Paul Myers, 33
Editor, The Sun-gazette Education: California State University, Fresno, master of public administration and bachelor of arts in public administration
What advice do you have for other young professionals in the news industry?
Find a news outlet the works for you. I’m the editor of a small paper in the San Joaquin Valley of California. We do not cover the halls of Sacramento, and we barely mention state politics in our coverage. We aim to cover the stories that happen in Tulare County from a wholly local perspective. I have friends who have worked in newsrooms big and small. Some of them love the demanding pace of their beats, but others have been broken by the grind of writing 8-10 pieces a day with the urge to “punch up” their stories. I’m fortunate to be part of an outlet that works to put reporters in positions where they’ll succeed and constantly teaches them how to make their stories better. Work for an outlet that you want to work for. I honestly believe that you will enjoy the work and be a better professional for it.
What is your approach to creating a sustainable business model for local media companies?
The first step is to do away with the message that without the press, corruption will reign. While I know it’s true, and everyone in the industry knows it’s true, it doesn’t resonate with readers. And in the days where weeklies are closing and dailies are shrinking, trying to scare readers into subscribing has not been helpful.
My approach at The Sun-gazette has been to ensure that our journalism is sound. Of course, that means we have sacrificed being first on many stories or foregoing pieces in the name of ethics that other newspapers in the community have covered. But because of this sacrifice, we have built our reputation as the most legitimate news source in our community. We refrain from editorializing news stories. When we feel compelled to opine on a topic, we write a thoughtful editorial. And we put almost no effort into crime coverage unless there is an evident trend.
Once we gave an identity to our coverage, we began a new marketing campaign focused on telling people the importance of local news. Our publisher, Reggie
Ellis, and I are featured in 11 ads that outline journalistic principles and highlight how local journalism makes communities better. By putting ourselves in front of new people and relying on our reputation, we have grown our subscribership to an allnew high.
Increasing subscribership has lent itself to larger, more regional advertisers, which has become a resurging source of revenue in recent years. I believe that a newspaper has greater staying power relying on grounded journalism than relying on stories that drive traffic for the sake of advertising dollars.