The Oklahoma Publisher

Transcription

1 The Oklahoma Publisher Official Publication of the Oklahoma Press Association Vol. 86, No Pages January 2015 INSIDE CAMERA NEWS: OPA member Lynn Martin reviews the Sony RX10 a good choice for newspapers. PAGE 7 SUNSHINE LAWS: Terry Clark reminds newspapers to educate the public on Oklahoma s Open Meeting and Records laws. PAGE 8 SATURDAY MAIL CONTINUES: NNA reports Saturday mail will continue at least for now. PAGE 11 DONATE TO ONF to receive this Will Rogers print. Details at OkPress.com/will-rogers. OPA PLANS LEGISLATIVE DAY AT THE OKLAHOMA STATE CAPITOL Make sure your voice is heard by attending the OPA Legislative Summit on Thursday, Feb. 12, at the Oklahoma State Capitol in Oklahoma City. OPA members will meet in the Blue Room behind the governor s office at 9:30 a.m. OPA Executive Vice President Mark Thomas will provide a quick group briefing, then everyone will visit legislators at their offices. The summit offers publishers, editors and other newspaper staff members the opportunity to meet their local legislators and ask them to support decisions that will affect the newspaper industry. Newspapers have several important legislative principles to support and defend including First Amendment issues, Freedom of Information issues, and business issues affecting newspapers, such as public notice, taxation of advertising and circulation, workers compensation reform, etc. A recent survey of legislators showed that their most effective contact with representatives is a personal visit. An ranks fourth; a phone call ranks fifth. Legislators listen to people that make the time to come to the capitol and express their concerns. Every organization, including those that oppose newspaper interests, goes to the capitol to demonstrate commitment to their legislative goals and desires. Those voices must be offset by the presence of newspaper publishers and editors at the capitol early in the legislative session. Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin will speak to OPA members and participate in a question and answer session at 1 p.m. Lunch will be provided for members in the second floor Capitol rotunda area. Register online for this free event by Monday, Feb. 9, at

2 2 The Oklahoma Publisher // January 2015 NEWS analysis by OPA President JEFF FUNK, Publisher of the Enid News & Eagle DEFYING STEREOTYPES Oklahoma newspapers not what you expected Try this for a Jeopardy question: What state had 1,485 earthquakes and just 16 tornadoes in 2014? Thinking of California? No, guess again. The answer is Oklahoma. Surprised? Well, the ever-changing state of Oklahoma defies a lot of stereotypes. The same goes for Oklahoma newspapers. Often, we re not what you d expect. Certainly we don t fit all of the troublesome stereotypes our detractors and competitors would love to have the public believe. For example, there s that belief that young people don t care about news, newspapers or newspaper-related careers. Don t tell that to Amy Johns, publisher of the McAlester News Capital. For the last two years, the McAlester newspaper has been coaching local high school students as they produce the monthly Black and Gold. The teens are eager to write and eager to read the youth-focused publication, which is sold by the newspaper staff. It s so popular, Johns reports, that teens are volunteering to work for the publication even without class credit. Another mistaken belief: Nobody gets their news from newspapers anymore. Not surprisingly that little untruth often comes from our business competitors or somebody trying to promote their own website or Facebook page. Well, the truth is newspaper brands are incredibly strong, and newspapers often have maintained or GROWN audience as people have shifted their reading habits. In many cases, readers choose to read a printed newspaper some of the time and go to that newspaper s website or Facebook page or mobile app at other times of the day. Many of our Oklahoma newspapers distribute news through digital replica editions, text alert services, blasts with daily headlines, Twitter, Facebook and community websites. Some editors are, for two minutes a day, webcasters online or news broadcasters on local radio or cable television channels. Many newspapers produce community magazines or special sections on glossy paper. The ways newspapers communicate have grown tremendously over the last decade, but there s one common element: It s the newspaper s brand. It s our newspaper whether consumers read it as ink on newsprint or pixels on a screen. Newspapers are boring, some detractors might say. Of course those people probably haven t glanced at the front page of the Tahlequah Daily Press, where news editor Josh Newton makes you take a second look with his bold layouts and attention-grabbing photos. And if you re bored, you ve missed the crime news printed on pages of The Bigheart Times in Barnsdall, where Editor/Publisher Louise Red Corn leaves readers laughing or shaking their heads in amazement. It s always entertaining. Think newspapers are out of touch? Look at the current OPA-sponsored marketing campaign and think again. The OPA ads list topics justice, freedom, family, achievement, education, patriotism, etc. that we as people care about. Then it notes that those are topics that appear in and matter to your local newspaper. Did you hear the one about newspapers being all BAD news? Come on, gimme a break. Read a little and you ll see heartwarming, funny, honors and respect for our readers. Young people don t want to work for newspapers, you say? That s not what I ve seen traveling the state and visiting with newspaper people in publications large and small. So, somebody told you newspapers are dying or dead. Well, that s flat wrong. Challenged and tested, perhaps, but 180- plus Oklahoma newspapers will be going to press this week alive and packed with good ol reliable information and a lot of surprises, too. Not what you expected? That s Oklahoma s newspapers. OPA CALENDAR OF EVENTS MONDAY, FEB. 9, 2015 DEADLINE FOR BNC CONTEST ENTRIES All entries in the 2014 Better Newspaper Contest must be postmarked by Monday, Feb. 9, The contest rules and events are available to view online or download in PDF format at If you have questions, call (405) or (toll-free in Oklahoma). This is also the deadline for entries in the Digital Media Contest, Print Quality Contest and the Joseph H. Edwards Outdoor Writer of the Year Award, as well as the deadline for nominations for the OPA Quarter Century Club and the OPA Half Century Club. For more information on all contests, see THUR., FEB. 12, 2015 Oklahoma State Capitol, Oklahoma City OPA LEGISLATIVE SUMMIT AT STATE CAPITOL All OPA members are encouraged to meet at the State Capitol on Thursday, Feb. 12, to discuss issues with their House and Senate members. Members will discuss proposed legislation and issues of concern to every Oklahoma newspaper. Check for updates. FRI., FEB. 20, 2015 ONF - APPLY FOR AN INTERNSHIP OR SCHOLARSHIP The Oklahoma Newspaper Foundation awards several internships and three $1,500 scholarships to Oklahoma journalism students each year. Applications for the school year are due by Feb. 20. University of Oklahoma students are also eligible to apply for the Breeden scholarship. View eligibility requirements and download all applications at MARCH 18-20, 2015 Arlington, Va. / Washington DC NATIONAL NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION S LEADERSHIP SUMMIT Members of the National Newspaper Association will travel to Capitol Hill to present issues important to community newspapers to congressional leaders. For more information or to register visit nnaweb.org/events. THUR., APRIL 30, 2015 OKLAHOMA JOURNALISM HALL OF FAME INDUCTION CEREMONY Come support your fellow journalists at the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame annual induction ceremony on the University of Central Oklahoma campus in Edmond. JUNE 4-6, 2015 Sheraton Hotel, Downtown Oklahoma City OPA ANNUAL CONVENTION The OPA Education Committee is making plans for sessions and events at the annual convention. Mark your calendar and make plans to attend. For more information on upcoming events, visit the OPA website at or contact Member Services Director Lisa (Potts) Sutliff at (405) , or LSutliff@okpress.com.

