The Forum has added sections for Candia, Northwood and Nottingham, and is soliciting volunteers for all towns. Candia and Northwood both have articles posted, far ahead of their previous goal of having content by early 2006.
The Forum, the new online newspaper for Deerfield, N.H., and surrounding towns launched in late August after a whirlwind four months of activity and quickly had 6,500 visitors.
Philbrick James Forum volunteers designed the website, selected a name that would allow them to expand by early 2006 into three surrounding communities, recruited three columnists and several pro bono advisers, developed editorial policies and advertising fundraising plans, and applied for and received their own 501(c)3 nonprofit designation.
“We are exhausted and exhilarated,” said editor Maureen Mann on the eve of the August 20 launch of the inaugural edition.
The Forum’s Pledge
- To report the news with accuracy and objectivity, and treat people with respect.
- To provide content to help citizens make informed decisions about local issues.
- To facilitate community debate.
- To furnish an opportunity for creative expression.
- To correct our errors in a timely manner.
An ad in the school newsletter generated a substantial amount of interest, including an invitation from the Board of Selectmen to have the group appear and explain the project.
A local businessman is helping the group develop a plan to recruit sponsors and advertisers. Classified ads can be purchased online for $10 for the first 25 words. And plans have been made for the group’s first fundraiser early next year. A popular local group, the Coffeehouse Band, has offered to do a benefit concert for The Forum.
For its launch, The Forum provided free ads for local businesses who donated support, including the pizza shop that donated a gift certificate to the winner of a contest for naming the site.
The Franklin Pierce School of Law has been providing free legal advice, which helped The Forum volunteers apply for nonprofit status and spin off from the local library, which had agreed to be the group’s initial sponsor.
While the site’s content is still being developed, the group has recruited a potential restaurant reviewer, a quilt columnist and a sports reporter and general advisor. The site invites coverage not only of local headlines, but also police logs, the “Y” Generation, arts and crafts, obits, profiles, sports, gardening and entertainment. There is also a “Fun Page.”
The Forum’s volunteers have laid out plans for also providing news coverage for Candia, Northwood and Nottingham. While some Candia coverage has been developed, content for the other two towns is slated for early 2006. Plans for expanding coverage influenced the choice of The Forum name. “We wished to avoid the name of our specific town in order to appeal to a regional community,” Mann said.
The ad in the back-to-school newsletter will solicit more volunteers and contributors.
