The Daily Messenger and its group of weekly newspapers launched a variety of content improvements last week, as part of the GateHouse Media Newsroom Incubator program.
Changes included a variety of reader involvement features, th addition of several rails, new pages and sections. Check out examples of the changes below.
Executive Editor Rick Jensen explained the changes in a letter to readers:
Readers will find a number of improvements to the Daily Messenger beginning this Thursday.
The changes will include a redesigned A section that will have a stronger local flavor and offer readers more breaking news and community news coverage, as well as regional, state, national and world news.
A daily “Your Life” section also will debut. The section, as the title suggests, will be all about our readers and their lives, and offer more stories and photos about local people, places and events.
The Sports section will have an increased emphasis on “your sports.” And a daily Business page will be added.
The improvements, which have been in the works for several months, come as the result of comments and feedback from readers who told us what they wanted to see in their newspaper.
Readers have indicated that they have an insatiable appetite for local news, and we’ll be focusing more attention on local issues, people and events that touch our readers’ lives. Those topics include taxes, town/village government and impact on quality of life, crime, education and local schools, high school sports and community recreation, and things to do locally.
The Messenger also will be sporting a new look in a slightly narrower 11-inch-wide format. A number of newspapers have converted to the narrower design, and readers generally find the new size more convenient and user-friendly. The easy-to-read body type in stories will remain unchanged.
Here are the highlights of the new Daily Messenger, which will focus much more on your news and your life.
• A newsier news section — The front page will be redesigned to showcase the most interesting and important local news stories of the day. A new “Your News” page on 2A will feature reader-submitted photos of community events and the Top 5 Messenger stories on the Web. The main community news page will move to page 3A every day to provide a deeper local news report.
Obituaries, police blotter, fire calls, government briefings and other news of record will be found on page 4A, and a regional news roundup will appear on page 5A daily. The A section also will include the Nation & World report, state news coverage and the Opinion page.
• The new “Your Life” section — The cover page will include photos of local events, profiles of your neighbors and tips to enjoy life in the Finger Lakes area. Inside, readers will find the Bulletin Board calendar of local events; a weekly Our Schools page with information on student achievements; a four-time weekly “Neighbors” page with good things happening in our area; and a weekly Religion page; plus the TV, advice, comics and puzzle, and classified shopping pages.
• A beefed-up Sports section — The Sports section will feature more stories and photos about local athletes and the events that matter most to readers — high school sports, outdoors and recreational activities, regional pro sports and NASCAR. The new “Your Sports” page will become a consumer-oriented page for sports fans that will include a local sports roundup, reader-submitted high school sports photos and local sports chat. The pro sports page will emphasize New York teams that our readers follow. The section also will showcase a weekly NASCAR page in season.
• A new daily Business page — Local business coverage will be expanded and a daily Business page added. Coverage will include new business openings, profiles of successful local businesses, economic issues and trends, and jobs and careers advice. On Sundays, a new “Your Money” page will address everyday financial issues and offer practical financial-planning tools and information.
We hope the changes add more value to your newspaper and produce positive results for our advertisers.
We welcome your comments.
Rick Jensen is executive editor of the Daily Messenger and Messenger Post Media. He can be reached by e-mail at rjensen@messengerpostmedia.com or by mail: 73 Buffalo St., Canandaigua, NY 14424.
The Daily Messenger and its group of weekly newspapers launched a variety of content improvements last week, as part of the GateHouse Media Newsroom Incubator program.
Changes included a variety of reader involvement features, th addition of several rails, new pages and sections. Check out examples of the changes below.
Executive Editor Rick Jensen explained the changes in a letter to readers:
Readers will find a number of improvements to the Daily Messenger beginning this Thursday.
The changes will include a redesigned A section that will have a stronger local flavor and offer readers more breaking news and community news coverage, as well as regional, state, national and world news.
A daily “Your Life” section also will debut. The section, as the title suggests, will be all about our readers and their lives, and offer more stories and photos about local people, places and events.
The Sports section will have an increased emphasis on “your sports.” And a daily Business page will be added.
The improvements, which have been in the works for several months, come as the result of comments and feedback from readers who told us what they wanted to see in their newspaper.
Readers have indicated that they have an insatiable appetite for local news, and we’ll be focusing more attention on local issues, people and events that touch our readers’ lives. Those topics include taxes, town/village government and impact on quality of life, crime, education and local schools, high school sports and community recreation, and things to do locally.
The Messenger also will be sporting a new look in a slightly narrower 11-inch-wide format. A number of newspapers have converted to the narrower design, and readers generally find the new size more convenient and user-friendly. The easy-to-read body type in stories will remain unchanged.
Here are the highlights of the new Daily Messenger, which will focus much more on your news and your life.
• A newsier news section — The front page will be redesigned to showcase the most interesting and important local news stories of the day. A new “Your News” page on 2A will feature reader-submitted photos of community events and the Top 5 Messenger stories on the Web. The main community news page will move to page 3A every day to provide a deeper local news report.
Obituaries, police blotter, fire calls, government briefings and other news of record will be found on page 4A, and a regional news roundup will appear on page 5A daily. The A section also will include the Nation & World report, state news coverage and the Opinion page.
• The new “Your Life” section — The cover page will include photos of local events, profiles of your neighbors and tips to enjoy life in the Finger Lakes area. Inside, readers will find the Bulletin Board calendar of local events; a weekly Our Schools page with information on student achievements; a four-time weekly “Neighbors” page with good things happening in our area; and a weekly Religion page; plus the TV, advice, comics and puzzle, and classified shopping pages.
• A beefed-up Sports section — The Sports section will feature more stories and photos about local athletes and the events that matter most to readers — high school sports, outdoors and recreational activities, regional pro sports and NASCAR. The new “Your Sports” page will become a consumer-oriented page for sports fans that will include a local sports roundup, reader-submitted high school sports photos and local sports chat. The pro sports page will emphasize New York teams that our readers follow. The section also will showcase a weekly NASCAR page in season.
• A new daily Business page — Local business coverage will be expanded and a daily Business page added. Coverage will include new business openings, profiles of successful local businesses, economic issues and trends, and jobs and careers advice. On Sundays, a new “Your Money” page will address everyday financial issues and offer practical financial-planning tools and information.
We hope the changes add more value to your newspaper and produce positive results for our advertisers.
We welcome your comments.
Rick Jensen is executive editor of the Daily Messenger and Messenger Post Media. He can be reached by e-mail at rjensen@messengerpostmedia.com or by mail: 73 Buffalo St., Canandaigua, NY 14424.
