* I produce a daily newsletter and podcast on local government and the response to the pandemic. As we move into an uncertain fall, it’s important for people in our community to have information they need to know to make decisions. That is the goal of what I am currently calling Charlottesville Community Engagement. Since mid-July, I have posted the results of my newsgathering each day before 11 a.m. Audience is growing!
Please subscribe! The daily newsletter will remain free, but I will add premium content in the form of reports from local government meetings. This will become an important way our community gets information. The podcast is now available on iTunes, Spotify, and other podcast platforms. Subscribe today!
* How to pay for it? Good question. For now, people are supporting my research into local government through Patreon. Patreon is a way for people to contribute money to artists and writers, I have a growing number of supporters. I offer a behind-the-scenes look into how I do this work. For now, a $10 a month pledge gets people a weekly podcast about local affairs that is a lot looser than the one I do every day.
A $25 a month pledge gives people the ability to create four “shout-outs” across the month for causes and nonprofits that they want to support. So far, this has helped one entity meet a $30,000 goal for STEM school supplies. If I believe in it, I will promote it.
* This is all possible because I have produced 47 episodes of a podcast on the pandemic response called the Charlottesville Quarantine Report. This is the link. I am not sure yet what will happen with this program, but I created this show as my own response to the pandemic. Producing this program is what made me realize I want to spend as much of my time as possible reporting, researching, writing, creating ways to help you and as many people as possible understand what’s going on.
* I am building off of 25 years as a professional journalist. I want to use all of my skills and energy to help document what I can as our democracy is tested like never before through a series of crises that are overwhelming. I feel it, too. I am taking this step because I feel compelled to do so.
These times require more journalism and more stories, and I’m back in a profession I’ve felt a calling for for my whole life. I’ve always wanted to be a public service journalist, and here I am again.
* To stay the most up to date on what I am doing, please follow me on Twitter. Twitter is not for everyone, but it is where I publish information first. You never have to even tweet yourself, but until I build up the rest of my new venture, it’s the best place to make sure you know what’s happening in Charlottesville.
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