Each year, Gambit throws a party to announce the winners of its Big Easy Awards, which honor the best in New Orleans theater and music. This year's attendees included New Orleans actors Harry Shearer (The Simpsons), Bryan Batt (Mad Men) and John Goodman (Treme), along with local musicians including Dr. John, Kermit Ruffins, Phil Anselmo (Pantera, Down), Irma Thomas, Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews and the Imagination Movers.


Continue ReadingGambit Celebrates Its 22nd Annual Big Easy Music & Theater Awards

By taking the job as spokesperson for Toronto mayoral candidate (and current deputy mayor) Joe Pantalone, former NOW writer Mike Smith is giving himself the chance to potentially replace another former NOW writer in City Hall. Don Wanagas, who wrote for the alt-weekly until 2005, is the communications director for current mayor David Miller. Miller is not running for re-election.

Continue ReadingFormer NOW Magazine Writer Becomes Mayoral Candidate Spokesperson

Schaffer was named the paper's new editor on Monday, replacing Erik Wemple, who departed for a local news website earlier this year. Schaffer, who currently lives in Philadlphia, was a reporter and senior editor at City Paper from 1997 to 2000. He went on to work at U.S. News & World Report and the Philadelphia Inquirer, and is the author of the best-selling book One Nation Under Dog, which examines America's mania for pets. "I'm sort of over the moon right now," Schaffer says. "City Paper was the first job I ever had and the most fun I've ever had at a job. I cherish the place." MORE from Politico.

Continue ReadingMichael Schaffer Named Washington City Paper Editor

Marc Keyser has been sentenced to four years and three months in prison for perpetrating a nationwide anthrax hoax in 2008. Before mailing out 100 packages in 2008, Keyser sent a hoax anthrax package to the Sacramento News & Review in January 2007. He was questioned and warned by FBI agents, but not arrested, after he mailed a cylinder marked "anthrax" to the alt-weekly because he wanted publicity for a novel he had written.

Continue ReadingAnthrax Hoaxer Who Mailed Package to News & Review Sentenced

Metro Silicon Valley celebrated its 25th anniversary with a new look and a swanky bash last week, the Mercury News reports. Metro publisher and co-founder Dan Pulcrano says that passion for the product has been what's kept the paper alive for this long. "It's a hard business. You have to love it," he says. "You have to be incredibly passionate about it." Meanwhile, the paper's new design, which features a glossy cover and a new logo, is Metro's first major overhaul in its first 25 years.

Continue ReadingMetro Silicon Valley Redesigns Paper as it Celebrates 25th Anniversary

The California Newspaper Publishers Association recently gave out 480 first and second place awards in its 2009 Better Newspapers contest, and nine alt-weeklies received at least one. The Sacramento News & Review won ten awards, including firsts for Public Service, Columns, Sports Story, Front Page, Freedom of Information. SF Weekly won seven awards, including first-place finishes for Writing, Investigative/Enterprise Reporting and Environmental/Ag Resource Reporting. The North Coast Journal won six awards, including firsts in the Writing, Local News Coverage, Business/Financial Story and Environmental/Ag Resource Reporting categories. Palo Alto Weekly took home five awards -- all first-place wins -- in the Editorial Comment, Local News Coverage, Sports Coverage, Feature Photo, Best Website and General Excellence categories. Chico News & Review won two awards, both firsts, for Editorial Pages and Special Issue. Pacific Sun also took home two awards, both firsts, for Feature Story and Lifestyle Coverage. Metro Silicon Valley, Pasadena Weekly and the San Francisco Bay Guardian each took home one award.

Continue ReadingNine California AAN Members Take Home State Press Awards

The Reader's "Typo Patrol" is a contest of sorts for readers to spot typographical errors in the paper; each person gets $10 for each mistake they point out (capped at $300 a year per person). Publisher Jim Holman tells Copyediting.com that they pay out "between $100 and $200" per week to successful typo-catchers. He says there was a little trepidation when the Reader first rolled out the patrol, since it employs professional copyeditors and proofreaders. But Holman says those staffers haven't taken offense. "All of them see it as a challenge," he says, "to make sure there are no typographical errors."

Continue ReadingSan Diego Reader Publisher Explains the ‘Typo Patrol’