3 The Oklahoma Publisher // January Supreme Court rules Gov. Fallin can withhold certain records The Oklahoma Publisher The Oklahoma Supreme Court recently ruled that Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin has the power to withhold the release of certain documents because of executive privilege, although that power is not absolute. The Supreme Court said it agrees with the trial court that Oklahoma governors have a privilege to refuse to disclose advice they receive in confidence from senior executive branch officials when deliberating discretionary decisions and shaping policy. The court also said the privilege is subject to review by a judge and that the governor must show it meets the criteria set out in the ruling. Also, a judge can decide that even materials that satisfy the criteria can be subject to disclosure if the requesting party can show a substantial or compelling need for disclosure. While the court ruled in favor of Tulsa World sues for execution records The Tulsa World recently filed a lawsuit against the state of Oklahoma seeking release of records related to the botched execution of Clayton Lockett. The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press filed the lawsuit on behalf of BH Media Group Inc., which owns the World, and Enterprise Editor Ziva Branstetter. The lawsuit seeks immediate release of documents and s the World requested from Gov. Mary Fallin s office and the Department of Public Safety since May. More than 3,000 pages of interview transcripts were requested. Although they are part of the court record in ATTENTION OPA BUSINESS MEMBERS 2015 PHOTO ID PRESS CARDS are NOW AVAILABLE ONLY $5! To download the form visit the governor, justices said they also recognize that the Oklahoma Open Records Act serves an important function in informing the public about the activities of their government. The decision was handed down in a case filed on behalf of the Lost Ogle website. The Lost Ogle, The Oklahoman, The Associated Press and other news organizations had requested documents from the governor s office related to her decisions to reject a state health insurance exchange and not expand Medicaid coverage in the state. Fallin s office initially withheld about 100 pages of documents, although she later released them while maintaining she was not required to do so because of executive privilege. Despite recognizing a privilege that does not appear in the Open Records Act, today s opinion represents a victory for our client and for the people of Oklahoma, said Ryan Kiesel, executive director of ACLU of Oklahoma. From the outset of this case, we have maintained that the governor does not have the authority to unilaterally hide records without justification. In this opinion, the Supreme Court revoked the governor s self-issued blank check, shifted the burden of proof to the executive branch, and affirmed our insistence upon judicial oversight. Alex Weintz, the governor s communications director, said the decision preserves the governor s ability to receive candid advice. We agree with the Oklahoma Supreme Court that people are ultimately better served by chief executives that can receive candid, private advice from senior advisers, Weintz said. an ongoing lawsuit by 21 death row inmates, the state has designated them confidential and refuses to release them. The World s lawsuit argues that the state has unreasonably delayed the release of the records, which are of public interest. The Reporters Committee is committed to protecting reporters rights to gather news about the government and report it to the public. Oklahoma s Open Records Act was designed to give the press and the public prompt access to government records, said Katie Townsend, litigation director for the Reporters Committee. That has not happened here. Particularly given the public interest in, and the importance of, the issues surrounding the Lockett execution, the failure of the Governor s office and DPS to produce the records sought by Tulsa World is unreasonable. Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press is a nonprofit organization dedicated to upholding the First Amendment and freedom of information rights of journalists working in areas where U.S. law applies. The group is funded by corporate, foundation and individual contributions and serves more than 2,000 reporters, editors and media lawyers who seek its help each year. Considering a sale? W.B. GRIMES & COMPANY has sold over 1,500 newspapers over the years and appraised thousands of others. DENNIS WINSKOWSKI handles the Southwest & Western States. winskowski68@gmail.com (218) What s Your Paper Worth? Find Out Today. A Free Confidential Appraisal awaits via our web site. ISSN X Official Publication of the Oklahoma Press Association PUBLISHER Mark Thomas mthomas@okpress.com EDITOR Jennifer Gilliland jgilliland@okpress.com OPA OFFICERS Jeff Funk, President Enid News & Eagle Robby Trammell, Vice President The Oklahoman Gloria Trotter, Treasurer The Countywide & Sun Mark Thomas, Executive Vice President, Oklahoma City OPA DIRECTORS Jeff Mayo, Past President Sequoyah County Times Dayva Spitzer, Sayre Record & Beckham County Democrat Brian Blansett, Shawnee News-Star Ted Streuli, The Journal Record Ray Dyer, El Reno Tribune Mike Strain, Tulsa World John Denny Montgomery, The Purcell Register 3601 N. Lincoln Blvd. Oklahoma City, OK (405) Toll-Free in Oklahoma: (888) news@okpress.com SUBSCRIBE TO THE OKLAHOMA PUBLISHER $12 PER YEAR THE OKLAHOMA PUBLISHER (USPS ) is published monthly for $12 per year by the Oklahoma Press Association, 3601 N. Lincoln Blvd., Oklahoma City, OK Periodicals postage paid at Oklahoma City, OK. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to THE OKLAHOMA PUBLISHER, 3601 N. Lincoln Blvd., Oklahoma City, OK

4 4 The Oklahoma Publisher // January 2015 Help erase your risk. Protect you and your family from secondhand smoke s deadly effects. Learn more at StopsWithMe.com. Wesner Publications announces staff changes at three newspapers Management changes and promotions were recently made at the Watonga Republican, Hinton Record and Geary Star. Brett Wesner, president of the newspaper group, said Eric Warsinskey, managing editor of the Watonga Republican, has taken on the additional responsibilities of business operations. Darrel James has been promoted to managing editor of the Hinton Record and Geary Star, and Katy Moore and Kim Jenks have been named as advertising representatives for the three newspapers. Warsinskey joined the Republican in August 2013 after graduating from the University of Akron in Ohio. I look forward to continuing to inform the community through the paper and improve upon the tremendous product that we put out on a weekly basis here at the Watonga Republican, said Warsinskey. I would like to thank Mr. Wesner for his continued support of my vision for the newspaper and I look forward to the added responsibilities I will now assume and can t wait to see what the future brings for our community s newspaper. Over the coming months you will start to see us become more visible within the community among other changes, he said. James has been with the team since December He studied journalism at Haskell Indian Nations University Nominations are being accepted for FOI Oklahoma s annual awards. The awards recognize individuals and organizations that promoted the First Amendment and the free flow of information to the public in Those who opposed dissemination of public information are recognized with the organization s Black Hole Award. The awards will be presented during Sunshine Week activities on Saturday, March 14, at the Norick Downtown Library in Oklahoma City. The Ben Blackstock Award is presented to a non-governmental person or organization that has shown a commitment to freedom of information, while the Sunshine Award goes to a public official or governmental body that has shown a commitment to open meetings and open records. FOI Oklahoma also recognizes an Oklahoman who has promoted education about or protection of the individual rights guaranteed by the First Amendment with its Marian Opala First Amendment Award. The award is named for the late Oklahoma Supreme Court justice, where he was managing editor of the Indian Leader. I look forward to continue working with the Hinton and Geary communities, including the Native News section for the Watonga Republican. The newspaper is the foundation of a community and I m happy to be a part of that, James said. Wesner said the group was fortunate to have two talented community journalists on its team. Darrel and Eric bring a level of professionalism and a love of their communities that will insure the continued vitality of our newspapers, Wesner said. It is an honor for me to have the opportunity to work with them. The changes were made after general manager Carla Schultz resigned. Carla did a wonderful job in her work with us. I will always appreciate her love of the community and her work to make the newspaper an important part of peoples lives, said Wesner. I m very proud of the work we were able to achieve at the Watonga Republican, Hinton Record and Geary Star during my time as general manager, Schultz said. Working with the people in these communities has been a sincere pleasure. Now, I feel that it s time I seek new challenges in my work, but I will remain a part of these communities and continue the wonderful friendships I ve developed over the last three years. FOI Oklahoma seeks nominations a Polish immigrant who exemplified a belief in First Amendment rights. The deadline for nominations is Feb. 21. Nominations must include a letter of no more than 250 words justifying why the person or organization is deserving of the award. Nominations may be made via to foiawards@gmail.com or mailed to FOI Awards, PO Box 5315, Edmond, OK Last year, the Sunshine Award was presented to state Sen. David Holt, R-Oklahoma City, and the Ben Blackstock Award went to Joel Rabin and Sharon Hurst of Bartlesville. Rita Geiger of Oklahoma City won the Opala First Amendment Award. Gov. Mary Fallin was named recipient of the Black Hole recognition for the second straight year. This is the eighth year for the awards. FOI Oklahoma is a statewide not-forprofit founded 25 years ago to educate the public on the First Amendment and openness in government.

