[Nfb-editors] Making the newsletter work

[Mike Freeman]

What precisely do you mean by "diversity?"

Mike Freeman
sent from my iPhone


On Mar 16, 2011, at 14:43, Bridgit Pollpeter <bpollpeter at hotmail.com> wrote:

> Gary,
> 
> If newsletters follow your example, they can be all you say and more.
> Unfortunately, most do not rely on methods as you suggest.
> 
> I am not suggesting every publication must turn into literary journals,
> but as Mike pointed out recently, people do not want to read
> regurgitations of news they have heard often, and people not associated
> with the NFB usually do not care about our programs and initiatives
> because, and we have all experienced this, they do not believe something
> "blind related" is of interest to them.
> 
> Bringing an atmosphere of creativity and personal experiences is what
> will open up minds-- members and non-members alike.
> 
> You said that you did not mention the Blind Driver Challenge by simply
> reporting on it, but you brought relevancy to the heart of the BDC by
> breathing personal reflections into the facts.
> 
> This is what I believe makes a compelling publication.
> 
> True, many of the mediums we use to disiminate information does not
> archive our efforts nor does it always reach to our core, our over-all
> message.  This is why I suggest newsletters do not merely report these
> events-- then we are only providing the same exact info with no context.
> 
> You also say that affiliate publications allow members, who may hesitate
> about submitting to the Braille Monitor, feel more comfortable, and be
> surprised should their article end up in our national publication.  This
> sounds great in theory, but an editor must first have submissions to
> begin with to see this happen.
> 
> I am not the only one out on this limb, but I have exhausted ways in
> which to drum up enthusiasm for our state publication.  This leaves me
> with little to do, and I stand firm that it is not a newsletters job to
> report on info that has already been distributed by many of the means
> mentioned without contextualizing and reflecting on what this info
> means, and how it exist in the souls of members.
> 
> In our state, at least, every news release, reminder, advertisement,
> legislative hearing and issue, is distributed via email to all members
> as well as listed on Newsline.  Our newsletter can be used for reminders
> of events and issues coming up, but it should not exist just for this
> purpose.
> 
> What you suggest is a good idea.  An affiliate newsletter should work
> the way you outline, but too many lack the vision and manpower to
> accomplish this goal.
> 
> Your comment that our other means of distributing info does not allow us
> to reflect on the implications of things, or the personal experiences
> that reach a broader audience.  I completely concur with this idea, but
> once again, many do not view articles in this light, and many do not
> attempt to write articles expressing this reflection.
> 
> The problem, I believe, is the lack of purpose, vision, drive and talent
> with our newsletters.  I think this committee itself really needs to
> outline a vision and purpose and drive the point home to each affiliate.
> 
> Later today, I will post the current issue of The Nebraska Independent.
> In my editor's comments, you will find what my personal vision is for
> NFB publications.  This is strictly my vision, but I believe elements of
> it should be adopted for our publications to stand the test of time.
> 
> Currently, many of our publications are floundering, and all have yet to
> discover a much broader audience beyond the organization.  Until we
> bring in "outsiders," I truly believe the organization as a whole will
> not grow.
> 
> When you look at other national organizations, they usually have
> diversity among their ranks.  This gives a louder voice to their cause,
> and it brings attention to their group that, otherwise, would not have
> been spotlighted because not enough awareness occurred.
> 
> Until our minority can bring in the majority, we can not accomplish our
> goals.  We have won many freedoms; we have drafted legislation
> protecting our rights, but we have yet to seep into the mindsets of
> people.  True equality can only happen when we practice diversity.
> 
> Our written word has the ability to capture the attention of the world,
> but not if we don't change our vision.  People don't pick up a newspaper
> to be inspired, or to find ways to affect change.  As you mention, we
> must become something more so our message begins to tangle itself among
> the hearts and minds of people everywhere.
> 
> Bridgit
> 
> Message: 1
> Date: Tue, 15 Mar 2011 11:05:09 -0700
> From: "Wunder, Gary" <gwunder at nfb.org>
> To: Correspondence Committee Mailing List <nfb-editors at nfbnet.org>
> Subject: [Nfb-editors] Making the Newsletter work
> Message-ID:
>    
> <5D835FCE86C94346B617F04A46A43140041D772998 at VA3DIAXVS651.RED001.local>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
> 
> I think an affiliate newsletter can be extremely valuable for a number
> of reasons. The Internet with its e-mail lists and blogs is likely to
> beat any print publication we can generate in terms of reporting the
> news, but it will not often contain the kind of reflection one will find
> in an article drafted for a newsletter. In the Braille Monitor I did not
