Vasché: These changes in The Modesto Bee are improvements, too

By Mark S. Vasche'
mvasche@modbee.com

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Starting today you'll find some new and different things in your daily Bee, as we continue to adapt and evolve in this era of unprecedented challenge and change.

We've already made some changes: switching to a narrower page, moving Opinions to the A section and packaging Work & Money with Local News.

Those and other changes, including the ones you'll see this week, have helped us reduce our costs during the severe recession that is hammering all of us -- in our homes, at our businesses, in our schools and government agencies, and, yes, even here at The Bee.

At the same time, we've worked to make sure our changes also are improvements. Thus, we hope you'll like some of the things you'll see this week.

— Today and every Monday we'll be packaging Sports and LifeStyles into a single section filled with fun and games. We know this may create problems on the homefront -- she wants to check the scores and standings, while he wants to read "Ask Amy" and the comics -- but it allows a more efficient and economical production run.

— Tuesdays we'll have the same combo, with Sports focusing on, well, sports, followed by a LifeStyles section geared to fitness.

— Wednesday's weekly Taste section will include more about nutrition and healthy living.

— Thursday we'll give you a break from change, and a chance to get ready for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

— Friday's Scene section, our weekly guide to entertainment, will expand its horizons with the addition of Travel and Books, which until now were found in the Sunday Bee.

Saturday will bring noticeable changes to several sections of the paper. We're dropping the "Your Home" pullout section, and giving the LifeStyles section a new name and fresh focus: "Weekend" will cover the things we enjoy away from work, from gardening to cars to home improvements to hobbies. To do that, we're moving our coverage of religion to the Sunday Bee, where it will anchor our LifeStyles section. And in Saturday's A section, you'll find a single Opinions page with a fresh look.
Sunday will continue to be our showcase, from cover to cover featuring some of the best work by our staff of journalists. In terms of change, the LifeStyles section will focus on faith, family and friends; and it will include plenty of "style," from clothes to home decor.

As we move through the week, each day we'll point out what's new or different in the paper.

We know that change isn't always easy, but hope you'll understand our need to make these changes and our commitment to delivering you a daily paper that is relevant, reliable, timely and useful.

Thank you for reading The Bee and Modbee.com.

Mark S. Vasché

editor and senior vice president