• Can the techies save the news? – If  the scene at the recent BarCampPortland III meet up was any indication, that could very well be the case.
• The Smalltown News – Small newspapers are in a better shape than big ones to survive the recession and changing news business, according to this story I did for Oregon Business magazine.
• Room to write – No office space at home but hate working in coffee shops? Portland’s got plenty of communal workspaces for writers, part of a nationwide trend of shared workplaces.
• WordPress user group forms - The more writers take to blogging, the more call there is for places they can go for training, and this group is one of them.
• Portland is for word lovers – It only follows that the city with the country’s best independent book store and most active public library system would host a rockin’ annual book festival. Wordstock is it.
• City debates whether bloggers are reporters – In a scene that’s starting to repeat itself across the country, the Portland suburb of Lake Oswego debates whether to allow a local blogger into city meetings.
• While other papers sink, the Oregonian swims – I wrote this before the paper’s latest rounds of job cuts and salary reductions. But Portland’s daily is still publishing seven days a week, isn’t in bankruptcy and has managed to keep some of the country’s top feature writers and sports columnists – these days, that’s saying a lot.

Listener-supported radio news hasn’t escaped the current downturn. This week National Public Radio announced it will lay off 64 people and cancel two shows, “Day to Day” and “News and Notes.”

It’s not good times for the economy. But it’s good times for people who write about it. In the week of Dec. 1-7, two-thirds of coverage tracked by the the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism weekly news coverage index was devoted to the economy – the financial crisis, the Obama administration’s plans for dealing with it and attempts to bail out the auto industry.

Time picks the best magazine covers of 2008. No. 1 is The New Yorker’s Nov. 17 cover showing a moonlit “O” shining over the Lincoln Memorial. My personal favorite is Los Angeles magazine’s cover tribute to the city’s best high schools, rendered completely in ball-point pen doodles.

WordPress rolls out its annual winter fun feature – make snow fall over your blog posts.

Still, it was a surprise to read this AP story that the Orange County Register is conducting a one-month experiment to outsource some copyediting and page layouts to an editorial outsourcing firm in New Delhi, India. According to the AP account, the month-long trial with Mindworks Global Media will start by the end of June. In it, Mindworks will edit some stories for the Register and lay out one of community papers published by the Register’s parent company, Orange County Register Communications Inc. (Disclaimer: I worked at the OC Register from 1988 to 1995.)

The Register is only the latest newspaper to shift work to India: Mindworks started working with The Miami Herald in January. Late last year the Sacramento Bee said it would outsource some ad production to India, according to the AP report.

I’ve previously written about what newspapers could gain by shifting more editorial work to freelancers. It’s a logical combination of companies wanting to outsource costly functions – like paid editorial staff – to less costly providers – freelancers. It’s also feeds on the trend toward entrepreneurship, especially among Millennial workers who, according to experts, want to be their own bosses so they have more control over their work lives, work/life balance and get rich without having to climb the corporate ladder.

Why aren’t more newspapers going this route? Are they more comfortable outsourcing what could be termed the family jewels – a paper’s editorial product – to a country fall from home rather than to freelancers in their own backyard? That doesn’t make sense. It does point out, however, how little standing writers who are independent contractors have with newspapers and magazines. Maybe it’s up to freelancers to band together and create content and design outsourcing companies that they can pitch to newspapers. It might be out of the normal realm of many freelancers’ businesses, but given how many papers are laying off workers and folding whole sections – or folding entirely – it’d definitely be worth a shot.

They might be. Daily newspapers are trimming jobs and looking for other ways to cut costs, and one way to do that is by using contract workers such as freelancers.

Some papers, including major dailies such as the New York Times and Los Angeles Times, routinely use freelancers or stringers for certain types of stories – travel pieces, features, essays, high school sports stories and war reporting. But others consider freelancers second-class citizens, because they believe freelancers lack newsroom training or because of past experiences they had with writers who turned in sub-par work.

But as more newspaper reporters lose their jobs, it’s inevitable some of them will use it as a springboard to start freelance careers. This is already happening, but recent actions such as the announcement from McClatchy earlier this week that it will axe 1,400 jobs nationwide is pushing it to the forefront.

Some newspaper industry insiders get this. One of them is Edward D. Miller, a former editor and publisher and current newspaper industry consultant and coach. In an essay he wrote for the weekly newsletter his firm, Newsroom Leadership Group emails to 10,000 newspaper editors, Miller cautions them not to continue viewing freelancers as outsiders and “amateurs.” He writes: “More than a few are serious and capable writers. Many have community connections that are deeper than our own. Collectively, these outsiders have knowledge and wisdom that we could be tapping into.”

Miller, one-time editor and publisher of The Morning Call in Allentown, PA, and an affiliate of The Poynter Institute, the newspaper industry think thank and training center, also admonishes editors to vet freelancers the same way they would other writers, including putting them through typical newsroom testing and training, involving them in the story decision making process and “treating them like insiders.” He also recommends paying a decent wage.

That’s music to a freelancer’s ears. Who wouldn’t want to work for an organization that treated its freelancers like that?

