My new column: a Give & Take with readers

I have begun writing a new column for the Register-Guard called Give & Take.

The idea is borrowed from Sound Off, the weekly column I helped launch at The Bakersfield Californian.

The goal of Give & Take is to have a conversation with readers about our mission, and to give them a place to ask questions about our content and coverage, and to share compliments, criticisms or suggestions about what we do. Over time I hope to the column becomes less about the nuts and bolts of producing and delivering news and more about the steps local media companies need to take to do a better job of connecting their communities at a time when trust in media is dissapating quickly. 

My first column generated a flood of responses, so I've been posting a few answers online-first or online-only to keep things moving while I settle into a regular publishing schedule. 

We're parking all the columns, long and short, in a Give & Take section at RegisterGuard.com. 

Let me know what you think. 

Pinch-hitting again on Sound Off

I filled in for John Arthur in writing this week's Bakersfield Californian Sound Off reader-feedback column.

Good mix of questions that include:

• Why Sea of Galilee controversy was news.
• Why a huge accomplishment by a local Cal Ripken team didn't make our sports cover.
• Feedback on our "Cul De Sac" comic, which is ending in September, and suggested replacements.
• Why we published a police sketch on the front page.

I have a lot of stuff on my plate in my current job but I really enjoy these opportunities to engage with readers who have good questions about what we do. Sound Off is a great forum to get feedback but also shed a little light on what we do.  

Pinch-hitting on Sound Off

I've returned to my roots this past week in The Californian newsroom, playing daily editor in backstopping the vacationing John Arthur. 

With that editor role comes the privilege of publicly responding to reader complaints, compliments and other feedback in our Sunday Sound Off column. I used to write Sound Off regularly when I was The Californian's managing editor, but these days it's a gig that comes around just a few times a year. 

This edition of Sound Off is typical, responding to two readers' completely different takes on our recent series on foreign doctors, questions about our priorities in sports, and suggestions on our sourcing on healthcare coverage.