Crisfield-Somerset County Times
The coronavirus emergency was a wrench dropped into the
gears of the national economy. The Crisfield-Somerset County Times supports
local businesses and its advocates — not just through news but in its Public
Forum pages.
In Crisfield, there has been a relationship with the Greater
Crisfield Action Coalition (GCAC) as it reports periodically on its members,
business and community accomplishments. The information is formatted
differently to distinguish it as sourced from GCAC (and edited as needed).
In conversations with the coordinator of Main Street
Princess Anne, the paper suggested Main Street could follow a similar model
especially as the pandemic spread. Using the same format and cues as GCAC, for
the first time Main Street introduced its member businesses with news and
photos about what changes were going on downtown.
This was a win-win considering the travel restrictions and
the ability of the Main Street coordinator to be johnny-on-the-spot with a
camera as shown in the April 8 edition, when the family behind a local eatery
was leaving to make a delivery to first responders, or when racks of bread
arrived at a local store to show that it was open with essential items to serve
its customers.
The page even included an educational graphic about social
distancing (using three muskrats, the town’s mascot as the guide), and
introduced a promotion to #ChalkPrincessAnne with sidewalk art with photos
appearing the following week.
Main Street’s interest in taking the opportunity to expand
its outreach was appreciated and it provided another voice to the Public Forum.
Delaware State News April Mission Report
Great team reporting by Matt Bittle and Glenn Rolfe
documented the coronavirus spread in April in Sussex County, primarily among
poultry workers who live and work in tight quarters, and the demands for action
and response that followed as the state saw its largest daily spikes in
southern Delaware. The Georgetown Zip Code became the state’s highest
concentrated area and community leaders and elected officials expressed
frustration and sought action to stop the transmission.
Glenn in March outlined the challenges that could arise in
reaching non English speakers in Sussex and the issue blew up in mid-April. The
state began to acknowledge the challenges on Friday, April 17, when Gov. John
Carney said the state would be working with the poultry companies to stress the
need for social distancing practices and isolation when exposed. Glenn learned
a local doctor was screening residents in Georgetown the next day and was able
to get photos.
By Wednesday, April 22, he reported the frustration
among advocates for migrant workers and minority communities who sought to
address the growing problem and seek help from the state. State and local
elected officials weighed in.
Several days of great coverage followed as those complaints
drew attention and reaction. Christiana Care literally rolled into town April
22 to conduct testing with its mobile unit at Delaware Technical Community
College in Georgetown. (Thursday front page) Delaware’s public health workers
with medical corps volunteers tested and screened workers at the Milford Perdue
Plant on Thursday (kudos to Marc for his determination in getting those images)
and Friday’s paper carried the news that cases had doubled in 10 days as
outreach in Sussex continued.
At the governor’s Friday press conference April 24, he urged
people not to go to Sussex County and Health Secretary Kara Odom Walker tested
her Spanish skills to plea to the Hispanic community not to be afraid to get
care.
By Tuesday, April 28 (Wednesday front page) Gov. Carney
declared Sussex a virus hot spot and said a partnership of community agencies,
hospitals, poultry plants and state departments would offer widespread
community testing and educational outreach.
More testing followed Wednesday April 29 and, as expected,
cases numbers spiked. (Thursday’s front page.)
A credit to Matt and Glenn whose well-established contacts
helped develop those stories to inform readers beyond statistics and government
heads. Glenn’s prior solid coverage of the Hispanic community provided him with
sources who trusted him and were willing to talk and provide access.
Banner and sister papers cooperate for deeper coverage
Challenging times require creative solutions - a strategy we can
see INI’ers embracing. As we in Cambridge work to bring the news to Dorchester
readers, we look for a depth of regional coverage we just couldn’t do by
ourselves.
Publisher Darel LaPrade said last fall that he would like to see
the area’s offices function as bureaus for each other, a timely suggestion
indeed, now that we have regional issues needing close examination.
That’s where our fellow editors come in.
The Banner continues to receive some great reporting – we have to
mention Brooke Schultz’s work here - on Delmarva issues that concern not only
the folks in Crisfield, Salisbury and Dover, but right across our peninsula,
including in Dorchester County.
One example of cooperation would be the story we wrote and posted
online for the Banner on April 20, about Gov. Larry Hogan’s announcement of
500,000 COVID-19 tests received from South Korea. That’s enough to affect and
interest any Delmarva reader, so we sent it to the Salisbury Independent, the
Crisfield/Somerset Times, and the Delaware State News.
Right away, Richard Crumbacker in Crisfield sent us a different –
ok, a better – photo to go with the story, as we were paginating that week’s
paper. So we updated the article online, and got that photo on the front page.
A minor change? Maybe. But there’s an accumulating weight behind
these stories and photos we share. Richard in Crisfield, Greg Bassett in
Salisbury, and Ashley Dawson in Dover have all sent us numerous items that make
the Banner a stronger publication, while making the job easier and our
journalism more effective.
That’s a win-win, no matter how you look at it.
We’ve tried to keep our end of the bargain, by sharing stories
that apply to those areas as well. Some end up in the newspapers, others go
online, some might make it into print just as standalone photos or brief items.
That’s fine, it’s all about giving our colleagues options to
present the best product we can to our readers, who are depending on us now
more than ever. Small staffs, effective technology and big cooperation are
going to get us through this situation, as we create improved ways to serve our
communities.
So, here’s a big “Thank you!” to Ashley, Greg and Richard for all
their help.
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Governor
Larry Hogan Facebook/Screenshot
Gov. Larry Hogan announces the receipt of
500,000 COVID-19 test kits from South Korea, which will significantly ramp up
Maryland’s testing ability which as of Monday, April 20 was just 71,000 tests
performed. From left with Gov. Hogan at his April 20 news conference are Hong
Seok-in, South Korea’s director general for public diplomacy and cultural
affairs for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Jimmy Belson, sign language
interpreter; and First Lady Yumi Hogan.
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Salisbury Independent
As the Coronavirus pandemic continues to dominate local news
coverage, finding a new and interesting way to report on it can be a challenge.
Salisbury Independent reporter/photographer Brice Stump found an entirely new
angle. Working with a local historian, Stump mined a family journal from 1918,
in which the family patriarch documented how the Spanish Influenza pandemic
affected life on the Eastern Shore. The relaying of news where friends and
neighbors were infected – as well as the stay-at-home orders that were closely
followed -- brought the history of yesteryear right into modern day. The
similarities of life during that health crisis closely matched what we’re
facing today. The story received well more than the typical Facebook traffic
and reader feedback. The package was also shared and used across the local
newspapers group.
