Reynolds Journalism Institute is accepting applications for fellowship projects.

The Commerce Journal has covered the news of its community for over 130 years — or at least it did until October 31, 2019, when the last edition of “The Official Paper of the Bois D’Arc Capital of Texas” was published.
Sad news for the 400 residents who still subscribed to the Commerce Journal. Sad news, too, for the nearly 9,000 other residents of that community, who did not subscribe but should have. They may have no idea what they missed. Yet.

In explaining my work, I sometimes say that there are thousands of really good journalists in rural America, but all too often they are the only person in their newsroom that fits that description. They suffer from the isolation of rurality, with fewer opportunities than urbanites to rub shoulders and exchange ideas with their professional peers.

Q: When citizens are gathering petitions to call for a rollback election are there any restrictions on the use of county resources to create materials advocating the county’s position? What about after the rollback election has been called? Can you point me in the right direction for this?

For days, I had been planning my Thursday escape from the editor’s desk, determined to keep an appointment in Oklahoma City. As any native Texan should, I kept one wary eye on the weather forecast. 
Just four days earlier, I had covered our Fall Foliage Festival wearing shorts and flip-flops. But on Monday morning, the National Weather Service advised that a new weather system might bring light rain and snow to some parts of the Panhandle.

First Amendment Attorney Laura Prather of Austin is one of the first winners of the Tony Mauro Media Lawyer Award, established this year by The American Lawyer and ALM to honor attorneys who zealously advocate for freedom of the press.
Also honored in the initial awards is CNN's legal department, led by David David Vigilante and Drew Shenkman.
A partner at Haynes and Boone in Austin, Prather was selected for her "tireless and successful efforts advocating for legislation to strengthen free press and speech rights in Texas," according to the announcement by The American Lawyer.

Moody Gardens Hotel, Convention Center and Spa in Galveston is headquarters for the 2020 Texas Press Association Convention and Trade Show Jan. 16-18.
Following a membership vote and board action calling for one convention per year, the 2020 convention combines activities previously held during the midwinter conference and summer retreat meetings, including the annual membership meeting, installation of new officers, presentation of TPA awards, Hall of Fame induction ceremonies and the Texas Better Newspaper Contest awards presentation.

Meredith Shamburger, editor of The Panola Watchman in Carthage, has been selected to attend Poynter Institute's 2019 Leadership Academy for Women in Digital Media scheduled in October in St. Petersburg, Fla.
“It’s a pleasure to see one of our own selected for this prestigious training,” M. Roberts Media Regional Publisher Jerry Pye said. “Meredith is one of the best young talents in the business and this will give her the opportunity to meet with journalists from across the county to improve her journalistic skills.”

Nominations are sought for the 2020 Texas Newspaper Hall of Fame as well as TPA's annual awards, the Golden 50 Award, the Mayborn Award and the Hartman Award for Excellence in Sports Writing.
The Texas Newspaper Hall of Fame exists to honor dedicated Texas professionals who made a difference in their local communities, raised journalistic standards – set the bar high - then encouraged and inspired others. Each year, up to four of these leaders are honored at the Hall of Fame Induction dinner held during the Texas Press  Midwinter Conference and Trade Show. 

For nearly eight decades, National Newspaper Week has celebrated the positive impact of newspapers on their communities large and small.
Theme for the 2019 observance set Oct. 6 - 12 is "Think F1rst - Know Your Five Freedoms," based on the national program that launched Aug. 1 to foster better understanding of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.