5 Musselman Award nomination deadline set; Half & Quarter Century Club nominations due Most Oklahoma journalists know a colleague who never fails to amaze them, an editor who pushes every staffer to higher achievements, or a publisher whose courage and news sense makes every issue of their newspaper stand out. The Beachy Musselman Award, presented annually by the Oklahoma Newspaper Foundation, recognizes people like that. One journalist each year wins for his or her contribution to the field of print journalism or its related field. The recipient receives a plaque and $1,000, which is presented at the OPA Convention in June. Any professional journalist is eligible. DAVID LEE HALL, a longtime Tulsa World Media Company employee, was fatally injured in an automobile accident in Tulsa on Dec. 19, He was 47. Hall was born March 7, 1967, in Tulsa. He began working at the Tulsa World in 1998 as a computer technician and was promoted to senior technician in 2001 and was later named desktop specialist, said Randy Rutledge, World IT RICHARD ALBERT HORNER, who worked at the Tulsa Tribune, died Jan. 7, He was 69. Horner served as a copy editor for the Tulsa Tribune from MAEBETH RAE, former co-publisher of The Yale News, died Dec. 31, 2014, at a nursing home in Oklahoma City. She was 87. Ray was born on Dec. 2, 1927, in Vici where her parents owned and published the Vici Beacon newspaper. She was a typesetter at the Lawton NORBERT DEE ROACH, who once worked at the Watonga Republican, died Jan. 9, 2015, in Fort Smith, Ark. He was 90. Roach was born Oct. 2, 1924, in Okeene, Okla. He started his newspaper career as a reporter at the Watonga Republican. MATTHEW PENA (GAH-KOHN), who worked for The Oklahoman for 25 years, died Jan. 4, He was 55. Pena was born Feb. 27, 1959, in Oklahoma City. He graduated from Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Nominations, which may be made by anyone, must include biographical information showing work in the newspaper industry or related field and reasons you believe the person is deserving of the award. Nominations should be ed to mthomas@okpress.com or mailed to the Oklahoma Newspaper Foundation, c/o Oklahoma Press Association, 3601 N. Lincoln Blvd., Oklahoma City, OK or faxed to (405) Beachy Musselman Award nominations are due Feb. 9. Feb. 9 also is the deadline for nominations in the OPA Half and Quarter Century Clubs. DEATHS operations and telecommunications manager. Hall managed all areas of computer development and deployment for the World. Words cannot express how we all feel about the loss of David, Rutledge said. He was a great friend and coworker to all of us in the IT department. His support and efforts were appreciated by everyone at the Tulsa World. He was our fix-it guy. He was truly the backbone He graduated from Williams College in 1967 and then attended Texas Tech. After retiring, he traveled extensively. He enjoyed running marathons all over the United States into his sixties. Constitution when she met Homer W. Ray, Jr. She married Homer in Lawton in July The Rays purchased the Yale Record newspaper from Roland Sodowsky in August 1965 and soon changed its name to The Yale News. The Rays published the newspaper for 35 years until Homer In 1952, Roach and his wife, Mary Louise, moved to Fayetteville, Ark. In 1978, Roach purchased a weekly newspaper, The Washington County Observer, in West Fork, Ark., which he owned until retiring in A World War II veteran, Roach served in the U.S. Army as a rifleman and scout. Weatherford, Okla., and went to work for the Oklahoma Publishing Co. He was an avid marathon runner and a member of the Kiowa Native American Church. He is survived by his stepfather, Myers Wahnee Jr., Mountain View, To be eligible for membership in the Half Century Club, nominees must have worked at newspapers for at least 50 years. Any 20 years of that service must have been spent at one or more OPAmember newspapers. To be eligible for induction into the Quarter Century Club, nominees must have worked at newspapers for at least 25 years. Any 10 years of that service must have been spent at one or more OPA-member newspapers. A nomination form for either the Half Century or Quarter Century Club is available on the OPA website at www. okpress.com/century-clubs. of our Desktop Services Support Team and will be missed tremendously. Hall enjoyed hunting, gardening, fishing, cooking, playing the guitar and spending time with his family. He is survived by his wife, Rebeccah M. Hall, and sons Brendan Hall and Isaak Hall, all of the home; brothers Billy Hall and Tommy Hall; sisters Rhonda Hines, Melissa Spencer and Julie Younger; and many other relatives and friends. Horner is survived by his brother David Horner of Carrollton, Texas, as well as several nieces, cousins and other family and friends. was killed in an automobile accident in The paper was sold shortly after that. Ray is survived by her son, Mike Wallace Ray and his wife, Sherry, of Oklahoma City; a grandson, Ean Ray and his wife, Tyler, and two great-grandchildren, all of Edmond. He is survived by his wife, Mary Louise; three daughters, Susanne Reed of Chattanooga, Tenn., Nancy Fields of Fort Smith, Ark., and Sally Bailey of West Fork, Ark.; one son, Eric Rick Roach of Carson City, Nev.; six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Okla.; two sisters, Ramona Goombi, Fort Cobb, Okla., and Sandy Frazier, Mountain View; one brother, Thomas Pena, Wichita Falls, Texas; three adopted brothers, and many other relatives and friends. The Oklahoma Publisher // January THANK YOU to the following individuals and organizations for their recent donations to the Oklahoma Newspaper Foundation: In memory of Joe Hancock and John & Tinker Hruby SEQUOYAH COUNTY TIMES A donation to the Oklahoma Newspaper Foundation will support its efforts to improve the state s newspaper industry and quality of journalism. ONF s programs include training and education for professional journalists, scholarship and internship programs for journalism students, and Newspaper in Education efforts. ONF relies on donations and memorial contributions to fund these programs. If you would like to make a donation, please send a check to: OKLAHOMA NEWSPAPER FOUNDATION 3601 N. Lincoln Blvd. Oklahoma City, OK In Memory of Our Friends & Colleagues Thomas R. Hartley Dec. 19, 2013 Mary Reinauer-Funk Jan. 7, 2014 Linda McLemore Graham Jan. 9, 2014

6 6 The Oklahoma Publisher // January 2015 THE OG&E PHOTO CONTEST Mooreland s Trevor Elliott (7) appears headed for a rough landing after picking up some yardage against Texhoma in District A-1 high school football action. Mooreland defeated Texhoma 27-0, earning a spot in the high school football playoffs. Photo by Rowynn Ricks, Woodward News, November 2, 2014 VERY BRAY-VE PLAYER Kaitlynn Monckton, a Broken Arrow High School junior softball player, found out how tough basketball can be... especially on the back of a donkey. Photo by John Ferguson, Broken Arrow Ledger, November 14, 2014 NOVEMBER 2014 DAILY WINNER: ROWYNN RICKS Woodward News NOVEMBER 2014 WEEKLY WINNER: JOHN FERGUSON Broken Arrow Ledger The November 2014 contest was judged by a member of the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame. View all winning photos at ENTER AND WIN A $100 CHECK FROM OGE ENERGY CORP. For more information about the photo contest, visit It s time for OG&E s new SmartHours Price Plans OGE.COM M I D NIGHT N OON M I D N I G H T MONEY-SAVING OFF PEAK PEAK TIME, WATCH YOUR USE PEAK OVER. START SAVING 2012 OGE Energy Corp.

7 The Oklahoma Publisher // January For great photos, nothing beats this Sony camera BY LYNN L. MARTIN, ALVA REVIEW-COURIER Besides being a small newspaper jack-of-all trades (publisher, photographer, writer, etc.) most members of the Oklahoma Press Association know I operate a professional photography studio. In fact, I ve run a studio for 54 years compared to only 25 years at the Alva Review-Courier. Sometimes the studio operation has employed as many as a half-dozen wedding photographers, which has given me the opportunity to purchase many cameras and lenses. I ve been a Canon user about half my career because once you start investing in lenses it is not economically feasible to change brands. My photo studio camera case contains about $7,000 worth of Canon gear that fits what I do: aerial, portrait, wedding, school, sports and product photography. In general, I have about three sets of that for my other photographers to use. My kits consist of the Canon 5DII or III ($3,000), the Canon f2.8 IS ($1,400) and the Canon f2.8 ($2,500) IS II. We have a few fixed focal length macro and wide angle lenses. However, the big two are enough for most jobs. For years, I ve hunted for less expensive equipment for our newspaper photographers to use. I ve permitted use of some of our studio cameras by our news writers or photographers but there are times where we have too many weddings and too many football games at the same time. In my opinion, in the last couple of years, Sony has led the way in camera innovation. I ve talked about the Sony RX100, II and III at OPA sessions. This small pocket size camera is about $700, has a 21 megapixel sensor, and a Zeiss f2.8 lens that exceeds what my more expensive Canon glass can produce. Most of my newspaper work is now done with this camera. I can wear it on my belt like a cell phone, and it sure beats lugging around a 40-pound camera case with my typical pro-photographer arsenal. We shoot considerable highdef video at all weddings and all meetings covered by the newspaper. The little Sony RX100 shoots incredible video but the lack of a microphone jack is a serious handicap at both weddings and news-event meetings. I ve often said I could easily shoot weddings with the little Sony but it doesn t look good for the pro photographer to show up with a tiny camera looking similar to the one the bride s grandma is using. Often I receive phone calls from fellow newspaper publishers asking what affordable camera I would recommend. Well, Sony has finally pulled it off with the RX10. You might not consider this camera affordable at an Amazon price of about $1,000, but it sure beats the $7000 cost of my typical camera case kit. First, it has the same 21 megapixel sensor of the RX100, but instead of the zoom range ending at 70 mm it goes all the way out to 200 mm (these are 35mm equivalent numbers). The ISO goes up to 12,500. For everyday operation I use 3200, but for basketball action I choose ISO At that ISO, I can shoot excellent sports action at 1/640 at about f4. The camera has a very quick shutter with almost no lag. I ve recently discovered the 5 frame per second burst mode and when I see a play developing under the basketball goal, I jam the shutter button down and shoot a burst of frames that virtually guarantees a great shot. Another neat feature of the RX10 is dual viewfinders. The camera defaults to a standard three-inch LCD at power up. However, if the ambient light is too great to see the LCD, simply pull the camera to your eye and the LCD shuts off and a more traditional eye-piece viewfinder lights up. The eye-piece, while electronic, has a diopter wheel to adjust for your particular eye (or eyeglasses) characteristics. The winning feature for me is an honest-to-goodness microphone jack. At news events, we place a surface-effect microphone in the middle of the county commissioner meeting table or at weddings hook into a church sound-mixing console via the headphone output.. Most magazine reviews of the RX-10 describe it as pricey. The list price is supposed to be around $1,300 but reputable mail order outfits are down to the $1000 level. You might want to visit dpreview.com. There are similar cameras from Panasonic and Canon you may want to investigate. However the RX10 tends to be a favorite because of excellent lowlight performance and the sharpness produced by the Zeiss lens. High school basketball sports photo shot using the Sony RX10.

