| Topics: Civic Communication The Charlotte Observer In one of the most extensive civic journalism initiatives in the country, the Charlotte Observer has tackled citizens' concerns about education, the legislature, neighborhood crime, and the 1992 presidential campaign. As the case studies show, the paper has connected with the community by focusing on solutions-oriented reporting, and the "citizens' agenda." Case studies plus. Index Taking Back Our Neighborhoods
Education
Your Voice in North Carolina
Freedom Park Conversations
Your Vote in '92 Contents Taking Back Our Neighborhoods Taking Back Our Neighborhoods Targeting neighborhoods with a violent crime rate at least double that of the city as a whole, the Observer has developed a multifaceted, six-month initiative of coverage, town meetings and coordinated community efforts to help develop solutions in five areas. Teamed with a commercial TV affiliate and two radio stations in coordinated coverage, the paper has established a partnership with the United Way to channel volunteers and pool resources, developed citizen advisory groups in each neighborhood and hired a community liaison officer to encourage neighborhood groups and individual residents to get involved. A case study by Project on Public Life and the Press New York University Department of Journalism 10 Washington Pl. New York, NY 10003 (212) 998-3793 © Project on Public Life and the Press,1994 The Project is funded by a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Charlotte Observer (newspaper)
P.O. Box 32188
Charlotte, NC 28232
(704) 358-3070 (phone)
(704) 358-5036 (fax) Ownership
Knight-Ridder
No. newsroom employees: 240 Circulation
232,000 (daily)
298,000 (Sunday)
Circulation Area (pop.)
13-county Charlotte metro area (1.6 million) Initiative
Taking Back Our Neighborhoods Date:
June 1994-December 1994 Lead Editor:
Rick Thames, metro editor Executive in charge
(if different from above):
Jennie Buckner, executive editor When and how did this initiative get started?
A response to crime was an obvious coverage target after Charlotte's 1994 crime rate rose to 19th nationwide; in population, the city ranks 34th. Impetus for the project was built in late 1993, when the Pew Charitable Trusts offered a competitive grant program for Knight-Ridder newspapers who teamed with local broadcast partners to develop innovative coverage geared toward community solutions. What were the goals?
As stated in a June 5 1A letter to readers by Executive Editor Jennie Buckner: "Our goal is simple: we want to bring the community together to better understand Charlotte's crime problem. We want to foster a broader dialogue about what can be done, including citizens most affected by crime. And we want to rally the entire community to help these most troubled neighborhoods help themselves." What did the initiative entail?
The paper will focus attention on one neighborhood every six weeks for six months, focusing on areas whose crime rate is at least double that of the city as a whole. The stories will: - Describe the general conditions in the area, explaining why it is a focus for the series. - Outline community responses so far, with special attention to citizens who have "fought back" and how they did so. - Profile other neighborhoods where "the tide is beginning to turn" to offer suggestions on ways residents of the targeted areas might develop effective responses to their own problems. Every six weeks, a Saturday town meeting for community residents and leaders citywide will be held in the neighborhoods, with discussion focused on choices to be made and the commitments required to fight crime. Reports on the meetings are aired on TV the next evening; print coverage follows on Monday. Radio partners are developing public affairs programs and call-in shows. A community advisory committee in each neighborhood details problems before coverage begins, suggesting individuals for interviews, offering a snapshot of the area's history and discussing general trends in the neighborhood. The committee also helps mobilize response. Work of this nature, and support for the town meetings, is developed by the project's community liaison officer. The local United Way has set up a hotline to match volunteers with groups that need help, and the paper has set up a toll-free voice mail line for reader response and suggestions on ways neighborhood residents might tackle their problems. What did it look like in the newspaper?
Consistent Sunday-Monday 1A placement for major stories and open letters from Buckner explaining the project and urging citizens to watch, listen to and/or turn out for neighborhood meetings. Pre-meeting stories on local-state section note upcoming meetings; coverage of meeting itself featured on local state; three stories inside A section and local section note upcoming broadcasts of meetings. How many people worked on it?
More than a dozen across the newsroom, including reporting, photography, graphics, editing staffs. Metro editor Thames is essentially working full time on the initiative, delegating other of his tasks to metro assistant editors. A community development officer funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts grant works full time on the effort; her work ranges from coordinating efforts with the United Way to literally knocking on doors to urge neighborhood residents past an ingrained expectation that individuals can do little to solve the problems. Response to the Initiative In the newsroom:
Reporters are slow to give up their cynicism and to accept an approach that attempts to directly move people to action on a problem; however, community response in the early weeks of the initiative is beginning to change attitudes. Still, questions remain about "where to draw the line." These will be discussed in a late July meeting of an Observer writers group, a regular forum convened by reporters; editors are invited to participate but do not drive the topics covered. Elements incorporated into regular newsroom routines and/or culture:
Still a little early to judge; however, the routines of the project are in no small part driven by the paper's experience with the 1992 elections effort. "There's a lot less controversy than there would have been two or three years ago," said Assistant Metro Editor Trisha Green. "Had we tried to go this far with the original presidential project, there would have been open rebellion." In the community:
Overwhelming. Within a week of the first stories, more than 70 groups and individuals had called a United Way hotline to offer their services; 30 more responded in the next two weeks. Also in the first week, a Charlotte church set up a fund to "improve social conditions" in their neighborhood, pledging at least $500; a local design engineer had offered to set up a partnership with minority businesses, and a convicted drug dealer - five years out of prison and clean - had volunteered to work to urge kids to stay away from drugs. After an early story discussed the power of the public-nuisance law to close drug houses and detailed the lack of staffing in the district attorney's office that kept the law from being used effectively, four major Charlotte law firms volunteered to help. The first town meeting on the project drew more than 200 people. Among political leaders:
By mid-July, the chairman of the county commission was pushing for immediate action to build on the momentum sparked by the initiative, and urged the mayor to back away from his initial position: fully review the situation to assess needs citywide before developing a plan and implementing responses. Did any outside group pick up the newspaper's effort and carry it further?
Essentially, the entire initiative is geared toward just that sort of response; as detailed in the community reaction section of this report. What's next:
In coming months, the paper will undertake similar efforts with four other neighborhoods, developing major packages every six weeks. Online clip availability:
Dialog and America Online (Keyword: Mercury. Then: Mercury Center News Library: Charlotte Observer 1994.) Search phrase "Series: Taking Back Our Neighborhoods." Case study written by Lisa Austin, Assistant Director of the Project on Public Life and the Press, July 1994. Lisa is also a member of the CPN Journalism editorial team. More Information Project on Public Life and the Press
New York University
Department of Journalism
10 Washington Pl.
New York, NY 10003
(212) 998-3793 Index Taking Back Our Neighborhoods
Education
Your Voice in North Carolina
Freedom Park Conversations
Your Vote in '92 Back to Communication Index | 
