One of the many reasons Anna Clark savors Detroit is that it's "the newsiest city in America," as the southwest Michigan native describes her home since 2007.
She drops that phrase into a Columbia Journalism Review reported essay about Free Press stalwart Robert Huschka's move into the top newsroom role. He speaks with Clark about "the weight that comes with this job,” and she weighs in with six suggestions "at a time of radical change for the paper."
Her "unsolicited advice," the author and freelance journalist writes Wednesday, is "a proposed to-do list for the new regime: a set of recommendations for how this 184-year-old newspaper might tackle this moment."
These ideas are informed by interviews with 11 current and former staffers in recent weeks, including Huschka, as well as my own observations as a Free Press subscriber for more than seven years.
"I do understand the weight that comes with this job,” executive editor Robert Huschka says. (LinkedIn photo)
Clark's setup makes a case for why what happens inside the Freep matters for the paper, its readers and the region:
The Free Press is . . . at a critical juncture in its relationship with the News, with which it shares one of the nation’s few remaining joint operating agreements. Competition between the two outlets has led to better overall reporting in the city, but the outlook for the News, a Digital First property and the smaller of the two papers, is unclear. . . .
[Detroit is] facing tectonic shifts in its politics, redevelopment and culture, and the need for accountability reporting is greater than ever. But the paper is much smaller than it once was; I was told by staff writer Patricia Montemurri that a current staff roster lists about 150 employees, compared to about 320 when Gannett bought the paper in 2005.
Still, the Freep remains the largest news outlet in the state. . . . I was also told by one candidate for the top job that the prospect of further downsizing did not come up in the interview (nor did any dramatic “Newsroom of the Future” restructuring). That means the Free Press is best situated to provide the kind of journalism the city needs.
The "to-do list" covers the following topics. (See Clark's detailed, insightful recommendations via a red "Read more" link at the end.)
►1. Rigorous editing: "While the paper needs to innovate in many ways, news reporting done with care and craft remains a priority."
►2. Coverage and staff diversity: "Who is the Free Press for? . . . There are opportunities to do more, especially in the city neighborhoods far outside downtown".
►3. More 'original, substantive events:' Engage with the public, "develop stronger ties with communities where it doesn’t yet have a strong presence" and maybe earn money that way.
►4. Go to the video: "The new offices are designed with high-production video and audio in mind. This brings a wealth of new possibilities. . . . But so far, no clear strategy is in place."
►5. Expand partnerships: "Cross-pollination [with WDET and Detroit Public TV] feeds a more robust and interesting media ecosystem."
►6. Don't hide: "Nearly a year later [after moving], there’s still no sign out front touting the papers’ presence. . . . Make it visible: the Detroit Free Press is part of this city’s future."
Speaking of engagement and interactive journalism, Clark gets prompt feedback from the recipient of her public "memo:"
We are working on that big sign... and a quite a few other ideas. But please keep sending insights our way. https://t.co/xkiijf1ZYb
— Robert Huschka (@MakingNews) August 12, 2015
-- Alan Stamm
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