What you hold in your hands is an experiment.
Just as public radio and television arose generations ago to take news in a more substantive direction, so the San Francisco Public Press aims to conjure a new class of news organizations — local, accountable, noncommercial and innovative — that deliver news effectively across print and digital platforms.
Our long-term goal is to publish a nonprofit, ad-free daily newspaper — online and in print — that contributes to a competitive news environment for intelligent and in-depth journalism.
It will combine timely, nonpartisan original reporting with other quality writing and visuals from existing media partners that already produce public-interest news. The idea here is to cross media boundaries to expose this work to new local audiences.
This pilot newspaper is our foray into print. The Public Press has been publishing news online since March 2009 after receiving a startup grant from the San Francisco Foundation. Since then, more than 100 writers, photographers, videographers, multimedia specialists, nonprofit workers and concerned citizens have collaborated to produce professional-quality, in-depth reporting on public policy and social trends in and around San Francisco.
Why no ads? As the newspaper advertising market has drained to Internet competitors, we need to search for other sources of income to support quality journalism. Advertising has also warped the content of the newsroom, both explicitly and subtly, encouraging newspapers to shift their coverage to topics of interest to businesses and wealthy readers — the targets of ads. Noncommercial news, while often less lucrative, has the luxury of independence.
Why print? In an era when most journalism innovation is taking place online, we see untapped opportunities in print, too.
Here’s why:
- Newspapers help bridge the digital divide. Not everyone is wired 24/7, even in the Bay Area. According to San Francisco’s 2009 City Survey, more than 34 percent of households with income under $50,000 cannot access the Internet at home via personal computers.
- Newspapers serve as communal touchstones. You can never tell what people are reading by looking at the backs of their laptops. Instead, consider the experience of glancing at a headline over the shoulder of a fellow Muni passenger or picking up a copy of a paper someone left at a coffee shop. These moments spark real conversations with neighbors.
- We want to pay our hard-working staff for the work they do. Readers might not pay for news online, but they still buy newspapers: 50 million are sold every day in the U.S.
- People use paper and electronic devices differently. There are times and places when even the most tech-savvy Bay Area digerati enjoy some screen relief. But the Public Press’ mission and purpose extend far beyond our case for print. If independent news organizations are going to survive into the digital era, what will they look like? Who will control them? Whose interests will they serve? We envision a cadre of newsrooms operating as accountable, locally based publicinterest organizations with high professional standards.
- We do not stand alone in our aspirations. The Public Press would not exist as it does today if not for an outpouring of volunteer help from scores of people who believe in this vision. And yet, the organization must evolve if it is to thrive beyond this pilot venture. We intend to grow into an independent newsroom that can afford to pay journalists for the work they produce.
To do this, we need your help. If this newspaper in your hands represents to you a worthy experiment, one worth refining and repeating, again and again, support our efforts by becoming a member of the San Francisco Public Press today.
With your pledge you will get home delivery of future editions of the newspaper, free admission to our public events and the knowledge that you are helping redefine journalism for San Francisco.
Contact the Public Press newsroom at news [AT] sfpublicpress.org, or (415) 495-7377.
