www.montereycountynow.com october 17-23, 2024 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 27 INSIDER Impact Report Last week, in our Oct. 10 issue, we published a cover story with our election endorsements. This week, in this insert, we’re taking a moment to look inward as opposed to outward. Welcome to our annual report to Weekly Insiders, the group of readers who have voluntarily signed up as donors to help support the journalism produced in Monterey County Weekly and Monterey County Now. It’s an opportunity to look back at some of the things we’ve been up to in the past 12 months, and report some measurable impact our journalism is having in the community. As part of the research into our endorsement edition, the editorial board (myself, Founder & CEO Bradley Zeve and Publisher Erik Cushman) conducted interviews with 51 candidates in 15 races, and emailed with 18 candidates in seven others. We also read voters guides and lots of other journalists’ input to offer insight on 10 state ballot propositions. Then we argued among ourselves to reach consensus. As we write today we are uncertain of what effect our selections will have throughout the community, but we sometimes hear from readers, like Ulises L., who wrote in last year: “I’d like to start by saying I’ve been reading the Weekly since I was 14 (I’m 41). The Weekly has been a bible to me. Every election I cut out the endorsements and take them with me. I don’t always agree but I appreciate the work that goes into endorsing candidates. I’ve shaped my politics by reading the Weekly.” On a much more lighthearted voting note, on Oct. 3, we published the Best of Monterey County® Readers’ Poll, sharing the results of our readers’ votes for the best in a huge range of categories from barbershop to Thai restaurant to the best place to watch the sunset. It is the biggest issue of the newspaper we publish every year, and you have likely seen that many of the winners proudly display Best Of award plaques in their place of business. They tell our salespeople that the impact of being voted the best is a real boon for them. It validates the hard work they do day in and day out, and it is a public acknowledgment that their achievements are recognized in the community. (And if you need to get your car smogged or get your nails done, I suggest it as a resource; it’s served me well as a consumer guide.) This week’s cover story chronicles the first-ever Media Literacy Week in Monterey County. As a member of the newly formed Media Literacy Coalition, we are hopeful that this new initiative will have lasting impact on readers—especially young readers—as they learn to sniff out misinformation and outright lies that show up in abundance on social media. Community Impact The three examples above are large-scale projects intended to have an impact on voters, local businesses and future leaders. They help us live our mission to inspire independent thinking and conscious action, etc. We also sometimes hear from readers about everyday changes and developments that occur as a result of our reporting and storytelling. Last October, I wrote about the Big Sur Health Center’s struggle to recruit a physician as the nonprofit’s one MD on staff prepared to retire. (Even though many patients see a nurse practitioner or a nurse, the doctor is a licensing requirement.) A reader, whose parents had received care at the Big Sur Health Center, was moved by the story and learned about the issue. They donated $33,000 to support the new physician’s salary, and a hire was made just in time—impacting the ability to deliver health care to its rural patients. In August, Staff Writer Celia Jiménez profiled a local software engineer in Greenfield who developed an app called Nurbli that is a sort of digital bulletin board, providing school district and local government information in English and Spanish, and also in Mixteco de San Martín Peras or Triqui, Indigenous Oaxacan languages. Users can read or listen to notices. After the story ran, we heard from the Behavioral Health Director for San Benito County asking Jiménez to connect that agency to the Nurbli team: “I just read the article about the app that can help provide information in indigenous languages to community members…I was interested in learning more to see if our county could utilize this app for behavioral health information.” Big and Small Sometimes reading leads to action in smaller, but still consequential, ways. Look back to January, when the Alliance on Aging was collecting handmade Valentine cards to distribute to 1,200 local people living in care facilities, nursing homes, assisted living centers and hospitals. After we published a story about the Valentine campaign, Linda S. emailed to say: insider.montereycountynow.com impact report continued next page An update from the Monterey County Weekly newsroom.
28 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY october 17-23, 2024 www.montereycountynow.com “I really appreciated you writing an article about the opportunity to make Valentines. Although my husband and I no longer live in Pacific Grove, we continue to read the Monterey County Weekly online and as we appreciate it so much, we are Patron supporters. I mailed a package of 21 handmade Valentines to the Alliance on Aging last week. I would not have known about it if you hadn’t written that lovely article… “Thank you for writing about this particular need and for all of the wonderful community-minded journalism that the Monterey County Weekly is known for.” Report Card Today, Monterey County Weekly and our digital platforms, rebranded this year to Monterey County Now, cover more local news than at any time in our 36-year history. With a 10-person newsroom (thanks to our most recent addition from the California Local News Fellowship), we have our largest-ever editorial staff. And just a moment to brag: The work of the Weekly’s editors, reporters, photographers and designers has been recognized by journalism peers for more honors this past year than at any time in our history. A few members of our team attended the California Journalism Awards in Los Angeles in June, where we received awards for coverage of local government, environmental coverage, investigative reporting, feature writing, design, food writing, health reporting and our e-newsletter, recognized as the best in our class statewide. We also proudly took home first place for General Excellence. We are proud of our team, but we could not do any of this without you, our readers, and particularly our Weekly Insiders, who contribute directly to the mission. (Read more about how to join in—and get a pumpkin and a coffee on us—on p. 30.) I’ll also take a moment to invite you to join in our next big project designed to