiversifyingincomecanplayanimportantroleinconvincingfoundationstofundtheseinitiatives.Wereinterestedinnewanddifferentwaysofdoingthings,becauseonethingyoucansayaboutthefutureofnewsisitsnotgoingtobethesame,EricNewton,asenioradvisortothepresidentoftheKnightFoundation,toldTheNewYorkTimes.Folkswhocanbenimbleandchangearegoingtodobetterinthefuturethanthosewhoareslowtochange.AccordingtoNewton,whopraisedthequalityofworkbeingdoneontheNewsHour,theirrequestinvolvedmoreofwhattheyusuallydoatatimewhenKnightisinterestedinleadingedgeprojects.TopayforthecostsofincreasingtheaudienceandimpactoftheReportersdigitalproducts,werecommendthattheorganizationapproachfoundationsthatbelieveinthemissionoftheReporter,suchastheMacArthurFoundation,theDriehausFoundationandtheChicagoCommunityTrust.TheReportershouldseekthisfundingasaninvestmentthatcanbepaidbackwithincreasedindividualdonations,sponsorships,advertisingandevents.


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Events

Eventshelptocreateacommunityaroundyourpublicationandturnbeingasupporteranexperienceratherthanachore.AspeopleengagewiththeChicagoReporterandthestaffbehindit,theywillfeelmoreinvestedintheorganization.Asyoumakethenewsprocessmoretransparentandinteractive,readerswillwanttogiveback.Otheraudienceengagementbenefitsofaddingeventsinclude:

Buildingrelationships Furtheringyourorganizationsreputation Generatingpositivepublicity Reachingnewpeople

Eventscandiversifyyourrevenuestreamsinceyoucanchargeforeventsorsolicitdonations.Tostart,wesuggestmakingsmalleventsfree,butaskingfordonationsatthedoor.Astheseeventsbecomemoreestablished,youcouldstartchargingandincludingguestspeakers.Eventscancomeinavarietyofforms.Welookedatseveralnonprofitnews

organizationsthatholdsuccessful,profitableevents.TheTexasTribunehostseventsaboutfourtofivetimespermonth.Theyfeaturestatelegislators,companyexecutives,authorsandothertopicalspeakerswhodiscusscurrentissuesinTexas.Theconversationsareusuallyheldinthemorningorafterwork.TheSt.LouisBeaconalsohostmorningcurrenteventdiscussionscalledBeaconandEggs.WesuggesttheChicagoReporterhostmonthlyforumstodiscusscurrentevents.YoucouldevenuseafreeeventspacecalledtheNextDoorCaf,whichwouldlimitexpensestofood.SpeakerscouldincludetheReporterstaffaswellasanyinfluentialpeoplewhomaywanttogettheirvoiceoutintothecommunity.Youcouldhaveopendiscussions,speeches,orQ&As.Asyouearnmorerevenuewesuggesthostingeventsatamoreformalvenue,suchastheHaroldWashingtonLibraryoralocallounge,anddiversifyingthetypesofevents.MinnPostholdsalarge,yearlyeventcalledtheMinnPostRoast,wheretheorganizationroastslocaljournalistsandpoliticiansonAprilFoolsDay.MinnPosthostsasilentauctionduringthiseventandhassponsorsprovidethefoodandbeverages.ThePostheavilypromotestheeventandtellsreaderswhichlocalcelebritiesarescheduledtocome.Theyalsolistwhothebiggestsponsorsare.

INVESTIGATIVE

NEWS

NETWORK

TheChicagoReportershouldstrivetobepartofthegrowingonlineinvestigativenewscommunityinordertoaccesspromotionalsupportfromotheroutlets.Tostart,theReportercanfollowinthefootstepsofCatalystandjointheInvestigativeNewsNetwork,agroupofinvestigativememberorganizationsdedicatedtoincreasingtheimpactofinvestigativestoriesandpromotingsustainablenonprofitorganizations.


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TheChicagoReporterisadefinitecandidateforINNandwouldderivevaluefromtheorganizationsmembershipbenefits.Tojoin,theReportermustbecompletelytransparentaboutitsfundingwhichwillbepossiblethroughthemodelswerecommendedfordonations.Themagazinemustalsobeclearlynonpartisanandwhilewerecommendsomeopinionintheupdatedblog,wedosuggestthattheReporterdoeverythingpossibletokeepopinionslimitedtothatspace.Ifapproved,theReportersworkwouldbepromotedthroughtheInvestigativeNewsNetworksenewslettersandsocialmediaoutreach,andthemagazinecouldreceivenegotiatedgroupratesfor

journalistictoolsandINNawardedgrantfunding.Additionally,themagazinewouldbeabletonetworkwithotherinvestigativeorganizations,whichcouldleadtofinancialopportunitiesthoughadnetworksandotherpromotionalsupport.


