Thursday, October 30, 2008

How to Choose

A massive special section will be published in The Register Citizen on Thursday, Nov. 13, featuring articles on how to choose a dry cleaner, how to plan a birthday party, how to pick a mortgage lender, etc.
It should be a great coffee table-type resource for families.
The deadline to advertise is Wednesday, Nov. 5. Call our advertising director, Tilda Crossman, at 860-489-3121, ext. 314, or email her at tcrossman@registercitizen.com, if you're interested.
And be sure to pick up a copy of the Nov. x print edition. This section will be a keeper.

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Tuesday, October 28, 2008

'Gas Buddy' a cool feature of new Web site

One of the coolest features of our new Web site, now live at www.registercitizen.com, is "Gas Buddy."
It's an interactive road map that shows the price of gas at various gas stations and convenience stores throughout the area. Click on a price, and the name and address of the station will pop up.
If you plan on traveling, just move the map from side to side, or zoom in and out, and you can see what the price of gas will be along your route, so you can find the lowest price along the way.
CLICK HERE to check it out.

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Monday, October 27, 2008

Time running short for United Way

There are just three days left in one of the most crucial fundraising campaigns for the United Way of Northwest Connecticut in recent memory.
The United Way had to lower its goal from last year's amount this year because of the tough economy, but the tough economy also means that the 22 local agencies supported by the United Way are facing greater demand than ever, and are in greater need of the United Way's support than ever.
Businesses are urged to turn in pledge cards at the United Way's office at 16 Bird St. in Torrington before Thursday, and if you haven't been contacted about the campaign, please call 860-489-4131 to participate.
Individual donations are also key to the United Way's success. They can be mailed to the United Way of Northwest Connecticut, P.O. Box 1001, Torrington, CT 06790, or online with a credit or debit card at http://northwestunitedway.org.

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Election Guide coming

If you've put off an in-depth look at your choices on the Nov. 4 ballot, or want one last review before making a decision, be sure to pick up a copy of the Sunday Register Citizen for a comprehensive (i.e., massive) voters' guide.
We'll be profiling every race and candidate, from president, right on down to each local state representative race.
We'll also cover the ballot questions on the statewide ballot (constitutional convention and voting age questions) and the charter changes being considered in Torrington and Winsted.
Questions about content? Email Editor Jordan Fenster at jfenster@registercitizen, or call him at 860-489-3121, ext. 333.
Want to advertise in this section? Email advertising rep Mindy Hobson at mhobson@registercitizen.com, or call her at 860-489-3121, ext. 320. The deadline for advertising is 5 p.m. Wednesday.

New Web site debuts

A new-look registercitizen.com will debut first thing Wednesday morning.

Click on the headline below for my column about it.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Local news beyond the boundaries of print
A lot has changed since my first day working as a reporter at my hometown weekly in Maine. We didn't have a Web site or email addresses, and we walked down to the library if we needed to use a fax machine ...

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Weekly Columns

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Who's afraid of a constitutional convention?
A little-talked-about referendum will appear on the statewide ballot in Connecticut Nov. 4, and opponents consider it such a threat that they've raised more than $830,000 to defeat it, compared to supporters' paltry war chest of less than $12,000.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Quality of directors affects groups large and small
Criticism from both sides of the controversy swirling around the departure of Torrington High School Principal Dr. John Metallo has centered on the role of the Board of Education.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Headlines can make, lose or warp the point
Headline writing is not as easy as it looks. Or, at least, I've encountered very few people in the newspaper business who can say that they've mastered the art of finding the right mix of words that will grab potential readers without becoming inaccurate, misleading or inappropriate.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Young professionals and a downtown catalyst
We walked by some depressing empty storefronts on the way there, were the only pedestrians in sight, and didn't have to fight much traffic to cross the street at 6 p.m. But we were full of optimism on Thursday evening at a social event in the heart of downtown Torrington.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Why we published police department documents
We did something last week that was controversial, but an easy decision for us to make.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Can you become an Everyday Hero?
I have a pretty high opinion of the people who work each day and night to produce the newspaper you are reading.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Time to think about what's on our pages
We're at an important crossroads over here at The Register Citizen, and with it, have an opportunity to do a better job giving readers and advertisers what they need and want. After four years at the paper, three and a half as our top editor, Mary Dempsey has left to pursue another opportunity.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: The value of appearances in downtown
In tough economic times, when school budgets are being cut, when everyone's feeling the pinch of higher gas and heating oil prices, you'd think revelations that more than $60,000 a year is being spent for a "Garden Goddess" to maintain the flowers at Coe Park would spark immediate and overwhelming opposition from Torrington residents.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Mad about the newspaper? Tell me about it
Does The Register Citizen land in your bushes each morning, when all you ask in this world is for the newspaper to fall three feet to the left, on your doorstep?

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Mad about the newspaper? Tell me about it
Does The Register Citizen land in your bushes each morning, when all you ask in this world is for the newspaper to fall three feet to the left, on your doorstep?

COLUMN: My daughter's take on the diaper issue
Experiencing the world with a toddler is like experiencing the world for the first time again, and seeing things through my daughter Marley's eyes reminds me all the time of the amazing and beautiful things about life that adults take for granted.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Torrington can reap benefits of region
The city of Torrington made headlines recently by ranking at and near the top of two national rankings of small cities.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: And now for some 'Good News'
There's a criticism about The Register Citizen I've heard more than once since returning as publisher. It goes something like this:

COLUMN: A Northwest Connecticut heating oil crisis
It was hot and humid in Northwest Connecticut last week, temperatures in the 90s.

FROM THE PUBLISHER: Why we're publishing Sound Off
No feature of The Register Citizen has been as instantly popular and as heavily criticized in recent memory as "Sound Off" has since its debut on this page a few months ago.