To read Miller’s piece in its entirety, you can sign up for his Reflections on Leadership newsletter, or wait for two weeks (that’s be June 30) and look for it on his Website under “Reflections.”

That’s the conclusion Douglas McIntyre of 24/7 Wall Street comes to after analyzing 25 top U.S. newspapers’ Websites.

McIntyre, editor of the financial news Website, gave A grades to only two: the New York Times, which he calls “the single best daily newspaper site in the country,” and San Francisco Chronicle, which he praises for its well thought-out use of interactive features, video, polls, special reports and blogs. The others ranged from A- for the Atlanta Journal Constitution and Detroit Free Press to a D for the Chicago Tribune, which he called “mediocre” with a confusing and overly busy homepage, and a D- for the Sacramento Bee. Here’s a snippet:

One former newspaper publisher wrote “A review of the main web pages from a dozen of the largest newspapers leaves one’s eyes glazed. They share a common flaw: too much packed into too little space, and few signposts for how to get through it.” The very best online sites avoided that.

Read McIntyre’s entire newspaper Website report card here.

My thoughts: Even though daily papers’ business sections are shrinking, the need for local business news isn’t. If anything it’s stronger than ever given the effect the bad economy is having on so many different types of businesses.

Who’s picking up the slack? In some areas it’s business weeklies, in others it’s bloggers. Some regional business magazines are holding their own. Maybe all people really need is a good RSS reader. Or maybe there are opportunities to be had for Web-savvy reporters who could build a company around a local business news aggregator site.

For the past year or so, Stanton’s been the paper’s Innovations editor, charged with overseeing the paper’s Web site and more generally, bringing it into the digital age. For Sam Zell, the paper’s new owner, and the David Hiller, the current publisher, to tap a Web guy for the top job over the other finalist, a veteran Times editor whose rise through the ranks was took a more traditional trajectory, says a lot about the direction they want the paper to take. If they use this opportunity to continue beefing up their online news presence – and make money and save newsroom jobs doing it – they could create a template for newsroom innovation other papers would eagerly follow.

But none of this is happening in a vacuum. In the past three years, the Times has seen three editors come and go, all of them quitting to protest budget cuts that lowered newsroom headcount and morale. Revenue from advertising continues to drop at the Times and throughout the newspaper industry. On Feb. 14, the New York Times said it was cutting 100 newsroom jobs due to declining ad revenue. Nice Valentine.

Stanton will have his work cut out for him. For starters, he has to deal with the 100 news job cuts across the entire Los Angeles Times Media Group announced Feb. 13. In addition to the daily paper, the group includes community papers, a Spanish-language paper and an entertainment guide. But he appears up to the challenge. In a newsroom speech after his promotion, Stanton said: “”I have grown tired and am now hopping mad over this seemingly endless ‘Groundhog Day’ nightmare.” He also said The Times would have “to figure out how to break this self-defeating cycle before it does indeed result in our defeat.”

That’s what I found when I asked freelance, newspaper and magazine writers and editors to name some of their favorite blogs for writers. It’s an eclectic list and by no means comprehensive. Just don’t start reading on deadline.

The Mechanics of Writing, Editing and Copyediting
You Don’t Say – Written by John McIntyre, the Baltimore Sun’s assistant managing editor for the copy desk. McIntyre is a human version of the AP Style Guide or one of those other grammar and usage mauals – but funnier. Thanks to Matthew Crowley, business copy editor at the Las Vegas Review-Journal for the tip.

WordWise – Forget for a minute that Dan Santow is a PR guy. His blog on grammar and usage is good – and not just because he’s got fellow flacks discussing things like commas and overused words (for which reporters everywhere thank you). Oh wait, Santow was a reporter before he became a senior v.p. at Edelman, the big PR firm. Now I get it.

WordHappy – Toddie Downs, a freelance copywriter and editor, uses her blog to celebrate good writing of all types – TV, movies, fiction, non-fiction and advertising.

Freelance Writing and Marketing Yourself as a Writer
Erik Sherman’s WriterBiz - Sherman, a long-time freelance writer and photographer, tackles the business end of writing in this very professional if plain-looking entry. Sherman’s written for some of the biggest names in the business including the New York Times Magazine, Newsweek, Fortune, Inc, US News & World Report and knows what he’s talking about.

The Renegade Writer by Linda Formichelli and Diana Burrell, co-authors of The Renegade Writer: A Totally Unconventional Guide to Freelance Writing and The Renegade Writer’s Query Letters That Rock. Lots of practical wisdom on this blog, which fellow freelancer Peggy Noonan recommends for its useful resources and “common sense tips that work.” UPDATE: Thanks Diana, for pointing out that this is a team effort.

Freelance Switch – This group-written blog about freelancers of all stripes – Web designers and illustrators as well as writers – includes classifieds, podcasts, resources and a job board.

FreelanceWritingGigs.com - Started in 2005 by Deborah Ng, this blog posts info on new jobs almost daily. But proceed with caution: the listings include a lot of “work from home” situations, Web content writing assignments and other low-pay gigs.