8 8 The Oklahoma Publisher // January 2015 Time to remind readers of Sunshine laws Clark s Critique Merry by Terry Clark Journalism Professor, University of Central Oklahoma, TClark@uco.edu Starting off the New Year would be a good time to remind your readers, and elected officials, of our Sunshine Open Meeting and Open Record laws. I know the OPA and FOI OK do a good job of trying to educate public officials, but there s no better way to reach our citizens about their rights than through simple informative articles and editorials in our papers. They don t have to be confrontational, because most of our public officials are honest, hard-working people who want to do the right thing. It s the few who are abusers who catch the headlines and make the others look bad. The best insurance against not breaking the Sunshine Laws is an informed citizenry, and that s where the press comes in. Oklahoma citizens are fortunate to have Sunshine Laws that give every person the right to attend meetings and view public records. Whatever is said at those meetings can be reported, because our officials work for us, the taxpayers. These laws rarely give special rights to the press, but are used most often by the media to help protect your rights, representing you as taxpayers. LOOKIN EM OVER: Kudos to Oklahoma Today magazine for its landmark African-American issue. The state magazine has had cowboy issues, Native American issues (as has New Mexico s magazine). But I know of no other state magazine that has devoted an issue to the influence of African-Americans. In Oklahoma, from Territorial days, that has been huge, and largely undocumented. Conflict of interest note: I wrote a short article on the African-American Christmas Vol. 97 No. 103 Wednesday, December 24, 2014 President Warren G. Harding s OKMULGEE CONNECTION 75 CENTS Season of Scams Okmulgee woman targeted in fake IRS plot For 13 years, Jo Bennett has received an Official White House Christmas Ornament. The ornaments are an annual gift from her daughter, Dana. Each gift was special but the current one is extra special. That s because Jo found an Okmulgee connection to President Warren G. Harding - and the connection is officially noted in the document that accompanied the ornament. The 2014 Official White House Christmas Ornament honors President Warren G. Harding, who served as the 29th president of the U.S. from As a child, Harding dreamed of growing up and becoming an engineer. As President, he took over the helm of Alaska Railroad #618 for 51 minutes, during his famous transcontinental speaking and sightseeing tour called, "Voyage of Understanding." It was reported that the Hardings had as much fun as two youngsters on their first train trip. This is the most delightful ride I have taken in my life! the President said in Unfortunately the train that carried him west at the beginning of his trip also carried his casket back east to Washington DC, following his sudden death from apoplexy or a stroke, in his room at the San Francisco Palace Hotel on August 2, His casket was elevated to allow mourners to see it through the windows of the Superb as the train passed through towns across the country. An estimated 3 million people paid their respects. Mrs. Harding later gave the white gloves the president wore while at the throttle to the engineer as a memento. The inspiration for the 2014 ornament came from his love of trains. The gold, red, white, and blue enameled engine is a replica of one of many steam powered locomotives that pulled the Presidential Special. Attached is the coal car that fueled the engine. THE HARDINGS' WHITE HOUSE CHRISTMAS President and Mrs. Harding enjoyed entertaining and their Christmas celebrations were old fashioned with quiet dinners and fireside gatherings with close friends. In the autumn of 1922 Mrs. Harding, afflicted by a chronic kidney ailment, drew perilously close to death. The White House cancelled all social events and the first lady's slow recovery diminished the cheer of the 1922 Christmas season. Mrs. Harding, a lady not to be left behind, did leave her sickroom to preside over the dinner table in a wheelchair, but there was no tree and little decoration that year. President Harding enjoyed an early round of golf at the Chevy Chase Club and relaxed in the afternoon with Mrs. Harding. The president distributed $5 gold pieces to members of his staff and sent seasonal greetings to America's war veterans wishing them "a restored fortune, health and prosperity." The Hardings were also enthusiastic supporters of the Christmas Seals campaign to fight tuberculosis. Adding a lighthearted note to the 1922 Christmas season, Gabe Burkhardt a hunter from Okmulgee, Oklahoma, sent the Hardings a live 15 pound white opossum fattened for the president's dinner table. The opossum's fate is not known. Times going to all mail delivery Begins Jan. 4th Beginning with the January 4 issue of the Okmulgee Times, all subscribers will receive their newspaper by mail. This will affect subscribers living in the city of Okmulgee who have been receiving their newspaper by carrier delivery. While the weekend newspaper is dated Sunday, it will be delivered on Saturday. We have a great group of carriers, but when one leaves it is harder and harder to replace them, Jeff Mayo, publisher of the Times, said. All subscribers in Okmulgee County will receive their newspaper on Wednesday and Saturdays by mail. The newspapers will be delivered on time - and not affected by the weather. The Post Office does a great job of delivering newspapers, Mayo said. I believe there will not be a drop off in service after the transition. If there is a delivery problem, we certainly want to know about it. The Times is currently delivered part by mail and part by carrier. It is likely the only twice-weekly newspaper in America delivered by carrier, Mayo said. Mayo, through is company Big Basin Enterprises, LLC purchased the Okmulgee Times and Henryetta FreeLance on November 5. The Okmulgee Times is the No. 1 source for local news in Okmulgee and across the county. An Okmulgee woman recently received a disturbing telephone call from the Internal Revenue Service office in Tulsa. You owe the IRS $2,000 and must pay the money immediately or be arrested, she said told. Stunned by the call, the woman frantically withdrew $2,000 from her bank. The caller instructed the woman to drive to Tulsa. He demanded that she not turn off her phone during the drive. The woman told the agent she would come to the IRS office in Tulsa to make the payment. That s when the agent told her to not go to the office - and not call the IRS. Instead, she was instructed to meet him in a Tulsa parking lot to make the $2000 payment. It was at that moment that the woman realized something was wrong. She was the intended target of a scam. The caller was not an IRS agent. He was a would-be thief who was trying to scare her into making a $2,000 payment to him. The woman continued on to the IRS office in Tulsa. She met an official representative of the IRS and was alerted to the scam. Luckily, she did not meet the thief and hand over money. Her alert instincts saved her from being scammed. She outlined her story for the Okmulgee Times - and then headed back to the back to re-deposit the $2000 in her account. In a related incident, Ann Cash of Westside Tax Service called the Okmulgee Times to report a similar situation. Two of her client were told the same thing - that they would be arrested if they did not immediately pay the $852 they owed to the Department of Treasury, IRS Division. They even left a message on the answering machine, Mrs. Cash said. I listened to it. The caller warned the intended scam target they faced arrest if they did not immediately pay the money. Mrs. Cash said the IRS does not call on matters like this. The agency would send any correspondence by certified mail. These IRS scams are just some of the crimes being used to dupe people into sending them money. Chief Joe Prentice said the Okmulgee Police Department has received multiple reports from citizens regarding a telephone scam. Citizens report receiving calls with an automated message that they are being sued by the IRS and that they need to contact the IRS immediately. The calls are an attempt to obtain money from citizens. After some investigation, officers discovered the numbers where the calls generate are typically a 446 area code and the number to be called for contact with the IRS is always the same ( ). The best information we can find is the 446 numbers generate in the Middle East, possibly India and to date we have been unable to identify the provider company for any of the numbers. The 202 number to be called is apparently a VOIP or Voice Over Internet Protocol line provided by a multinational company known as Level 3 Communications. Apparently this is going on all over the country and we are unaware of any agencies having any success identifying anyone to prosecute. Citizens should be aware that the normal method of communication from the IRS is by registered mail. If citizens want to confirm their status with the IRS, they are encouraged to contact them via the published telephone number. Featured newspapers this month are The Davis News, Okmulgee Times, Weatherford Daily News and The Piedmont-Surrey Gazette. press and its role in Oklahoma in the past and now, Community Crusaders. That heritage of fighting for equality is carried on today in three weekly newspapers, Russell Perry s The Black Chronicle in Oklahoma City, the Goodwins historic Oklahoma Eagle in Tulsa, and the relatively new non-profit Oklahoma City Herald. Inspiring stories. More to tell, and I may write on it later. Go buy a copy and you ll be amazed. Journalism as it should be. In your pages: I don t know of anything more boring than most papers Year in Review recitations. I know, I know, it s easy filler and gives you time off in the holidays. But huge amounts of gray copy won t get you any readers. N W is when your advertisers need complete multimedia solutions. With Metro e-connect, you have what you need to take the lead with multimedia advertising. This integrated, flexible, cost-effective, multiplatform program is also easy to launch and easy to manage. Find out more now! Go online to metrocreativeconnection.com/e-connect, call , service@metro- .com or scan the QR code to see how you can