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APPENDIX1:

SEARCHENGINEOPTIMIZATION

SEOBESTPRACTICESUsetagsaroundheadlines.Thiswillmakeheadlinesthefirstthingasearch

enginereads,whichisexactlywhatyouwant.Dontusetagsatanyotherpointonthepage.Googletendstoignoreinstancesofifitsusedmorethanonce.(Re)writeheadlineswithSEOinmind.Thesameheadlinesthatworkperfectlywellinprint(OneandDone,Despairoverdisrepair,etc.)makethearticleverydifficulttofindontheWeb.OneandDonehardlyindicatesyoureabouttoreadastoryaboutunjustChicagoHousingAuthorityinitiatives.AgoodSEOheadlineshouldincludekeywordsthatdirectlyrepresentthecontent. ExamplesofgoodSEOheadlines:Originalheadline:OneandDone

SEOheadline:Onestrike,youreout:CHAresidentsfaceevictionifarrestedonceOriginalheadline:DespairoverdisrepairSEOheadline:Whenlendersdontregistertheirproperties,taxpayersloseoutonmillionsinrevenueOriginalheadline:HipHopHopeSEOheadline:Youngpeoplefindcommunity,inspirationinUptownshiphopfocusedKumbaLynxartsprogramIncludetheoriginalheadlineinthemetadata.IfyourewriteaheadlineyoumightbeconcernedreadersoftheprintmagazinewontbeabletofindthearticleviaGoogle.(TheyaretheonlygroupwhomighttypeOneandDoneinthehopeoffindingtheCHAevictionsstory.)Ifyouincludetheoldheadlineinthemetadata,itwontcarrytheheftofanbutitwillbefindable.Whencreatinganewstoryfilloutthemetadatadescription.TofilloutthemetadatadescriptiongotothebottomoftheeditstorypageandclickontheMetaTagstab.Insertadescriptionofthestoryinthedescriptionfield.LinktopreviousReportercontent.Whencreatingnewcontent,besuretoincludelinkstorecentorevenarchivedstoriesthatarerelevanttothestory.Thiswillhelpboosttraffictoindividualpagesonthesiteandthesitewillbemorelikelytoappearinsearchresultswhenpeoplesearchforthoseterms.


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APPENDIX2:

ADDINGFACTORSTODISPARITYMAP

Openchicago_reporter_inequality_map_2.xls.csvinExcelandpasteinthecolumnsyouwanttoadd

Note:Each

dataset

needs

the

total

number,

percentage

and

ranking

with

underscores

separatingeachword

Towork,thepercentcolumnmustread_percentattheendandtherankcolumnmustread_rank

SavethefileandlogontotheChicagoReporterDataGmailaccount:

Username:[email protected]

Password:[INFORMATIONAVAILABLE

FROM

PROF.

RICH

GORDON]

Replacechicago_reporter_inequality_map_2.xlswithyournewlyupdatedversion(Tip:IfthisoptionisdeactivatedclicktheSignInbutton)

LogintoFTPfortheWebserverwheretheappishosted.Currently,thisismedill.co.Tologin,type

a) ftp.medill.coastheserverb) [LOGIN,PASSWORDAVAILABLEFROMPROF.RICHGORDON]

Click

Navigateto


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Rightclickindex.html,selectEditwithandselectaneditingprogram

Scrolldowntothecolumndatafromfusiontables

(Youcanfindthislocatedunder )

Copyalloftheinformationbetweenand

Pastetheinformationbeforeorafteralistiteminthisset(Note:Checkboxesappearinthesameorderonthemapastheydointhe.jsfile)

Changethevalue=valuetothedatasetscolumnnameinGoogleFusionTables:

Note:mustappearexactlyasitdoesinGoogleFusionTables.

Changethevaluetothetitleyouwanttoappearinthemap:


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APPENDIX3:

MAPSANDGRAPHICSSoyouvedecidedtouseamap

Beforeusingamap,askyourselfifthestoryyouretellinghasacrucialtietogeography.