> try to tell people that the blind driver challenge took place, or even
> that it was successful. If they are the least bit interested in us, they
> know this already if they are our own members. I tried to give them
> history, a sense of what it was like for one individual to be there with
> hundreds of others, and some thoughts about the broader implications of
> the work. I also tried to write it so that those who aren't members can
> get a feel for what we are trying to do and why.
> 
> I think that the newsletter also can chronicle the history of our
> affiliates in a way that e-mail and blogs just want allow. The e-mail I
> received today or this week is very important to me, but whether it will
> be around in another 10 years is a different matter. I suppose I have a
> mechanism in place to archive it, but my experience is, that as machines
> and software change, some of the information we so prize today quickly
> becomes out of date. My machine cannot play a 5.25" floppy disk. Neither
> can it play the harder, smaller 3 1/2 inch disks. For a while I thought
> we had found a miracle device when a zip disk that would hold 100 MB of
> information came out. I don't have a zip disk player anymore either. Of
> course, I have used Word Star, Peach Text, Word Perfect, and now
> Microsoft Word, but it doesn't read some of the older stuff, especially
> if it was generated using the operating system CPM.
> 
> I think the state newsletter gives members the opportunity to shine.
> Many folks I know won't submit their first article to the Braille
> Monitor. They may, however, submitted to the Blind Missourian, and if
> that article happens to get picked up by the Braille Monitor, their
> confidence will be immeasurably enhanced.
> 
> I think we dare not under estimate how often our members look to us to
> show them we are doing something and that it is worth being a member. I
> had an active committee chairman here tell me he almost switched
> organizations because he didn't think we were doing anything. We talked
> and he soon realized that a number of us are busting our chops to make
> things happen. He apologized and promised to stay involved, but the
> message is clear: work like a dog and just assume folks know it, and
> they won't. The newsletter gives them a reason to be active because they
> see activity all around them. There's nothing better than an affiliate
> newsletter to chronicle the legislation we are introducing, following,
> or supporting. People like to see their name in print. Some will read
> the newsletter if only to see that someone took notice of them when they
> attended the Christmas party. For me the question isn't whether or not a
> newsletter is still valuable, but whether we will take the time to write
> it. We who enjoy the benefits of the computer, the Internet, and all of
> the different variations it brings to communication tend to forget how
> left out people are who regard computers as Confusers, the folks who
> don't feel at all at home with modems and DSL and cable. They depend on
> braille, print, and cassette, and to the extent that we don't provide
> these things, we are leaving them out. We are wrestling right now with
> how to move away from cassettes and still give people something they
> feel comfortable using. 
> 
> One last thought: We can do a far better job reaching out to those who
> don't know us. How many of you send your newsletter to members of your
> state's legislature? Does the mayor know how active the NFB is in his
> town in the same way the folks of St. Cloud did thanks to Andy Birden?
> They can if we send it. Does your family get your newsletter so when you
> ask for a donation they know what we do? Do you use your newsletter to
> further the relationship you made with the guy on the plane who was
> amazed at what you do and was interested in that organization you spoke
> so fondly about?
> 
> Just some thoughts to suggest that starting and maintaining a newsletter
> is worthwhile. So is reading the Braille Monitor, and please help me get
> people subscribed. I talked the other day with a Federation leader who
> said she had heard we were no longer taking individual subscriptions. I
> am not sure what that means except to say that, believing what she had
> heard, she didn't try to subscribe.
> 
> Gary
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ------------------------------
> 
> Message: 2
> Date: Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:17:04 -0500
> From: "Susan Tabor" <souljourner at sbcglobal.net>
> To: "'Correspondence Committee Mailing List'" <nfb-editors at nfbnet.org>
> Subject: Re: [Nfb-editors] [NFB-editors] Making the Newsletter work-
>    the    need -- support equation
> Message-ID: <13cf01cbe380$3f3e5600$bdbb0200$@net>
> Content-Type: text/plain;    charset="us-ascii"
> 
> Hello, Barbara and Others:
> 
> Thanks so much for this string of comments; they have been really useful
> for me!
> 
> I began editing the Kansas affiliate's newsletter a little over a year
> ago. I had immediate visions of a quarterly newsletter, lots of columns,
> lots of info from other sources, etc. 
> 
> I've been feeling frustrated because I'm having to set my sights on
> about 2 issues this year, though I'm beginning to accept that. I had to
> wait for reasons involving a meeting with our new governor which