immediately implement and benefit from Metro e-connect. Metro e-connect Commission and facilitated OSUIT s involvement in the project, said, This grant allows us to gather critical information as the state prepares for budgetary and mission changes in the Department of Defense. It will look at the industries in Oklahoma that rely, all or in part, on Defense Department spending as part of their business. OSUIT will share this information through a publicly accessible, web-based portal that maps the impact of sales and employment related to military spending in Oklahoma. The real-time economic data and forecasting tools can then be used to maximize and align growth strategies for the state s defense and aerospace supply chain industries. Dr. Bill R. Path, president of OSUIT, said that the grant demonstrates the university s strong ties to the military and its commitment to the armed forces. Since its founding, OSUIT has always worked to help meet the need of our country s infrastructure, Path said. This grant underscores the university s focus on providing workforce and economic development solutions through partnerships with private and military industries. For more information contact Eric Covey at Regional Food Bank looking to use armory building Staff Reporter The Weatherford City Commission and the Board of Directors of the Weatherford Public Works Authority had their final meeting of the year Wednesday. During the meeting John Bobb-Semple of the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma gave a presentation to commissioners highlighting the benefits of utilizing the National Guard Armory in Weatherford as a food and resource center for those in need in the area. Bobb-Semple said the facility would be used as a food resource center as well as an educational center to benefit those in need in a variety of areas, such as health and financial advice. Weatherford is blessed to have other programs in the community that are able to serve those in need, said Bobb-Semple. We have programs here such as the Agape Clinic and many others who are able to bridge out in other areas of service. Well, this would be an opportunity for food services to be able to do that. That s without replacing those ministries but very much so to build upon and to uphold to do greater work. Bobb-Semple said eight other communities have adopted similar food and resource centers including Elk City. The big question for the commission may be, what is the cost to the city of Weatherford, said BobbSemple. We really believe the investment of the armory will be a great step At this point the current funding structure includes the Regional Food Bank to invest $250,000. There s also a local donor who has come forward and said they d like to donate $100,000 toward kids programs. Will it take more money? Absolutely. Do we have an exact dollar amount right now? We do not. Commissioners agreed to include a discussion regarding the Regional Food Bank utilizing the armory during their next meeting in January. There will be a time set during the meeting for public comment regarding this action. Also during the meeting, city commissioners approved the consent agenda which included the minutes of the November meeting, general fund claims in the amount of $851,554.36, restricted Jessica Kelsey/WDN John Bobb-Semple of the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma gave a presentation to city commissioners Wednesday about opening a food and resource center in Weatherford. sales tax fund claims in the amount of $176,017.34, approval of airport claims in the amount of $47, and the Stafford Museum fund claims in the amount of $28, Commissioners decided they were satisfied with improvements made to the Minyard property on the Please see Food, Page 3 The top story of 2014 JaRay Wilson s murder trial begins Coty Tomagos Staff Reporter Each year comes and goes at the blink of an eye; last year in particular was a big year. Last year left the Weatherford Daily News wondering, what is the number one story of the year? Last week the WDN asked friends on Facebook to take part in our story of the year survey. In this survey we gave participants the opportunity to vote on 10 stories we thought were the top 10 (in no particular order). Coming in at number one with percent of the vote was JaRay Wilson s murder trial begins. The others came in order as followed: Five Weatherford youths arrested for drugs, Foss bodies identified, Timber Creek restoration project, Bill Cosby/Pioneer Cellular Event Center opening, McDonald s sign collapses, WPS reach max capacity, Sage Kimzey wins the National Rodeo title, Weatherford named one of the fastest growing towns and fracking possibly causes earthquakes. Please see Top Story, Page 3 Hospital sees decrease in ER visits OSUIT receives $875,000 DOD grant for supply chain study Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology, in partnership with the Oklahoma Strategic Military Planning Commission, has received a grant of nearly $875,000 from the U.S. Department of Defense to study the supply chain of the Oklahoma defense industry. Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe said the oneyear grant, which has a total project budget of nearly $1 million and is titled Oklahoma and the Department of Defense: Impacts on the State s Economy and Workforce, will help maximize opportunities for OSUIT s Economic Development and Training Center to study the defense industry s impact on the private sector and global communities. In addition, the award highlights OSUIT s position as Oklahoma s only university of applied technology and makes OSUIT an influential stakeholder in the global economic conversation, Inhofe said. The work that OSUIT is doing, and will do under this grant, will help make our state s workforce competitively engaged in the global economy. I congratulate the university on a job well done, and look forward to seeing how OSUIT s hard work will contribute to our nation. Mike Cooper, who is chairman of the Oklahoma Strategic Military Planning Commissioners discuss opening a food and resource center Jessica Kelsey Trustees prepare for 2015 Jessica Kelsey Staff Reporter During the regular monthly meeting Tuesday of the Board of Trustees for the Weatherford Hospital Authority members discussed the need to cross train employees to understand billing. According to CFO Stephanie Helton, personnel normally responsible with billing had been absent from work due to being ill. This caused slight problems with the billing process. Helton decided it would be best to work with outside officials to cross train several employees in areas such as Medicare billing. During the meeting members also re-appointed active staff, courtesy staff, consulting staff and allied health personnel. The medical staff minutes were also approved. During Helton s CFO report, she said throughout the month there was a pretty big drop in patients visiting the hospital s emergency room. She attributed the decrease to potentially be a result from either a change in the ER staff or patients utilizing local convenient cares. We have had a change in our ER staff. One of our staff has left, said Helton. Sometimes your ER numbers and what s done in there is a reflection of different Please see Hospital, Page 3 Making Spirits Bright! Dr. Miranda Ruleford and the staff of Family Dental Care of Okmulgee, along with Santa Claus himself, spread some Christmas cheer to the many residents of Rebold Manor Monday evening. The staff packaged some 60 gift bags that were delivered. The residents were very appreciative to Family Dental Care for their gifts. See related photos on page 8a. (Staff photo by Patrick Ford) I saw a few exceptions. The Carnegie Herald jazzed it up some with a photo to go along with each month. The Comanche County Chronicle turned it with a neat headline, What mattered most in Ken Childers at the The Seminole Producer broke it into three stories, headlined Top 14 of 14. Good layout in the Weatherford Daily News. What s not boring is great story telling. Alisha Thompson at The Davis News writes about a school cop. Her lead: The kids call him Officer Phil, and he prefers it that way. He s the Davis police officer who greets your kids in the morning and afternoon. He sees them throughout the day, too. Andrew Knittle at The Oklahoman, writing about rural drug overdoses. His lead: Five years ago, an Oklahoma woman was found dead inside an empty bathtub in her family home. On the counter, just a few feet from the body, police found a syringe with a sterile wipe lying next to it. Another syringe was found on the ground near the toilet. Gene Lehmann for the Chickasaw Nation, in the The Ada News. His lead: GUTHRIE A hypnotic Oklahoma sunset blazing pastels of pink, purple and red was showing off just as a Discover Oklahoma film crew prepared to interview native Oklahoman Cindy Pickett. / Why don t we turn the camera toward that great sunset, Pickett inquired. Ginnie Graham for the Tulsa World. Her lead: Sgt. Dave Walker is not the only Tulsa police officer at the scene of Jeff Barron/WDN The eastbound off ramp of I-40 at Exit 80 in Weatherford was closed Wednesday morning due to an overturned semi that was blocking the roadway. OHP, WPD, WFD, Sinor EMS and ODOT were all on scene. INSERTS CHATTERBOX TV Weekly Coloring contest winners can pick up prizes at the WDN office... WPS classes resume Monday, Jan Happy Birthday WDN Facebook friends: Willis Mcgarrah, Kayla Schroeder, Kat Knutson, Laddi Sahota, Kathy White, Renee Couch-Zeller, Kim Grubbs Steinly and Paula Evan USPS The Piedmont-Surrey Gazette 2 Section, 16 Pages Your Hometown Newspaper For More Than 38 Years! THURSDAY January 1, 2015 PNO PiedmontNewsOnline.com Vol. 39, No. 38 Follow us on Facebook USPS Sections, 24 Pages On Area gas prices hovering below statewide average Roger Pugh/Gazette The price of fuel at this 7-11, which is located at NW Highway and Mustang Road, remains among the lowest prices in northeast Canadian County and far northwest Oklahoma City. Roger Pugh Publisher As gasoline prices continue to tumble, Piedmont residents gassing up in town or in surrounding areas were paying from $1.71 to $1.99 per gal. for regular by Monday. This is just lower than last week s statewide gas price average of $2.07, according to Triple A Oklahoma. Statewide, gas prices at the pump have fallen $1.46 since