Evolution: Serving our customers as their needs shift – The News Star – Monroe News Star

Mark Henderson Mark Henderson is The News-Star watchdog and storytelling coach.(Photo: MARGARET CROFT/THE NEWS-STAR)Buy Photo

Friends,

The evolution started slowly, but the migration of audiences and advertisers from print to online has been nothing short of breathtaking. Increasingly, most of our customers access The News-Star's content and advertising on our website, mobile and tablet devices, and social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.

Like any business that evolves to stay relevant, we must follow in order for The News-Star, now 126 years old, to see another century of operations. We are nurturing that evolution with a series of steps to stay in alignment with audiences.

In a transformation already underway, we are concentrating breaking news and sports scores on our digital platforms, where you can keep up in real time. (Already a subscriber? Join us onlineby visiting thenewsstar.com/activate. Need to subscribe? Go to thenewsstar.com/subscribe.)

As a subscriber you'll bethe first to learn about breaking news with personalized news alerts, flip through a digital replica of the print paper, connect with our digital archive, access exclusive deals and more. Check it out at thenewsstar.com/memberguide.

We also give subscribers Insider perks. In April, you will have access to discounts on vacation destinations and services. Check it out at thenewsstar.com/insider.

Our print edition willfocus on content that youll find more satisfying and in-depth, rather than repeating the headlines you saw the night before.

On the news side, our journalists will dive more deeply into the topics we know you like: Watchdog stories, education, quality of life, jobs, government, public safety and stories of people.

Our sports content is evolving, too, and our focus will shift to unique and compelling content about local players, coaches and teams.

The goal is to get away from conventional reporting and writing methods, fully embracing a digital-first mindset. We will de-emphasize game stories, which are less popular with audiences. (Dont worry; you can always find the score at thenewsstar.com.)

Instead, we will take the pulse on what people are talking about live and on social media and translate that into stories, videos and engaging content. We will place an emphasis on analysis, features, columns, lists and videos, not providing game coverage in the traditional sense.

In particular, we will deliver more: Compelling human interest stories with strong character development. The central characters might be sports figures, but these stories will echo themes and emotions to which everyone can relate. Watchdog and investigative enterprise that hold public officials at all levels of sports accountable. Quirky stories that surprise and delight. Shorter stories driven by the conversation of the day. Personality-driven columns that help brand our sports experts.

We understand that most people, including lots of daily newspaper readers, discover breaking news on their cellphones, Facebook feeds or thenewsstar.com. And we understand that means most readers dont want to reread the same old breaking news like the score of a game when they open their newspapers the next day.

We also will expand our digital offerings including more videos and a wider variety of stories. As part of our commitment to delivering up-to-the minute local news, we encourage you to like the The News-StarFacebook page, which is updated around the clock with stories that might not appear in print.

This much is remains unchanged. A free society depends on the free flow of information. How we get the information to you is ever changing, but our responsibility to you, our readers, has not. You have my sincere commitment that our journalists will continue to strive to be vigilant watchdogs of government and enthusiastic partners in improving and empowering our community.

Mark Henderson is news director at The News-Star. He can be reached at 362-0262 or by email at mhenderson@thenewsstar.com.

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Evolution: Serving our customers as their needs shift - The News Star - Monroe News Star