The Benicia Independent
is currently in a "start-up phase." Please bookmark our home page, and return often for design changes, expanded coverage, today's news and a refreshing independent perspective on life in Benicia, California.
The Benicia Independent is happy to post views not consistent with our own editorial perspectives.
To submit a letter, send to: rogrmail@beniciaindependent.com
Your letter should include your name, address and phone number, and if I already know you, you will save me a step if you include explicit permission to publish.
At this time, The Independent is free, and available only online. Contributions are needed, however, and your start-up contribution of $30 (or more or less) is welcome. Send by mail to
Roger Straw, Editor
766 West J Street
Benicia, CA 94510.
|
The Benicia Independent:
Start-up Musings
We all need to pitch in to establish an independent voice in Benicia
By Roger Straw
BENICIA, CA / November 12, 2007, 9:00 AM Well, I thoroughly dislike novels about novelists, and tv shows about tv actors. So you'd think I would stay away from Benicia Independent columns about the Benicia Independent.
But we are in a unique situation at the moment. The Benicia Independent domain name was purchased late on Thursday, November 1, and our first edition was published on Saturday, November 3, around noon. That's an amazingly quick start-up. And with one day off, we have published every day since.
Today I woke up scratching my head, and wondering what we would print here. I fielded a few letters to the editor overnight, but otherwise, had no incoming stories from my crew of regular volunteers.
Can you run a newspaper on volunteers? Or maybe I'd better ask, for how long can you run a newspaper on volunteers?
As I've said to many of you by email, the Independent is in a start-up phase. There is a huge amount of work to be done beyond posting new stories and letters. The website is laughably basic. We need to set up a free subscription service for email distribution of new stories. An online method for making financial contributions would be good. I haven't even taken out a bank account yet, nor established a formal business plan. And that's not all....
I'm tempted to shut the Independent down for a few weeks or a month, but I'm afraid we would lose too much momentum.
So ... here's my plan. I am calling upon YOU, residents of Benicia and friends of an uncensored and independent local press, to send me a flow of stories and ideas that will keep the Independent interesting and newsworthy while I attend to the developmental chores of starting a news business.
Not incidentally, I'm hoping to expand the Independent's coverage of local events and news. Get creative, look around you, and share anything that seems of interest to you. Send to the editor (me) by clicking here: contributor Input for the Benicia Independent.
And if anyone wants to help with some of those business start-up tasks, let me know if you have experience or can help in any way.
Roger Straw
Editor
|
