ASNE - Editors of small papers can get free critiques

Committee again offers critiques for convention attendees hungry for feedback; send in the form

In these days of tight newsroom budgets (were there ever days without tight newsroom budgets?) and limited money available for training, a small, practical project that costs nothing but can produce big results in your newsroom and for your readers should be welcomed by every editor.

That is particularly true for editors of small papers, whose training dollars have shrunk to pennies but who need ideas, criticism and even a bit of affirmation that what they are doing isn't all wrong.

Since 1993, the ASNE Small Newspapers Committee has offered a no-budget surefire way for editors of papers under 50,000 circulation who come to the national convention to take home something practical - a detailed critique of their paper.

The committee creates teams of interested editors, provides guidelines on how to create a worthwhile critique, and then sits back as the give-and-take of good ideas flows.

Like any program, this one has strong and weak years. More than 80 editors took part in 1994. Because there were fewer last year the committee conducted a quick and dirty survey to determine if the critiques should be continued or dropped. The overwhelming response: Do this again, and again. We learn something every time a thoughtful reader tells us what he or she likes and dislikes. And who could be more thoughtful than a colleague who knows what we go through to produce the daily miracle.

There have, of course, been a few glitches with the program. Every year a few editors are disappointed because their critique partners don't show up at the convention as planned. Not only can't they deliver the critique they worked to produce, they don't get one in return. This year, the committee plans greater follow-up to make certain that no one forgets to do his or her part. And in case of last minute difficulties, committee members will take on the task.

What goes into a good critique? The committee's guidelines call for a review of headlines, writing and editing', attention to photos and graphics, an analysis of the balance between local and wire reporting, a review of fairness and credibility, consideration of typography and organization. But these technical matters matter less than the intangible question of whether a reader comes away with a sense of the community the paper serves.

What editor wouldn't want to discuss these questions with a colleague who read and reviewed the paper for a week. The form to sign up for the critique must be received by Feb. 15 to allow time to organize critique teams so they can do their work before the convention.

Offer is editor of the Newport (R.I.) Daily News.