The New City, San Francisco, CA 1998
Partners:
San Francisco Examiner
Maynard Institute for Journalism
After months of ground level reporting, the paper published the first story in the series on April 26, 1998. It was a 175-inch, front page centerpiece that jumped into four inside pages. That first installment also launched a feature called “First Person” that gave people a chance to talk in their own voices. Over the course of the year, the paper published 19 major stories in the series, plus sidebars and “First Persons.”
Editors worked hard to gain strong staff support for the project, even among reporters who didn’t work on it directly. One tool was The New City Tour, a bus tour of some of the city’s more obscure neighborhoods with Max Kirkeberg, a San Francisco State University geographer. More than half the staff took the tour.
Another strategy was to have every department contribute stories to the series, leading to some of the most interesting features, such as a sports department report on cricket, hurling and other exotic, new sports being played in San Francisco’s public parks. The paper had originally envisioned a one year project but felt compelled to continue the series. Stories under “The New City” sig continued to run until the paper was sold in 2000.
Contact:
Sharon Rosenhause (former Managing Editor, San Francisco Examiner)
Managing Editor
Sun-Sentinel
200 E. Las Olas Blvd
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Phone: (954) 356-4602
Email: srosenhause@sun-sentinel.com