hitting its 2014 high of $3.53 on June 26. As of last week, the state pump price had dipped for 55 straight days plummeting 20 cents in the last week and 56 cents over the last month. Gas Price Change Comparison Source AAA Altus Ardmore Bartlesville Enid Grove Guymon Idabel Lawton McAlester Muskogee OKC Metro Ponca City Shawnee Stillwater Tulsa Metro Statewide Today $2.098 $2.025 $1.910 $2.074 $1.999 $2.417 $2.147 $2.029 $2.154 $2.051 $2.037 $2.090 $1.954 $2.135 $1.935 $2.071 Last Week $2.315 $2.214 $2.179 $2.274 $2.212 $2.484 $2.280 $2.199 $2.298 $2.257 $2.187 $2.318 $2.207 $2.349 $2.275 $2.274 Change From Last Week -$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $0.203 Price On 11/25/2014 $2.612 $2.605 $2.598 $2.528 $2.560 $2.957 $2.611 $2.514 $2.645 $2.566 $2.530 $2.602 $2.497 $2.719 $2.641 $2.616 Change From 11/25/2014 -$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $0.545 At the two locations in Piedmont to purchase gas, one station was at $1.89, while the other was priced at $1.99 Monday night. Along the Northwest Highway the three most eastern Canadian County stations were selling from $1.75 on the low side, to a high of Last $ Year In far west $2.913 Oklahoma $2.917 City, from $2.960 the Northwest $2.999 Highway, $2.889 north to N.W. $ , prices $3.022 were generally in the high $2.895 $1.70 s. The $2.935 highest found $2.920 in this area $2.971 was $1.99, $3.030 while lowest $2.945 was $1.71, as $3.035 of late Mon$2.898 day $2.957 Okla- said Chuck Mai, spokesman for AAA Oklahoma. Although crude oil prices have seen dramatic price swings in recent years, this year s plunge has been even more extreme and has triggered speculation that production may slow in higher cost regions like the U.S. A number of countries depend on oil income to balance their economies, and sustained low prices could lead to civil unrest as those governments struggle to deal with lower revenue streams. At the close of formal trading last week West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed down $1.87 per barrel at $ Barring any disruptions in domestic production or unexpected spikes in the global price of crude, we could see prices drop to a statewide average below $2.00 per gallon to ring in the New Year, Mai saiid The national average price of gas has declined for 89 days in a row, the longest consecutive streak on record. Gas prices have fallen every day since September 25 to today s averboutwell said $5,000 has age of just under $2.38, already been raised and the lowest average price if citizens get behind the per gallon since May 21, fund raising effort and help The previous record raise the needed amount to for consecutive days of deget the grant, construction clining gas prices was 86 days, set in 2008 during the could start in With the new year right height of the Great Receson the doorstep, Boutwell sion. The current week-overalso reminded that donawlrqv PDGH EHIRUH WKH UVW week drop of 15 cents in of the year could be deduct- the national average is ed from 2014 income taxes. the largest such decline in We are already off to a more than six years. Motorgreat start and with the help ists are paying 44 cents less of Piedmont citizens, we than one month ago and will make this happen said 87 cents less than one year See Prices Page 7A See Splash Page 7A homa City has isolated stations selling E10 for under $1.70 today, the lowest prices of anywhere in the nation. In addition, the Tulsa metropolitan area has the lowest citywide average of any major U.S. city today, $1.935 per gallon, with Tulsa proper at about $1.87. Gas at both Okarche stations was selling for 2.09 by late Saturday.,Q.LQJ VKHU 6DWXUGD\ most stations were offering fuel for about the same price. In fact no station was higher than $2.09, while the lowest price in that city was $1.93. At the same time in El Reno, pump prices ranged from a high of $2.16 to a low of $1.97. Abundant global supply and sluggish demand growth have helped push the global price of crude down by more than $50 per barrel since June, Piedmont to get $20,000 splash pad grant if community can raise matching amount Roger Pugh Publisher Piedmont can take a giant step toward making the pro- posed community splash pad a reality thanks to an annonymous donor who has made it his mission to Like the Gazette on Facebook and follow on PiedmontGazette to receive links to stories and breaking news updates. For home delivery, call (405) Get news between issues at PiedmontNewsOnline.com help smaller communities build such parks. The grant is being made available through the Communities Foundation of Oklahoma Give it Away donor advised fund, funded by an anonymous donor who has helped fund similar pads in several other communities in the state. Members of the Piedmont Community Foundation have been working ZLWK FLW\ RI FLDOV LQFOXGing the Piedmont Parks Board and citizens to build a splash pad in Piedmont, said Andi Boutwell, a member of the Piedmont Community Foundation Board of Directors. She said locals working on the project had received a quote of $150,000 to build the facility, but when the donor looked over the plans, he felt the project could be done for much less cost, and put Piedmont in touch with a vendor in Texas. It was then the donor agreed to put up the grant if the community could raise an equal amount. a homicide, but he s the only one who goes to them all. Jeanne Grimes in The Purcell Register. Her lead: The new year brings promise to Ginger Brockman, who for the first time has a future to look forward to instead of a past to live down. / Brockman graduated December 19 from the Continued on Page 9 The new multimedia ad program that is changing the way we connect. OKPANOW2013

9 The Oklahoma Publisher // January Clark s Critique Continued from Page 8 McClain County Drug Court with 524 days of sobriety. / She s reached goals once never even imagined. Completely out of debt. A vehicle of her own. A place of her own. A job. Ambition. Self respect. Stories for the coming year? Oil prices. Kevin Weiss, local angle in the Woodward News about oil going below $50. John Yates in the McAlester News-Capital, New year, cheap fuel. Rachel Snyder in The Duncan Banner, Gas prices boost travel, slow production. D. Ray Tuttle in The Journal Record, about Saudi Arabia, Cartel Concerns. Roger Pugh in The Piedmont- Surrey Gazette, health care. K.W. Hillis, The Lawton Constitution, local angle, Obamacare a Godsend. Ideas for next Christmas. Rene Fite at the Muskogee Phoenix interviews people for Recalling Christmases Past. R. Marcus in the The Sayre Record & Beckham County Democrat, writes A Christmas Blessing in Western Oklahoma. HEAD EM UP AWARDS: First Place, tie, The Purcell Register on Grimes story: A sober choice and The Davis News, on Thompson s story: Officer Phil goes the extra mile Second place, tie, Tulsa World and The Oklahoman. The World, on Graham s story: Called to catch KILLERS The Oklahoman, on a Steve Gooch photo of a duck sliding on frozen water: Fowl weather Third place, The Chickasha Express- Star, on Jessica Lane s story: Man making counterfeit dough caught with pizza box full of pot Honorable mentions: The Valliant Leader, Christmas: A Time of Good Cheer And Domestic Violence ; Okmulgee Times, Season of Scams : Sapulpa Daily Herald, on Chris Hick s story, Grinch caught with stolen Christmas car ; The Lawton Constitution, on AP drug abuse story, Pills that kill ; Marietta Monitor, on a Sandi Wolfe story, Drone down. News-Star gets new publisher Kent Bush has been named the new publisher of The Shawnee News- Star, which is owned by GateHouse Media. Bush, who has served as both a regional editor and publisher with GateHouse Media since 2007, is a graduate of Chickasha High School as well as Oklahoma State University, where he majored in political science and economics. He served as the editor of the Chickasha Express-Star for about 14 years. In August 2007, he became publisher of the Augusta Daily Gazette in Kansas and has since served as a publisher and regional editor with GateHouse Media. I am very excited to come to a dynamic community like Shawnee, Bush said. Following great journalists and leaders like Brian Blansett and Mike McCormick is a true pleasure. The News-Star has always been a great newspaper and I am excited to lead this staff into the future. Kim Benedict, senior group publisher for GateHouse Media Oklahoma properties, said Bush will provide leadership for the News-Star staff and will be an asset to Shawnee and the surrounding communities. Kent brings a wealth of experience to the publisher position at the News-Star. He is a seasoned journalist who understands the importance of community engagement and the need for multiple information platforms to serve a diverse audience. Bush and his wife Georgia have been married for 16 and one-half years and have two sons, Blake, 11, and Dawit, 7. Name changes around OPA You may have noticed some new names popping up in from OPA. That s because two of our staff members were recently married. Lisa Sutliff is the former Lisa Potts, and Wilma Newby is the former Wilma Melot. Lisa Potts, OPA member services director, married Marcus Sutliff on Nov. 22, 2014, in Oklahoma City. Marcus is an information technology specialist for the Willis Group and a graduate of Oklahoma State University. He has two daughters, Madeline, 15, and Carolyn, 13. The Sutliffs live in Edmond. Wilma Melot married Daniel Newby on Jan. 3, 2015, in Oklahoma City. Newby is a retired website developer. The Newbys reside in Oklahoma City. ACTIVE KIDS MEAN ACTIVE BRAINS, READY TO LEARN. TSET IS HELPING OKLAHOMA S YOUTH ACHIEVE MORE. When Oklahoma voters created the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust, something amazing happened. People came together. They joined forces for the greater good and saw the possibility of a healthier future. For more information, visit tset.ok.gov. The habits kids form today will follow them for a lifetime. That s why TSET offers incentive grants to schools and communities to encourage Oklahomans of all ages to eat better, move more and be tobacco free. Our Healthy Schools and Healthy Communities incentive grants partner to promote physical activity and good nutrition. Schools use incentive grants to promote a healthy lifestyle for staff and students. Communities use incentive grants to make their communities safe and active.