Men With Pens – Wait, you did want to be a Web content writer? This is the place to learn. This site was formerly known as Web Content Writer Tips.

TheUrbanMuse – Lots of practical advice on writing and the mechanics of freelancing make this well-suited to beginners. Author Susan Johnston Home is away this month and has guest bloggers filling in.

Screw You – Kathy Kehrli calls herself the Irreverent Freelancer and uses her blog for rants against low-paying clients and other mistreatments that go with the freelance territory. Read it as a cautionary tale, or visit when an editor’s got you steamed and you need an acceptable place to vent.

InkThinker - A personal take on the freelance life, written by Virginia copywriter and consultant Kristen King.

About Freelance Writing and The Golden Pencil – Two more personal takes on freelancing written by Anne Wayan, an independent writer, blogger, ghostwriter, editor and writing coach.

Publicity Hound – Although this is written by a public relations specialist for other PR types, freelancers can glean tips on marketing and generating publicity for their own work – and take a peek at how the other half lives.

Jugglezine – Herman Miller’s elegantly designed e-zine is all about balancing work and life, a freelancer’s constant challenge. And if reading it makes you want to spruce up your home office with some new furniture, well hey, you’re in the right place.

The News Business
Romenesko – This daily recap of major happenings inside U.S. newspapers lets ex-staff reporters like me and other news junkies get their fix.

Publishing 2.0 – A blog about how technology is transforming media. Is the Web going to be writers’ salvation, or is it the Dark Side? The publishing industry insiders who write this blog argue for the former.

Copywriting and Corporate Writing
Copyblogger - The well-organized site has multiple authors who cover everything from getting more done to writing better headlines to personal branding. Joel Kelly, interactive media specialist at Cossette Atlantic, calls it “fantastic.”

Bob Bly’s Blog – Bly lifts the veil on the copywriting business and is as good a start as any for magazine writers considering a leap into corporate work. If Bly’s blog – and related Web site – are any indication, there’s a world of difference.

Dianna Huff’s B2B MarCom Writer Blog - Advice from a marketing communications pro.

Copywriter Underground – More solid copy on copy from an industry veteran.

The Bad Pitch Blog – Apparently the P.R. firms whose work gets lambasted on this blog aren’t reading Copyblogger or Copywriter Underground. “Funny and well-written,” says Lewis Harrison, PR and communications manager at Codeworks.

Michael Stelzner’s Writing White Papers – Everything you need to know about writing a corporate white paper.

As the Times story points out, departments stores and newspapers grew up together over the past century and good times at one fueled good times at the other. Now both are on a downward spiral. Macy’s reported a 7.1 percent drop in same-store sales during January, leading them to announce a reorganization and layoff.

Department stores are just one category of advertiser that’s doing less print and more online advertising and causing major damage at newspapers as a result. Craig’s List, online real estate listing services, and eBay among others have decimated papers’ classified advertising sections, causing papers to take drastic steps like cutting staff and slicing or dropping sections.

Some papers are managing to crank out the hits despite curtailed budgets and staff. For purely selfish reasons, I’m happy one is my hometown paper, The Oregonian in Portland. The paper’s dynamic duo of Editor Sandy Rowe and Executive Editor Peter Bhatia have been there 15 years – that’s more like 100 in newspaper editor years – and recently were recently named Editors of the Year by Editor & Publisher, the newspaper industry magazine.

During that time, the Oregonian won 5 Pulitzers and was a finalist 14 times. The paper’s owned by Advance Publications, a privately held communications company that also owns Conde Nast, Fairchild, American City Business Journals and 19 other newspapers. Without public financial records to check, it’s difficult to assess exactly what kind of shape Advance’s newspaper business is in. What’s visibly apparent: on certain days of the week the Oregonian’s pretty skinny, and they’ve started folding the business section into the news section, following a trend at other papers.

On the other hand, the Oregonian’s local news and sports coverage is consistently in-depth, informative and entertaining, and the investigative team is as good as any in the country, thus the prizes. The paper has actively pursued new ventures including producing a couple glossy lifestyle magazines like Exploring the Pearl, and has a home and garden magazine in the works. The paper’s Website could be better; the search function is particularly awful. But the Oregonian’s attempts at getting the general public engaged in the news process as bloggers and on online message boards has been successful.

With newspapers everywhere struggling to cut costs in the wake of falling revenue, it’s no surprise business sections are the first to go. Business doesn’t attract as many advertisers as news or sports sections. In that case, papers are wise to shrink the business news hole to keep operating costs in line with revenue. Many papers have already done this by relegating stock listings to weekend summaries, a smart move considering how many people now track their investments online. Papers have curtailed coverage of publicly traded companies outside their circulation area for the same reason.

So what does that leave business sections to cover? Actually, there’s plenty. Local companies. The impact of general economic trends on local businesses. Consumer advocacy. All important and ambitious subjects that no other news outlets can do quite as well – and I’m not forgetting about the weekly business journals in most cities. Though they’ve been around for a few decades, most business weeklies still fall short of the dailies’ editorial chops. It’ll be interesting to see if downsized business sections remain up to the task.