ManyofthegraphicsthataccompanyReporterstoriesfeatureaninfographicthatshadesChicagoscommunityareas.OnewayofshowinganunequaldistributionofsomethingbetweenracesistoshadeChicagocommunityareasbymajorityracebeneathpointleveldata(minorschargedwithafelonyorsexoffenderviolations,tousetwoexamplesfromthemagazine).This,ofcourse,canbeeffective.Whenyouretryingtotellthereaderthattraumacentersaredistributedunequallythroughoutthecity,withtheneighborhoodswiththemostincidentsofgunviolencehavingthefewestcenters,geographyisatthecenterofthestory.

Perhapsthenaturalinclinationistoshadethecommunityareasbasedononefactor(majorityraceorincomelevel)with,asmentionedabove,pointleveldataontop.Ifso,thecolorpaletteforboththepolygonshadesandthepointsneedtobecarefullyselected.TheReporterusesdatatocreatestronginvestigativepieces.Itsoneofthetenetsoftheorganization.Sinceitssocriticaltothepublicationyoullwanttocreatestrongandcleargraphicsthatdrivehomethegroundbreakingresearchandreporting.Caution:Mapsarentalwaysthebestway

Sometimesamapisntthebestwaytoshowdata.(MattEricsonoftheNewYorkTimeshasaterrificessayonthissubjectat:http://www.ericson.net/content/2011/10/whenmapsshouldntbemaps/.Achartcanbealotmoresuccessfulatshowingarelationshiporcanhelpsupplementthevisualprovidedbyamap.Chartsarebestusedwhenthedatadoesntrelatetogeography,whenthegeographicdataismoreeffectiveforanalysisorwheninterestingpatternsarentgeographicpatterns.Forexample,astackedbarchartcanbeeffectiveatshowingpiecesofawholebetterthanthescatteredcolorcodedpercentagesonamap.Herearetwosimplewaysofvisualizingdatathatdontinvolvemaps:

Stackedbarchart:Astackedbarchartdividesthebarintopiecesthatcorrelatewithanamount.So,thereadersseetherelationshipbetweenthepart

andthewhole.Piecharts:Piechartscangetconfusingbecausethesliverscangetverysmallandbehardtoread.Also,ifyourejuxtaposingmorethanonepiechartsidebyside,itcanbedifficulttocomparethesizesofpieces.Piechartsarebestusedwhenyouareshowing23categoriesandthereisabigdifferencebetweenthem.However,labelingcangettrickyasthesliversgetsmaller,soabarchartisusuallyyourbestoption.


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Toillustratethebestwayofmappingdata,letslookatanexamplefromtheReportersarchives:

Inchoosingacolorpaletteshowingthatshowsracialmajorities,avoidcreatingartificialhierarchies.Thewhitethroughbrownunintentionallysuggestsarankingofraces.

Gradientsshouldonlybeusedtomapquantitativedata.Agradientshouldntbeusedtomapdemographicdata,becausethatindicatesthereissomerelationshipbetweenthegroupsalongthegradient.IfHispanicisgray,AsianiswhiteandblackpeopleareblackdoesthatmeanHispanicsareamixbetweenblacksandAsians?Noway!Youwanttomakeyourcolorchoicesasclearaspossiblesoyourgraphicsareasclearaspossible.


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Second,thecolorsaturationofthemarkersthatrepresentthoseinviolationandnotinviolationofparoleareroughlyequal,eventhoughtheimportanceofeachisnotequal.Yes,theinviolationmarkersshouldstandout,butjustasimportant,thenotinviolationmarkersshouldrecedeintothebackground.Itblurstheelementsofthestoryandmakesthereaderstruggletoderivemeaning.Examplesofsuccessfulpalettes

TheNewYorkTimesisknownforitsawardwinningdatavisualizations,includingtheirmaps:

MinoritiesinChina

Immigrationexplorer


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Thesemapsusecolorsthatdifferfromoneanother,makingthemeasytoread.Withdatavisualization,youdontwantreaderstohavetogotheextrastepanddrawtheirownconclusionsaboutthedata.Whilethiscolorpaletteisdistinct,italsoshowsagradient.Meaning,userscanlookatthisgraphicandknowthechangeincolorcorrelatestomoreorlessofsomething.