10 10 The Oklahoma Publisher // January 2015 Increase your productivity with tech accessories Computer Notes from the road by Wilma (Melot) Newby So you got a new tech product for Christmas and you want to know how to incorporate it into your everyday life. Let s take a look at how to make your new gadget more useful. If we re talking about an iphone, ipad, smartphone or other new device, I ve found several solutions to the lack of ports on them. There s an accessory called a travel router that lets you share hard drives, SD cards and files over your own little network. A travel router can connect up to five devices at once and the amount of storage is only limited by how much you want to spend. One brand that your data can pass through when connected to your regular network is the RAVPower FileHub. You want the hub to have pass through capability so that you can stay on your normal network and reach the hub when you re at the office or at home. This one has an external battery that can charge smartphones. If you insert a Micro SD card or an external USB backup drive, you ve just extended the amount of storage by the size of those drives. All those photos and videos taken at the game can be offloaded from your internal card to the wireless hub s drive space as you work. This little device also comes in handy if the router at your office goes down. The travel router allows five to seven computers or phones to share files. That means your smartphones could download files from and then hand them off to your computers. Iogear MediaShair is another option for a travel router. The Iogear and RAVPower both retail for around $50. And don t forget the savings of your data minutes by not using the cloud to offload files. The Ethernet port lets you turn a wired network into a wireless one when you plug in so everyone can use the Internet at the same time. That about covers the uses of a travel router. Speaking of covers, let s talk about a cover that comes with a Bluetooth keyboard as part of the case for your new iphone 6 or ipad. It s a much faster input with a regular, albeit smaller, keyboard and your phone or tablet will be protected from the elements. There also are Bluetooth keyboards that fold and roll up for a very reasonable price. The Eastchina Mini Portable Waterproof Foldable Wireless Bluetooth Silicone Keyboard is only $20 and can fit in a coat pocket when rolled up. Some of the Bluetooth keyboards even come with builtin trackpads or a mouse. Now that we have our portable workstation going, let s look at some apps that could make working easier. If you have one of the yearly subscriptions to Microsoft Office, you get the free apps on your phone as well. Now the phone can type directly into a Word document or Excel file with some cloud storage for uploading back to the office. Google has its office apps for the phone that work much the same way and uses Google drive to share files. You might look at something like FTP Client Pro (there s even a free version) for uploading files back to the office if your office has a FTP server. For limited photo editing capabilities on your iphone or ipad, try Adobe Photoshop Mix or Pixtr. Now you re set up with your very own portable office. QUARK TO INDESIGN With several newsrooms making the change from QuarkXPress to InDesign I thought I would take this opportunity to talk about the hardest part of the switch recreating style sheets. There is not really room to do a good comparison in this column, but these tips may help. Recreating your style sheets is a tedious process. It should be done as a template file to maintain consistency. Once you have everything correct, you can give it to your staff. Q2ID (QuarkXPress to Adobe InDesign) offers users a quick and easy way to convert QuarkXPress content into a new Adobe InDesign document. Q2ID LEGAL ADVICE is just one of the benefits of being a member of the Oklahoma Press Association s Legal Services Plan. Remove the worry of needing professional advice by enrolling today. For more information contact: OKLAHOMA PRESS ASSOCIATION S LEGAL SERVICES PLAN or can capture all the intricate details of objects in a document such as exact page positioning, color models, fonts and styles. It retails for around $200. For large newsrooms, the savings in hours of labor will be considerable. Unfortunately, Q2ID may not work in Creative Suite if you have an old version of Quark. One of the biggest differences is that Quark bases most of its Paragraph Styles on Character Styles. This means you can t create a paragraph style without the base character style. InDesign allows you to do it all in one step. It s easier, but different. The first time a Quark user opens InDesign s styles dialogue box she can be overwhelmed by the vast amount of choices. When I m creating new style sheets from Quark, I start by making screenshots of both the Character and Paragraph Styles along with detailed notes. Start with your basic styles, such as body copy and headlines. Now move over to the InDesign document and start recreating those styles from your screenshot notes. You can copy the notes on a Mac by using Command + Shift + 4 and surrounding the area to be copied. On Windows, use the snipping tool. To see how styles are set up in Quark, go to Edit > Style Sheets. You can also right click a style and go to edit. Check carefully to determine if the style you re trying to recreate is based on another style. If it is, go to that style and check out how it is set up. Now off to InDesign. Go to the Window menu at the top and then pull down to Styles where you ll find a flyout palette for Paragraph and Character Styles. You can create most styles in Paragraph Styles in InDesign. Character Styles are only needed to embed two styles within the same paragraph. Once you re in the Paragraph Styles menu, click on the small menu that pops out from the upper right corner for another menu that lets you set up styles. Go to New Paragraph Style. The only options needed to set up a new style are the first six listed (General, Basic Character Format, Advanced Character Format, Indents & Spacing, Tabs and Options), unless you re doing something more complicated, such as classifieds. The General option is where you name the style, and where you can base one style off of another. As you click through the options, you ll notice that all the options from Quark can be recreated here. If creating new styles that are not based on old styles, the best thing to do is create the look you want on your screen, then go to new Paragraph Style and name it based on nothing else. InDesign picks up on what is on screen and gives the new style all those attributes. OPA Computer Consultant Wilma Melot s column is brought to you by the Oklahoma Advertising Network (OAN). For more information on the OAN program, contact Oklahoma Press Service at (405) NEWSPAPER & PUBLICATION BINDING Before you have your next issue bound, give us a call. We offer exceptional quality, competitive pricing and fast turnaround times. With three generations of experience, we have the knowledge and skill to get your job done. Other services include Bible binding and restoration, embossing and much more. ACE BOOKBINDING CO. 825 N. Classen Blvd., Oklahoma City, OK (405) or Toll-Free at AL@AceBookbinding.com

11 The Oklahoma Publisher // January Saturday mail delivery continues but Congress leaves Postal Service in limbo The National Newspaper Association recently celebrated the continuation of Saturday mail delivery through the federal fiscal year ending Sept. 30, but lamented the passage of another congressional session without postal reform. NNA President John Edgecombe Jr. called on publishers to attend NNA s Leadership Summit March 19 in Washington to urge quick action in the next Congress. If common sense had prevailed, a reform bill would have been completed. We had a solid proposal that provided USPS with financial relief, preserved service and implemented health cost reforms. It should have been accepted, said Edgecombe, publisher of The Nebraska Signal in Geneva, Neb. However, disputes among Senate leaders stalled the progress. Congress finally adopted a government funding resolution for 2015 that included a continued mandate for Saturday home delivery. Other reform provisions, including preservation of service standards and reasonable guidelines on USPS use of negotiated service agreements to market its advertising mail, never reached the Senate floor. Edgecombe said NNA was disappointed, but he applauded President Obama s signature of the funding resolution that continued six-day delivery. He said NNA would highlight declining rural mail service in USPS is on track to close more than 80 mail processing plants in smaller U.S. cities. It has said it wants to concentrate mail sorting in urban areas, where declining mail volume has left urban plants with idle time. NNA Postal Committee Chair Max Heath said the changes in mail processing ahead would be the next wave in shrinking rural service and focusing processing in urban areas. Although USPS has a genuine problem keeping its plants busy, the error was in overbuilding during the fat times. Trying to fix it by carrying the mail further and further down the highways so those big plants can stay busy is simply going to accelerate the problems we have already seen. There is only so much you can do to improve efficiency when you are faced with reality of miles of asphalt, said