CENTER – Lifelong Shelby County resident Ashley Chandler has been named publisher of The Light and Champion.

The announcement was made by Mark Henry, vice president of Texas Local Media.

“We are excited about Ashley’s future as the publisher of The Light and Champion,” Henry said. “She has demonstrated the ability and willingness to tackle the leadership role for the newspaper and we are confident she will be instrumental in leading the paper and staff to better serve our readers, advertisers and the communities in Shelby County.”

By John Foust, Greensboro, NC

The International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors (ISWNE) is accepting entries for its annual Golden Quill editorial writing contest. Deadline is Feb. 1.
Entries should reflect the purpose of the ISWNE: Encouraging the writing of editorials or staff-written opinion pieces that identify local issues that are or should be of concern to the community, offer an opinion, and support a course of action.

Texas Press Association has partnered with Column to modernize TPA's Statewide Legal Notice website (texaslegalnotices.com) and strengthen legislative efforts to keep newspapers as the primary publishers of legal notices in Texas.
Column has helped 13 other state press associations improve access to notices by making critical improvements to accessibility, as well as adding improved search and alert functionality for the public.

Promotions, additions and staff changes at Texas newspapers.

Pulse is launching a free Covid-19 Impact shopping survey, sales consultant and trainer Sammy Papert of Wormhole, LLC, announced.
Papert said the survey was created in support of newspapers, their sales teams and the local businesses they serve.

(News Media Association has given reprint permission to the following op-ed. Please note that this action is pending on the Federal level, not state. Please direct any comments you have to your U.S. Representative.)

Proposed changes to an advertising requirement for employers in the U.S. could mean that soon, many eligible American workers will not learn about available job opportunities in the U.S. before they are offered to non-resident, foreign workers instead.

By Paul Boyle, News Media Alliance

GREENWICH, Conn., (Press release) - White Birch Paper announced it will cease production of newsprint effective immediately at the Bear Island facility in Ashland, Va. 
White Birch sold the mill to Cascades in July of 2018, and leased the mill back with the intention of making newsprint for two more years. The mill had an annual capacity of approximately 240,000 MT per year of newsprint and employed just over 140 people. 

We Texans are fiercely independent and like to make our views known. On that, surely, we can agree. 
Using our First Amendment right to speak out goes hand in hand with access to public information that helps us understand how our government functions.

By Kelley Shannon, executive director, Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas

Volunteers are needed to help judge the 2019 Tennessee State Press Contests, sponsored by the University of Tennessee and the Tennessee Press Association. Judging periods begin March 25 and April 1.

Tennessee Press has two contests with two judging periods:

Editorial contest: 

• Judging period starts March 25 

• 45 to 50 judges needed

Advertising/Circulation Ideas Contest:

• Judging starts April 1

• 10 to 15 judges needed