Why doesn't The Herald engage readers?

A friend forwarded a link from the Hartford Business Journal about the Journal Register Co., which owns The Herald. It begins:

Dailies In Danger
JRC, parent company of New Haven Register, Connecticut Magazine, in financial crisis

By Sean O’Leary

Hartford Business Journal Staff Writer

Today

The finances of the Pennsylvania parent company of 75 Connecticut publications, including the New Haven Register and Connecticut Magazine, have hit an all-time low, prompting surprise newsroom layoffs and threatening the delisting of its stock.

The decline of the Journal Register Co.’s financial condition has been swift and steep. After earning $42.4 million in 2005, the company lost $9.7 million in 2006 and $130.1 million in 2007.

And its financial woes continue to worsen. Last month, the New York Stock Exchange halted floor trading of shares of JRC because they slipped below the exchange’s $1.05 per share floor-trading threshold. ….

The JRC's stock was trading below 60 cents today.

I have not been in touch with people at The Herald for many years, so I have no idea how this is impacting that newspaper if at all.

The JRC bought The Herald, Middletown Press, Bristol Press and a number of other Connecticut publications beginning in the early 1990s. The JRC’s strategy is fairly simple: Buy distressed independently owned newspapers located in close proximity to one another and through centralized management, combined advertising and cost cutting, make them profitable. For a time, it seemed to work.

The JRC’s stock price was over $20 just a few years ago. The company has grown aggressively in multiple states and took on a lot of debt. The JRC is under enormous pressure.

I want to make one observation that illustrates what's wrong with the JRC.

One of the most important things a publication must do today is build community with its readership. It is for that reason why most newspapers let readers comment on stories.

There is no obvious way to comment online in response to a story on The Herald’s web site. I suspect that Herald reporters and editors would like a Web site that is modern and interactive but they are obviously at the mercy of the JRC executive management.

But even on their own blogs, The Herald’s approach is confusing. The blog “Blog Central,” a sports blog, has set comment moderation, meaning that comments have to be approved by the blog author. The same is true for Talkn’ Sports. But “Lip Service” by Ken Lipshez doesn’t have the moderation requirement. Why are there different rules for these blogs?

And why just sports blogs? What’s up with that? Isn't anyone interested in blogging about local politics, land use, schools?

This inability of readers to comment on stories tells a lot about the JRC. If the executive management of this company was really interested in turning this company around, it would be moving aggressively to build an online community. But it is not even trying.

If the JRC's executive management doesn't have the drive to produce first-rate newspaper Web sites, then the future of this chain is not good.

Don't give up, Meadowland

I like places that age well and develop character along the way and that's why I went to the Meadowland Restaurant. It was a short walk from my Miller Street home and its restaurant a quick and good alternative. Having a meal and a drink in a place that has been operating since 1934 is a treat.

The Herald is reporting that Meadowland is closing its restaurant but evidently will continue as a bar with a limited menu. The Herald's reporter, Jason Vallee, went to the restaurant and spoke to its owner and customers and turned out a solid report. What I especially liked about this story was how it tied the restaurant's decision to broader changes in the city. But as I read this story, I was also troubled by its message. Is the restaurant owner retreating or fighting back? I suspect the former.

Here's an excerpt from the story.

One problem for Meadowland has been the loss of old customers without the ability to draw today's younger generation. With a shift in the city's makeup during the past decade, Fournier said his business has seen a sharp decline in the number of younger customers entering.

"There is just no industry left, nothing to keep people in the area for long periods of time," James said. "As our older customers continue to age, they can't come as often or unfortunately pass away and we aren't getting the younger generations to make up for it."

The problem [restaurant owner James] Fournier has experienced is not unique. For Connecticut in general, this has been a growing economic problem. The state ranks second to last, sitting just above Alaska when it comes to retaining college graduates and residents ages 20 to 29.

The restaurant was also burdened with sharp increases to electrical costs, gas costs and food pricing.

It's tough for college graduates in Central Connecticut. The area doesn't have the opportunity or the potential of major Metro areas. But that said, plenty of college graduates -- especially those who have attended CCSU -- stay and make a good life for themself.

Meadowland is in a stable neighborhood. I know my former neighbors on Miller Street continue to invest in keeping up their homes. This neighborhood is not in decline. Far from it. It's a very good place to live.

So what's the problem?

I don't doubt the truth of what the restaurant owner is saying. But what is the Meadowland doing to attract new patrons?

The Meadowland has a lot going for it. It really is a little gem of a place that needs to reach out to people and look for ways to change with the community. The Meadowland is also important to community. Young people, especially, who decide to live in an urban area want to be close to attractive places. Businesses like the Meadowland can help make a neighborhood a warm and inviting place to live.

