6 things you've asked about the York Daily Record. And our responses.
When you're in the journalism business, you receive questions. It's all good. If you listen, you can learn much
Jim McClure- Why does YDR charge for online subscription?
- Why is the newspaper smaller than it used to be?
- How do you decide what to cover in the York Daily Record?
When you're in the journalism business, you receive questions.
You get them in person, by text, email, Facebook commenting, Facebook private messaging and, yes, by phone.
It's all good. If you think about the question, you can learn much.
So I thought I'd take a couple of minutes early in this new year to capture a few topics that you've wondered about - and give you brief answers.
Here goes:
Digital subscriptions
Going back to our earliest forerunner – Die York Gazette, circa 1796 – we've charged for our content. You're familiar with this practice, commonly known as newspaper delivery at home or single copy sales at convenience stores.
The digital subscription model is just another iteration of this 200-plus-year-old practice. The YDR newsroom, indeed, has long been powered by subscribers or members, and we rely more today on our subscribers than ever before.
As print or digital subscribers, your support helps us to continue on as what we believe is York County's oldest company.
Your print subscription includes unlimited access to everything we have online.
You just need to activate your account online. To do that, head to ydr.com/activate and follow the steps to create an account and link your print subscription.
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The newspaper
We tell people all the time that we're a digital company – working hard to grow our online audiences. Those audiences are desirable to advertisers. Fortunately, this strategy is working.
Our print product remains important and brings in considerable advertising and subscription revenue. The newspaper's size is based on a ratio of advertising and news space. So, for example, if businesses run smaller or fewer advertisements in the paper, that allows them to buy digital ads, too. But then our newspaper is smaller. But our websites have stronger advertising content.
The summary is that a company must drive to the future, which is digital delivery of news and advertising.
News coverage
Our aim is to create unique content – stories, photos and videos – that no one else is doing. If it's a story that connects with you and you can't get it anywhere else, then it has maximum value to you.
We look for stories that reveal new insights and have the potential to create change. Our recent stories on clergy abuse are examples of that. Our coverage of this important issue digs deeper and uncovers details you won't find in any other media. We have a section on our website where you can see such stories. Check out: ydr.com/news/watchdog.
At the same time, we seek to do stories that explore the human condition, our successes, failures and moments of redemption. The story about the young student facing her third open heart surgery this year is a good example of this. To see more of these stories, check out: ydr.com/news/heart-of-york.
Community news
Remember our emphasis on unique news? Today, most organizations and businesses use Facebook and newsletters to push out their own news releases. As we've said, our decision is to concentrate on stories that otherwise aren't being told.
Further, we know what type of stories people read because, in this digital world, we can see numbers – called metrics – showing how many readers access stories and how long they spend with them.
Typically, what you read the most are stories that are not done elsewhere, that touch you deeply and that push our leaders toward change.
At the same time, the YDR administers Facebook groups that offer the public a big platform to promote their events and news. And those stories from the public stream into those groups all day long, seven days a week.
One of these groups – Fixing York – is nearing 15,000 members who have an intense interest in what's going on in the York area. That group's membership is 60 percent under 44 years in age and 25 percent diverse, so organizations posting appropriate news on Fixing York are reaching audiences that they never could get before.
Types of news
If you want to see all the stories our staff does in a day, go to the YDR's Facebook page, facebook.com/YorkDailyRecord. You'll see a blend of stories, some detailing crimes, but many that you'd consider good news and others that are hard to categorize.
Many just tell about people going about their daily lives in our community. The sad fact is that we can do 10 good-news stories – and we do – and then one bad-news story. Human nature is such that we'll remember the one considered negative.
Many staff members of the YDR have specialty areas that are attracting growing audiences on our website and social media.
Our history projects, No Sweat York initiative, photo and video essays on old houses and architecture and coverage of the outdoors are just a few examples of those areas. Those topics are hardly "bad news," and, as I've said, they captivate and interest people who just are living their lives.
Readership
The fact is that more people will read, say, this column in 2019 than ever would have read it in 1989, when I started at the YDR. This column will be in the paper, on the YDR website and a host of social media sites.
The YDR's main Facebook page has almost 100,000 likes, larger than the circulation of the York Sunday News at its highest point.
Randy Parker, our news director, likes to say that the YDR serves more people, more often and in more ways than ever before.
Unlike our Die York Gazette counterparts in 1796, we now have the digital measuring tools to say that with confidence.
Writers Roundtable
Journalist Kim Strong will present at the next Writers Roundtable at 7 p.m., March 7, at the York County History Center, 250 E. Market St., York.
Strong is a writing coach and editor who formerly worked with York Daily Record, PennLive and The USA Today Network.
The program will discuss ways to address the stress that comes with writing, including organization, flow, sentence structure, and style.
Strong will discuss the significance of choosing an editor and explore the writing and editing process. The presentation will include a coaching demonstration with a member working through a piece of his writing.
Also, I will also conduct a short segment about being inclusive in our research and writing. That means that our history work should consider and reflect all people in our communities - particularly with race, class and gender in mind.
The event is free and open to the public.
York Storytellers
Please join the YDR for an evening of storytelling on Feb. 5.
At 7 p.m. that day, several York countians will present at Wyndridge Farm outside of Dallastown.
Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students. Tickets should be purchased in advance at tickets.ydr.com. The theme? "Don't Make Me Come Up There!"