Post-Visit

The on site visit to the Kirkland Reporter answered my questions about the structure of the paper as well as the sources of revenue they generate to stay in business. Since there is no subscription fee, nearly all of their income is generated by advertising. However, readership is still a significant economic driver, because without them, no one would advertise. The staff recognizes this and continues to deliver good content to their community.

The core group is the editor, publisher, and one journalist. The paper used to employee more people, but has had to make significant cut backs in recent years. Unfortunately, this has left them without a photographer and only one remaining journalist. Overall, I believe I developed a good sense of the operational side of a local paper.

by Evan Lehner