make a direct impact on the community: Our philanthropic Monterey County Gives! issue will be published on Nov. 14 and explicitly invites readers to participate. Thank you for reading. And as always, I welcome your feedback—positive and negative or anything in between. -Sara Rubin, editor impact report continued 58,872 readers per week 40.8% average open rate 88,917 average monthly unique visitors newsletter website 3,924 total number of Insiders INSIDER $11,921,495 total raised in 2023 monterey county gives! Local & Independent media montereycountynow.com 48.8 average new subscribers/week $8,150,170 donations from individuals 8,024 total number of donors 250 Goal for new Insiders in October 2024 $164/year average contribution level may 30-june 5, 2024 montereycountynow.com LocaL & InDePenDent GrowInG the art of bonsaI 6 | DramatIzInG a hate crIme 26 | oLD-worLD fLavor, new owner 32 The same scenery that makes Big Sur such an extraordinary place makes Highway 1 precarious. That is only going to get more extreme. p. 16 by sara rubin eDGe of the earth 20,323 average net circulation 2.7 readers per copy (CVC audit 3/31/22) 50% access via mobile phone 391,188 average monthly page views (Google analytics October 2024) 44,018 subscribers (MailChimp campaign report 5/1/24 - 5/31/24) (Campaign totals for 2023) Monterey County Gives! is a special project of Monterey County Weekly in partnership with the Community Foundation for Monterey County and the Monterey Peninsula Foundation. Largest print audience in the market Without a paywall since 1996 50% greater than the industry average Over $68 million raised since 2009 the average contribution level is up 40% Print insiders august 22-28, 2024 montereycountynow.com LocaL & InDePenDent when gorDa was for saLe 6 | the rent Is too Damn hIgh 11 | fortune teLLers 33 | coffee to go 39 A century ago, Julia Platt—Pacific Grove’s first woman mayor—changed the city, and the Monterey Bay, forever. p. 14 By Pam marino fIrst LaDy West end Guide inside! march 28-april 3, 2024 montereycountyweekly.com local & inDepenDent rana creek ranch comes to life 8 | skating to a stop in pacific grove 12 | laugh out louD 38 culture of Denial Carmel Unified School District has a history of repressing sexual abuse allegations. Now on its seventh superintendent in nine years, many longtime leaders still act as if all is well. What needs to change? By sara rubin [p. 18]
www.montereycountynow.com october 17-23, 2024 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 29 First Place, General Excellence (Division 4) First Place, Best Newsletter First Place, Health Reporting First Place, Food Writing/Reporting First Place, Feature Writing INSIDER 2024 California Journalism Awards 1st Monterey County Weekly editorial department (from left to right): Dave Faries, David Schmalz, Agata Pope¸da, Erik Chalhoub (seated), Katie Rodriguez, Celia Jiménez, Sara Rubin, Pam Marino and Daniel Dreifuss (Sloan Campi, not pictured). Second Place, Investigative Reporting Second Place, Enterprise Reporting Second Place, Environment Reporting Third Place, Coverage of Local Government Third Place, Columns Fourth Place, Breaking News Fifth Place, Front Page Layout National awards from the Association of Alternative Newsmedia (AAN): First Place, Innovation/Format Buster Second Place, Feature Story
30 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY october 17-23, 2024 www.montereycountynow.com Enhancing the impact of Monterey County Weekly and Monterey County NOW is a top priority for our company. As regular readers of Monterey County Weekly, we think you get it—the value of reliable local journalism is more important today than at any time in the recent past. Keeping you informed about the people, politics and culture of our community connects us, and that in turn enhances the place we call home. That journalism is also an expensive operation to fund. Over the past year-and-a-half we have grown our staff so that today we have the largest newsroom of any outlet in Monterey County. We have expanded our distribution channels via the Monterey County Now newsletter, enhanced our technology and still never missed a deadline. Alongside those changes in our editorial department, we have also made a permanent adjustment in our business model. Making sure the company succeeds as a business, not just a mission, is a responsibility we hold dear. In the current media landscape, direct financial support from readers is a vital part of a sustainable business model. It’s not charity, and we’re not begging our readers to contribute; it’s a connected relationship where the people who value local and independent journalism help underwrite the costs. And we are happy to report that this new model is working. About 4,000 of your friends and neighbors have opted to make a direct monthly contribution to the Weekly, joining a select group we call Weekly Insiders. Through the end of October, we are in the midst of a direct appeal to readers, asking you to join that group of Insiders. Our goal is 250 new Insiders by the end of the month. If you are not yet one of them, and you value the paper, the newsletter and the website, this is our request for you to take action. If you are already an Insider (or a regular advertiser), allow me to thank you again. Your support helps us deliver great journalism and maintain a successful business. —Erik Cushman, Publisher The New Model to Fund Journalism INSIDER Join us now Go online at insider.montereycountynow.com/pumpkin Or by mail: 668 Williams Ave. Seaside, CA 93955 Your contribution level: $500 $150 $50 $20 $15 $10 Other $_______ Contribution schedule: Monthly Annual One-time Name_________________________________________________________________________ Address_ ______________________________________________________________________ City, State_ ____________________________________________________________________ Email_ __________________________________ Phone________________________________ May we include your name in public acknowledgments? Yes How would you like your name to appear___________________________________________ No, I would prefer to be anonymous Payment: Credit card number_ ____________________________________________________________ Expiration date __________________________CVV code_ _____________________________ Name/Billing address (if different from above) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ For more info: linda@montereycountynow.com (831) 394-5656 INSIDER 101724 Deconstructed Pumpkin Spice Latte offer Contribute $15/month or $180 one-time and get a certified organic Bad Dog Farms pumpkin and a $5 gift card to The Creperie Café Donate before October 31 to get your pumpkin.
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