Deborah Kolben, most recently city editor of the New York Sun, will join the Voice in April, reports the New York Observer. The winner of two National Newspaper Association awards for investigative reporting, she becomes the third former Sun employee to join the alt-weekly's staff since ex-Sun TV critic David Blum took over as editor-in-chief, according to the Observer. "I grew up in New York reading the Voice and I'm looking forward to being a part of a newspaper that plays such a vital role for so many in New York and elsewhere," Kolben says.

Continue ReadingVillage Voice Names New Managing Editor

The Maryland Army National Guard's recruitment chief was stripped of his command and about a dozen other recruiters were punished after an internal investigation revealed misuse of government money, fraudulent enlistments and improper relationships among Guard members, the Washington Post reports. The probe was sparked by recent stories in Baltimore City Paper that "alleged deceptive recruiting practices aimed at meeting quotas," according to the Post.

Continue ReadingMilitary Recruiters Punished On Heels of Alt-Weekly Investigation

Kathy Y. Wilson has turned "Your Negro Tour Guide: Truths in Black and White," a collection of her columns written for the Cincinnati alt-weekly, into a one-woman play, according to the University of Cincinnati's student paper. Wilson, who teaches at the university, tells The News Record she hopes the seats are filled for this evening's one-time performance: "What can be more important for college students right now in America, in this time of political excitement, with a bi-racial man and a white woman running for president of the United States, than to hear some black woman stand up and talk about the shit that made that all possible: race, gender and class."

Continue ReadingFormer Cincinnati CityBeat Columnist Adapts Book for the Stage

Warwick Sabin, the alt-weekly's columnist, reporter and blogger, will leave next month to be associate vice president for communications for the University of Central Arkansas in Conway, Arkansas Business reports. Sabin, who joined the Times in 2004 after working for the William J. Clinton Presidential Foundation and played an important role in creating the Times' popular Arkansas Blog, will earn $92,000 in his new job, according to the Times.

Continue ReadingArkansas Times’ Associate Editor to Leave for University PR Post

As online advertising continues to rise in popularity, traditional media are feeling pressure from marketers to change the way they measure their audiences, the New York Times reports. The fast-growing outdoor advertising industry, which has had particular trouble quantifying its effectiveness, is the target of two separative initiatives to develop new measurement systems, according to the Times.

Continue ReadingAudience Measurement Increasingly Important to Ad Buyers

Although the premiums remain on rate cards, major-market dailies are under increasing pressure from media buyers to reduce them, Media Life reports. Declining circulation and more local competition, especially online, have left the dailies vulnerable. "Advertisers are losing value in newspapers every day, but newspapers act like it is still 1970," complains one media buyer.

Continue ReadingDaily Papers Trimming National Ad Premiums

San Antonio Express-News says 210 SA, "a new weekly publication aimed at the 18-35-year-old reader ... is not unlike other free young-adult newspapers, such as Red Eye in Chicago and Quick in Dallas," according to an internal memo obtained by AAN News. 210SA, which will compete with AAN member the San Antonio Current, marks the first foray into faux-alts for The Hearst Corp.

Continue ReadingThe Hearst Corp. to Launch San Antonio Faux-Alt