There are, for instance, many hobbyist photographers in the city -- why not invite them to display and sell their photography? Invite artists as well. CCSU has a strong arts community. It would moderinze and enliven the decor and probably draw in new customers.

Mr. Fournier, from this story, strikes me as a thoughtful and opinionated person -- the ideal blogger. Creating an online presence, a blog, is a means to engage a broader audience. People go to bars to interact with others, and a blog continues that discussion once they leave.

Perhaps the Meadowland is already doing some of these things. I haven't been in there in some years, but I'll make a point of it next time in town, in a month or two. The next story I read in The Herald about the Meadowland will, hopefully, be one about how landmark has become optimistic about the city and its own future.

It’s an easy thing to give up on New Britain. It’s easy to overlook how much the city has that makes it a nice place to live. The Meadowland is one of things.

How a stop sign taught me about the importance of local news

There are no unimportant issues in New Britain City Hall and this is something I learned more as a resident of the city than as a reporter at The Herald. I'll use my experience with street signs to make this point.

Mayor William McNamara use to joke about how New Britain officials never met an intersection that didn't need a stop sign. (He was far wittier about it.) But that brings me to this story about my experiences with two street signs.

I lived on Lawlor Street for many years as well as Miller Street and, as a result, frequently used Allen Street.

One day, I was driving up Allen to Stanley Street and realize that I just blew past a stop sign at Carlton and Allen. I never hit the brake. The stop sign wasn't there the previous day. I never noticed it. But what upset me the most was the fact that I never alerted Herald readers about it. I was The Herald reporter responsible for informing people about items before the Common Council.

My suspicion was that many other residents didn't see the new stop sign at Carlton and Allen and that gave me a story idea.

The next day, a photographer and I parked on Carlton and watched what happened. And sure enough, a lot of drivers went through that stop sign without slowing down. We kept count and I wrote a story about it. I also asked city officials about whether there was a need to do more to alert residents about new stop signs. The story didn't change anything, and I'm sure residents are still surprised from time-to-time by the sudden addition and removal of signs.

Stop signs, no parking signs, are usually the result of complaints by residents who want to slow traffic down or get rid of on-street parking. Aldermen have been apt to support restrictions because they don't cost much and it usually earns the thanks of neighborhood residents. But this brings me to another story.

When I moved to Miller Street in 1987 there were signs prohibiting parking during the winter months. For reasons unknown to me, the parking signs were removed before winter began that season. It was a big relief. I had bought a three-family with some friends. In total we had six cars, but only enough room for two cars in our driveway.

Some years later, the Common Council was asked to approve a no winter parking restriction on Miller Street. It was on an agenda. I called the alderman sponsoring it and was told by him that his petition was at the request of some Miller Street residents. It had to do with the mess the plows made to get around cars not removed during parking snow emergency bans. But this is a problem in every neighborhood.

None of my neighbors wanted a seasonal parking ban because they all had small driveways and needed off-street parking. The push for no parking was no doubt coming from those Miller Street residents with large lots and room for all their cars.

When I pointed out to the alderman that there were many other residents on Miller Street who needed on-street parking and would be forced to park on adjoining streets (gobbling up on-street parking spaces used by residents on those streets) and then walk, often after dark, to their homes, he pulled the measure.

My experience with the signs on Allen and Miller streets helped to drive home an important lesson: that there is no such thing as a routine item on a council, board or commission agenda.
If I was living on Miller Street today and not in Washington DC, I would have a blog and mailing list as well, about this neighborhood. It would be a way for neighbors to share information and news of importance. An effort by some neighbors to ban parking would be noticed and debated. I think that -- in time -- most neighborhoods in New Britain will have blogs that focus on these often important local issues.

But one thing local bloggers need is access to information and the city has a very important role to play here.

Common Council agendas and minutes are posted online, but you won't find agendas online for many other governmental bodies, such as the Zoning Board of Appeals, an extremely important group or the Police Board. Aldermen can really help by making expanded online posting a priority. There should be very little costs -- if any -- to make reports, agendas and minutes available online.

Keeping residents informed today involves more than newspapers. It includes actions by concerned elected officials, as well as neighborhood residents.

For those New Britain residents interested in creating neighborhood blogs, a great resource is placeblogger. You can also look at my blog in DC, DCBlogs for an idea of how local blog communities develop. Some of the local blogs in placeblogger and DCBlogs are sophisticated but don't let that scare you off. All it takes is opening a free account at blogger.com and within minutes you can have an attractive blog. Adding photos and video is easy as well. Blogging is also a great hobby and much fun. If you want some help, please email me at dcblogs@gmail.com.

Note: Please welcome Elisa, a former Herald reporter who I worked with, will also be writing on this blog. We worked together on many stories, and she loves this city as much as I do.

Photo: Taken on Allen Street this past summer from my car.