> hopefully will be happening soon. I've had to tell myself that it's OK
> to grow slowly, and that maybe I'll learn more if I do that.
> 
> Again, thanks to all of you for your thoughts.
> Best Regards,
> Susan Tabor,
> Tap Tracks Newsletter Editor
> for the Kansas Affiliate of
> The National Federation of the Blind
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfb-editors-bounces at nfbnet.org
> [mailto:nfb-editors-bounces at nfbnet.org]
> On Behalf Of Barbara Pierce
> Sent: Monday, March 14, 2011 7:11 AM
> To: newmanrl at cox.net; 'Correspondence Committee Mailing List'
> Subject: Re: [Nfb-editors] [NFB-editors] Making the Newsletter work- the
> need -- support equation
> 
> I would add one other element at least to the newsletter equation: the
> importance of a vehicle for circulating the affiliate's views on
> blindness and the issues that affect blind people through the blindness
> and legislative communities of the state. Obviously we could all use an
> effective tool for doing this. Doing it badly is probably worse than not
> doing it at all. But recognizing the value of getting folks to recognize
> the affiliate as an important of the social conversation about
> disability and the needs and abilities of blind people is one
> significant reason for trying to produce a good newsletter.
> 
> I really sympathize with Bridgit's frustration. We have all been there.
> She may not be the person to do the job in Nebraska because it is asking
> too much of her. Certainly the board needs to recognize her need for
> support in the form of actual material to edit. I would suggest that a
> lot of useful ground lies between Bridgit's view of what she wants the
> newsletter to be and some of the pathetic, thrown-together excuses for a
> newsletter that I have seen. Maybe Nebraska could aim a bit lower than
> the dazzling product that Bridgit envisions and that we would all love
> to have. Robert is right when he says that dipping into other
> publications for reprints is a great way to add content and quality to
> thin substance. I demand a president's column, and I write a think
> peace. We are down to two issues a year, so we have a report of the
> state convention in one and an article urging people to attend the
> convention and talking about the plans in the other. That provides
> another substantial article. If you have resolutions, you can reprint
> them, and you can report of awards and scholarships presented.
> First-timer reports of the Washington Seminar or the national convention
> usually provide something that you can edit into useful articles.
> Minnesota has an essay contest. Arizona used to have Kernel Book story
> contests. Even without the Kernel Books, we can still try for such
> submissions. The Monitor still loves to have such manuscripts. But you
> have to have the leadership of the state behind the effort. 
> 
> I don't know if this helps or adds more confusion.
> Barbara
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfb-editors-bounces at nfbnet.org
> [mailto:nfb-editors-bounces at nfbnet.org]
> On Behalf Of Robert Leslie Newman
> Sent: Saturday, March 12, 2011 9:25 AM
> To: editors nfb list
> Subject: [Nfb-editors] Making the Newsletter work- the need -- support
> equation
> 
> Mike and others
> (There are some on here that are looking to start a newsletter, and some
> who have weathered the ups and downs of publishing) 
> 
> Mike, you bring up a needed topic thread- the "need question," and the
> "participation factor;" what does it take to get a newsletter going and
> keep it viable? 
> 
> What do other's think? Here is what quickly goes through my mind:
> 
> There are 3 parts of this newsletter viability equation: 
> 
> #1 If an affiliate's voice is, that they want, need a newsletter ---
> this is one part of the equation.
> 
> #2 If there is a interested/willing editor --- this is a second part of
> that same equation.
> 
> #3 If there is affiliate support, people who will submit --- that is the
> third part of this equation. 
> 
> In this case of Bridgit's, here in Nebraska, she is not getting support,
> not getting submissions. And as she states, that she's not of a mind,
> nor in a position to write up the parts of the news that should be in
> "The Nebraska Independent." She even gives us a minimum number of
> contributing authors that she feels is acceptable to keep the effort
> alive. And so sounds like she is at a crossroads, should she go on with
> the next issue? Or should she not, and give over the editorship? (Not
> knowing if anyone else will take it
> up.) 
> 
> Here is one of my thoughts --- If the affiliate says they want a
> newsletter, and after a good effort to get submissions, do a good job
> editing what you have gotten, maybe borrow some material from other
> newsletters, make sure it has a calendar of upcoming events, and then
> put it out there. 
> 
> *** 
> 
> What is a newsletter? I think this is the first question. I bet if we
> pool our thoughts, there is a range of acceptability in terms of
> contents and literary quality. (Quality would always include grammar and
> the mechanics.) 
> 
> (In saying any of this, I do not wish to lessen the personal goals of an
> editor, as to what type of publication that they would like to pen their
> name to.)
> 
> Other thoughts? 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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