The Association of Alternative Newsweeklies will honor Ivins' contribution to journalism by bestowing an annual First Amendment award to a North American journalist whose work best embodies the spirit of Ivins' legacy. "She got her basic training at one of our member newspapers, and when she left she continued to speak truth to power with wit and style. Her work speaks for itself, and speaks volumes about how much difference one courageous journalist can make," says Kenneth Neill, AAN President and publisher of The Memphis Flyer.

Continue ReadingAAN to Name Annual Award After Molly Ivins

Will Swaim, who resigned in January over "philosophical differences" with the alt-weekly's new owners, is starting The District, a weekly paper covering Long Beach, Orange County Business Journal reports. Swaim has heavily recruited ex-OC Weekly staffers to work at The District, including the Weekly's former art director, sales director and sales manager. Former staff writers Steve Lowery, Dave Wielenga and Theo Douglas have also migrated to The District, which launches April 11, according to the Long Beach Press-Telegram. Meanwhile, LA Observed reports ex-staff writer Ellen Griley is also on board. For Swaim, the new location was a no-brainer. "Long Beach is the largest North American city without an independent newsweekly," he says.

Continue ReadingOC Weekly’s Founding Editor to Launch New Paper

That's what this year's "State of the News Media" reports, chronicling the slight decline of print readers and "enormous growth" online in 2006. The Project for Excellence in Journalism (PEJ) also looks at the VVM/New Times merger, which it cited as "the biggest issue on the horizon" for the industry in last year's report. "Economically, the early indications are that the merger may not have as dramatic an effect as many in the industry expected," says PEJ.

Continue ReadingWeb Gains, Print Losses for Alt-Weeklies

In a conversation with the New York Times' David Carr, Village Voice Media's executive editor addresses the editorial merry-go-round at the chain's flagship paper. "We didn't expect things to happen overnight," Lacey says. He also tells Carr that a move to New York might be in the cards once his kids leave for college. "I'm not going to edit the paper hands-on," he says, "but I will be close enough to make whoever is editing the paper more miserable than they already are."

Continue ReadingVVM’s Michael Lacey: ‘We Didn’t Expect Things to Go Smoothly’

Steve Lowery, who was acting as interim editor in the wake of Will Swaim's departure, announced today that he is leaving the paper effective immediately, according to a farewell e-mail obtained by LA Observed. Effective March 23, OC Weekly will also be without Features Editor Theo Douglas, who gave his two weeks' notice today. In addition, OC Blog reports that two production staffers are leaving.

Continue ReadingMore OC Weekly Staffers On the Way Out

Last week we noted that Sen. Jon Kyl, R-AZ, was prepared to introduce an amendment in the Senate Judiciary Committee that would -- like Britain's Official Secrets Act -- criminalize the communication or publication of broad swaths of classified information. A couple of days later we reported that the senator had reconsidered and withdrawn the bill. Since then, Kyl has returned with another, less onerous yet-still-dangerous amendment that he apparently intends to take straight to the Senate floor. Tucson Weekly and San Francisco Bay Guardian both report this week on the twists and turns.

Continue ReadingSenator’s ‘Official Secrets Act’ Amendment in Limbo

"Our bagels are like vaginas: What's not to love?," asks the notice for River City Bagels. (The ad mistakenly omitted a context-altering line noting that the restaurant is a sponsor of a local production of Vagina Monologues, according to owner Jodi Kummermehr.) Employees tell New West Boise that a few women have complained and some boys were supposedly suspended from school for talking about the ad in class, but foot traffic in the restaurant has increased significantly. "I think it's really funny," says River City manager Sri Galindo. "The only thing I'd feel bad about is if it really offended people, but they learned that word in health class!"

Continue Reading‘Sexy’ Bagel Ad in Boise Weekly Causes a Stir