The Daily Herald would like to know what’s important for you to know — and how we’re doing at providing the public-service journalism you value.
So please, take five minutes to complete the five questions in our annual Community Listening Survey before July 28 by going to heraldnet.com/herald-listening-survey-2023.
Last year more than 1,000 readers responded to the Community Listening Survey.
Executive Editor Phil O’Connor read every response. The information we learned from that survey continues to inform the local journalism The Herald provides.
Understanding the needs of our community and where to focus our limited resources is essential for The Herald to have the greatest impact. It also helps us understand where we need to expand our reporting.
By carefully listening to the needs of our community over the past several years, The Herald identified four critical areas for increased focus: investigative journalism and education, health and environmental reporting. To expand our coverage in those areas, we introduced four journalism funds that enable the community to support the local news that benefits us all.
For each journalism fund, The Herald partners with a nonprofit fiscal sponsor so that any contribution can be tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. The fiscal sponsor also ensures that community contributions are used as intended. You can learn more at heraldnet.com/local-news-impact.
These journalism funds make a big difference in how The Herald can meet our community’s need because they enable us to provide local stories we would not otherwise be able to.
And they all began with your feedback. So please, take five minutes to answer the five questions in the Community Listening Survey. We are eager to hear what you have to say.
Closing note
I recently listened to Connie Taylor, a long-time supporter of The Herald, about why she values local journalism. She was adamant that good, independent local journalism is a source of curated news. And she emphasized the word CURATED.
Here’s what Connie had to say: “It is one thing to ask the internet to find stories that agree with my point of view, but that way I miss a lot. I get a slanted view of what’s going on around me and can make stupid choices because I don’t have all the information. And the internet acts as a filter and magnifier, which can be extremely polarizing. My ‘bubble’ would get smaller and smaller.
“It is important to pay professionals to be in the community reporting important events to me. It’s important to get depth in the stories rather than sound bites, so that I can see how things fit together and how one thing causes or impedes another. These are often things I would never think to ask about, but I am interested in knowing. They (the reporters) don’t know what connections I can make from them. They are telling me facts, so that I can make my own connections, chase down more detail if I want it, and form my own opinions.
“That’s why I like the way the Herald ‘curates’ local news for me!”
Brenda Mann Harrison is the journalism development director for The Daily Herald. To learn more about the impact of local news and how you can join others in supporting community journalism, go to heraldnet.com/local-news-impact, send an email to brenda.harrison@heraldnet.com or call 425-339-3452. The Daily Herald maintains editorial control over content produced through community-funded initiatives.
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