Heath. Sadly, we are looking at two different visions of the Postal Service, Edgecombe said. USPS management believes it must focus on urban areas in the hope of improving its revenue. But that pits the Postal Service against private-sector competition in over-served areas. It abandons the essential needs in smaller towns and under-served rural areas where the service is most critical. Reports of declining mail service in NNA-member towns continue, and I frankly see little change on the horizon unless Congress acts. Edgecombe said he was gratified that key senators supported universal service and had tried to broker a bill in the final days of Congress. He thanked Sens. Roy Blunt, R-MO; Jon Tester, D-MT; Tammy Baldwin, D-WI; and Bernard Sanders, D-VT, in particular for leading the effort to wrap up a bill. The 114th Congress will be our fourth Congress where we fight for universal service, Edgecombe said. We ll be back. We will go armed with our concerns, including service problems. We have faith that legislation can be passed that preserves mail delivery and sustains the Postal Service. Focusing on the rules shows true creativity BY ED HENNINGER CREATIVITY. It s a word that makes me cringe. Why? Because more and more often, it seems, creativity is being used by people who don t understand what design is all about. They want to stretch the envelope and think outside the box without any concept of the shape, size and material of the envelope or box. They really think design is all about how something looks and not about how it works. They ll use any funky font they can find in any color outlined with embossing and a drop shadow. And they call it creative. Sorry, but to me that s not creativity it s just playing. True creativity is a strong focus on the rules, then working within the rules to achieve a design that s visually appealing and maybe even exciting. But you can t work within the rules if you don t know the rules. It s been my experience that most people who do layout aren t familiar with some of the most basic design rules and principles. Ask them about focus unity dimension contrast the color wheel. They won t have a clue, and that s why I call them people who do layout rather than designers. Somewhere, someone came up with the idea that the mission of her newspaper is to help her satisfy her creative urges. So, the publisher is delighted when he sees a headline in color outlined with embossing and a drop shadow. Sorry, that s not design and the mission of a newspaper is not to satisfy creative urges. The mission of a newspaper is to bring meaning to the lives of readers and to give advertisers a strong return on their ad dollar. So, if someone on your staff whines that there s not enough creativity in your design well, maybe that s a good thing and maybe you re just doing a better job of news design. Creativity has its place, for sure. Picasso was creative. Dali was creative. Warhol was creative. Calder was creative. But before they were creative, they understood and appreciated the finer points of visual art. Someone who thinks it s OK to use Tex-Mex fast food menu typography on a headline? Well, it makes me cringe. ED HENNINGER, an independent newspaper consultant and the Director of Henninger Consulting, offers comprehensive newspaper design services including redesigns, workshops, staff training and evaluations. edh@henningerconsulting.com. On the web: Phone: OKLAHOMA PRESS ASSOCIATION STAFF DIRECTORY ADMINISTRATION MARK THOMAS Executive Vice President mthomas@okpress.com (405) JEANNIE FREEMAN Accounting Manager jfreeman@okpress.com (405) SCOTT WILKERSON Front Office/Building Mgr. swilkerson@okpress.com (405) MEMBER SERVICES LISA (POTTS) SUTLIFF Member Services Director lsutliff@okpress.com (405) ADVERTISING CINDY SHEA Advertising Manager cshea@okpress.com (405) LANDON COBB Sales Director lcobb@okpress.com (405) BRENDA POER Advertising Assistant bpoer@okpress.com (405) BUD HEAROD Account Executive bhearod@okpress.com (405) CREATIVE SERVICES JENNIFER GILLILAND Creative Services Director jgilliland@okpress.com (405) ASHLEY NOVACHICH Editorial/Creative Assistant anovachich@okpress.com (405) COMPUTER ADVICE WILMA (MELOT) NEWBY Computer Consultant wmelot@okpress.com (405) POSTAL ADVICE STEVE BOOHER Postal/Public Notice Consultant sbooher@okpress.com (405) DIGITAL CLIPPING KEITH BURGIN Clipping Manager kburgin@okpress.com (405) KYLE GRANT Digital Clipping Dept. kgrant@okpress.com JENNIFER BEATLEY-CATES Digital Clipping Dept. jbeatley-cates@okpress.com (405) MALLORY HOGAN Digital Clipping Dept. mhogan@okpress.com (405) GENERAL INQUIRIES (405) Fax: (405) Toll-free in OK:

12 12 The Oklahoma Publisher // January 2015 OKLAHOMA NATURAL GAS CONTEST WINNERS CONGRATULATIONS TO THE NOVEMBER 2014 WINNERS November Column: DAVID CHRISTY, Enid News & Eagle November Editorial: PAUL LAUBACH, The Hennessey Clipper NOVEMBER 2014 EDITORIAL WINNER PAUL LAUBACH, The Hennessey Clipper I vote God s way Ten years ago I ran for the Oklahoma House of Representatives as a Democrat. I was humbled to carry Seiling, Canton, and my hometown of Okeene. The majority of the district voted against me. Since that time I ve been blessed with enough success in the oil and gas business to invest in newspapers. What a great investment. Now every night I pray that Maria doesn t leave me. Apparently managing newspapers is even more fun than calving out heifers. One memory from my campaign experiences frequented my mind as I watched my good friend Joe Dorman lose his bid to become Oklahoma s Governor last week. Ten years ago somebody sent me an anonymous, hand written letter that simply stated, I vote God s way. Since I was running as a Democrat I was, of course, running on the devil s platform. Are not all Democrats nonrepenting sinners and Republicans natural saints? A couple of years ago I switched my party registration to Independent. With the reflection of my political views and the constant partisan bickering between the parties, I finally realized that I didn t belong to any political party. Yet I m still pretty political, but don t ask my wife about that. I often vote for Republicans because their policies are good for my pocketbook. Less taxes and less government really does help private business. When I vote Republican it has nothing to do with voting God s way. I vote Republican because it s good for Paul s way. My friend Joe lost his election bid much for the same reason that I did 10 years ago. Joe ran as a Democrat. Last week was not a good election night for Democratic candidates. President Obama s championed Obamacare has taken the Democratic Party to new lows. Obamacare is founded in the concept that the young and healthy and those better off should help pay for healthcare for the sick and poor. What a despicable concept. More than 2000 years ago a wealthy man, a follower of God s law, asked our Lord Jesus Christ what he must do to inherit eternal life. Our Lord answered in Luke Chapter 18, Verse 22: Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. The wealthy man walked away sorrowful. I am a flawed man. I do not follow all of God s law faithfully. Even as I have accepted God s gift of salvation I still walk away many times as sorrowful. I enjoy what material wealth I have been blessed with. Last week I voted for my friend Joe to the contrary of Paul s way. Joe has not only followed God s law more than I, he has the better heart. Joe ran on expanding Medicaid coverage in Oklahoma to help thousands of Oklahomans gain health care coverage. Joe was accurately tied to supporting President Obama s most infamous public policy when he did that. Joe Dorman may never possess material wealth. Joe works hard and is plenty smart enough to be successful in business, but my bet is Joe will just find another way to serve the people. There is comfort for me to know that both Joe and I have accepted the salvation provided by our Lord s grace. Joe s treasures in heaven will likely outnumber mine. I wish Governor Mary Fallin a prosperous and successful second term. All Oklahomans should unite around her. She will be good for business. I m proud to have supported my friend Joe. And since my hypocrisy knows no bounds, I will even declare that every once in awhile. I vote God s way! Enter and Win a $100 Check from Oklahoma Natural Gas! The November Oklahoma Natural Gas Column and Editorial Contest was judged by a member of the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame. 1. Each month, send a tear sheet or photocopy of your best column and/ or editorial to Oklahoma Natural Gas Contest, c/o OPA, 3601 N. Lincoln Blvd., Oklahoma City, OK Include the author s name, name of publication, date of publication and category entered (column or editorial). 3. Only ONE editorial and/or ONE column per writer per month will be accepted. 4. All entries for the previous month must be at the OPA office by the 15th of the current month. 5. Winning entries will be reproduced on the OPA website at Entries must have been previously published. Contest open to all OPA member newspapers. Although Oklahoma Natural Gas Company selects representative contest winners work for use in this monthly ad, the views expressed in winning columns and editorials are those of the writers and don t necessarily reflect the Company s opinions. Thank you for continued support of Share The Warmth Read the Winning Columns & Editorials on the OPA website: (Under Contests)