The Sentinel-Record (Hot Springs, Arkansas) has announced a public fundraising campaign aimed at strengthening and expanding its local newsroom, launching what it calls the Community Journalism Project with an initial goal of raising $75,000.
The initiative will give readers a new way to support professional local reporting in Garland County through tax-deductible donations administered by the Arkansas Community Foundation. Contributions can be made at http://hscommunitynews.org.
Donations will be treated as gifts to a Section 501(c)(3) public charity and are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.
Editor Beth Reed said the project is designed to build on the newspaper's existing coverage — not replace or maintain the status quo.
“This isn't to continue to do what we're already doing,” Reed said. “This is to add to it. This is to really build up our local coverage — more stories, more things that readers are interested in and want more of. ... Anything outside of what we're already doing, that's what this will help us to do.”
The Sentinel-Record, owned by the family of Walter E. Hussman Jr., relies primarily on subscription revenue supplemented by advertising. Reed said the newspaper remains profitable but faces industrywide pressures.
“We're profitable,” Reed said. “But this just adds another piece to it that we hope will allow us to give more back to our community as far as the coverage that we produce.”
Funds raised through the project may be used to hire additional dedicated staff, upgrade technology and provide training and tools that enhance reporting. The money may also support new journalism initiatives and expanded beat coverage.
Reed said the project may help expand coverage in areas of Garland County that receive limited attention, as well as deepen reporting on issues such as economic development, business and education.
The funds will not be used for existing operational expenses, fundraising expenses, the production of wire or opinion content, subscription marketing or purchases not tied directly to local journalism.
Reed emphasized that donors will have no influence over editorial decisions.
To maintain separation between donors and the newsroom, contributions will be handled through the Hot Springs Area Community Foundation. The newspaper will fund qualifying journalism initiatives upfront and then seek reimbursement from the foundation if the expenditures meet established guidelines.
Stories funded through the initiative will appear alongside regular coverage in print and online and will be tagged as part of the Community Journalism Project. Subscribers will continue to receive full access to all content and early access to funded stories, which will become free to the public within seven days of publication.
Some community members have already contributed $5,700 toward the initial $75,000 goal, Reed said. The newspaper hopes to grow annual contributions to $150,000 or more over the next several years.
WEHCO Publisher Eliza Hussman Gaines said philanthropic support will serve as a third revenue stream alongside subscriptions and advertising.
“When a community has a strong, independent local newspaper, it's not just informed — it's connected,” Gaines said in a statement. “Like many newspapers across the nation, The Sentinel-Record has felt the financial pressures of a rapidly changing media landscape.
“Because of changes that have affected the newspaper industry as a whole, there's a gap in funding for in-depth local reporting. ... Donations fund costly, time-consuming work like in-depth investigations and dedicated coverage of critical local issues such as education, health and government accountability. Your support will also help us celebrate local voices and preserve the stories that make Garland County unique.”
Gaines said her family has been committed to The Sentinel-Record for generations and believes strong local journalism is vital to the community.
The Sentinel-Record, which has operated in Garland County since 1877, will continue its traditional subscription and advertising model regardless of fundraising results, Reed said.
“Subscribers are still going to get their news every day,” she said. “By adding this philanthropic leg, it just helps us expand and cover things that are more public service in nature.”
Staci Miller, director of development for the project, said during a newsroom meeting Wednesday that the initiative is designed to help secure long-term stability for the newspaper amid ongoing challenges in the industry.
“The public today has so many different sources for news literally in their pocket at their fingertips, but we know that not all news sources are created equal,” Miller said. “The Sentinel Record has proven, again and again, that it's not just a news outlet, but a guardian of transparency, accountability and democracy.”
Mark Lane, president of WEHCO Media, Inc.'s newspaper division, said, “This is simply a third leg to the stool that helps us find a sustainable path forward. ... Philanthropy is not new. It's just simply a tool that helps us and gives our community an opportunity to help fund local community journalism. So we're super excited about it.”
To find out more and get detailed explanations of the project, or to set up recurring monthly, quarterly, semiannual and annual donations, as well as one-time gifts, through the Hot Springs Area Community Foundation, visit http://hscommunitynews.org. Checks made to the community foundation may also be mailed to P.O. Box 56, Hot Springs, AR 71902, with “Sentinel-Record Community Journalism” noted in the memo line.