Successfulcolorpalettesfordatavisualizationaredistinct,complementaryandfreefromassociationwithanygroupordemographic.Thepalettebelowisraciallyneutralyetdifferentenoughtoshowdivisionsataglance:

Colorcodesbyrace:

White majority = #E900B6

Black majority = #04A4E0

Asian majority = #9BFB15

Latino majority = #FAAF08

No majority = #818181

Werecommend,forthesakeofconsistency,usingthesameshadeswhenmappingotherdatasetsbycommunityarea.Forexample,incomelevelcouldbebrokenintofourtiers.CommunitiesinthehigherincomebracketshadedredandvioletandthoseinthelowerincomebracketsshadedblueororangebasedonourinventoryofReporterstories,whenthecolorpaletteisappliedtootherinequalityfactors,itwill,ingeneral,reflectthe

racialbreakdownofthecity.


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MEETTHETEAM

HelenAdamopoulos

ProjectLeader/Design&UsabilityHelengraduatedfromEasternMichiganUniversitywithaBS

injournalisminApril2010.Duringandafterhertimeasanundergrad,shereportedontheartsandlocalgovernmentasaninternandfreelancewriterforTheAnnArborChronicle.ShemajoredininteractivepublishingatMedill.

PatriciaHastings

Content&CommunityManagement/WebTechnologiesandDatabases

PattycoveredpublichealthandmajoredininteractivepublishingatMedill.Whenshesnotwritingorcatchinguponhealthpolicy,sheenjoyscyclingandpracticingyoga.

PriscillaKunamalla

AudienceResearch/Design&UsabilityPriscillagraduatedfromtheUniversityofIllinoisatChicagoinMayof2010withaB.A.inpsychology.Sheworkedasa

marketingassistantatTyndaleHousePublishersinCarolStream,ILwhereshethoroughlyenjoyedexecutingmarkingstrategiesforChristianfictionandnonfictiontitles.ShemajoredininteractivepublishingatMedill.

DianaNovak

IndustryResearch/Content&CommunityManagementDianaNovakmajoredinreportingatMedill.Mostrecently,sheheldtheJohnCallawayFellowshipatWTTW11sChicagoTonight.HerworkhasbeenpublishedbytheHuffingtonPost,InTheseTimesandTruthout.com,aswellasinInventingArguments,anupcomingtextbookfromCengageLearning.SheisagraduateofTulaneUniversity.


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DonaldSjoerdsma

WebTechnologies&DatabasesDonSjoerdsmareceivedhisB.A.insociologyfromIndianaUniversity.HewaseditorinchiefofthebiweeklyIUNorthwestcampusnewspaper,thePhoenix.Aftergraduation,hecontributedtotheTimesofNorthwestIndianasYoungVoicescolumn,andcopyeditedthe2010

IndianaFootballDigest.Hemajoredininteractivepublishing.

BrianWarmoth

ProjectLeader/IndustryResearchBrianWarmothhasworkedasajournalistcoveringmedia,techandgamesformorethansevenyears.HehascontributedreportingandblogcommentaryforMTVNews,IFCandAOLNews.HemajoredininteractivepublishingatMedill.

RobertWile

AudienceResearch/FinalReportPriortoenrollingatMedill,RobertWileworkedasabeatreporterfortheIslandPacketinHiltonHead,S.C.Hisreportinginterestsincludehousingandrealestate,unemploymentandEuropeanaffairs.HecurrentlyservesasavolunteerjobcoordinatorattheEthiopianCommunityAssociationofChicago.RobertearnedhisBAfromColumbia

Universityin2008,wherehemajoredinhistory.


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THANKSTOWecouldnothavecompletedthisprojectwithoutthehelpofMedillfaculty,theChicagoReporterteamandanumberofotherindividuals.Thankstoallwhosharedtheirinsights,helpeduswithlogisticsorcoachedusthroughtheprocessofdevelopinganewdigitalstrategyfortheChicagoReporter:

MEDILLFACULTY

Prof.RichGordonAssociateProf.ZachWise

Prof.OwenYoungmanAssistantProf.JeremyGilbert

AssistantProf.RachelDavisMersey

CHICAGOREPORTER&COMMUNITYRENEWALSOCIETY

AldenLouryKimbriellKellyRuiKaneya

AngelaCaputoMariaInesZamudio

MeganCottrellMicahMaidenberg

AlShaw

ANDALSO

GeoffreyHingMarkRoykoWesLindahl

DannySpitzerCohnBillRankin

VivianVahlberg

Chicago Reporter Cultivating a Digital Future Medill Fall2011

Documents

Transcript of Chicago Reporter Cultivating a Digital Future Medill Fall2011