Tuesday, November 18, 2008

By MARGARET R. RANDAZZO
mrandazzo@modbee.com

last updated: August 24, 2008 07:23:34 AM

For more than 70 years, The Bee has been bringing you news of your community and region. Now we've become the news.

As individuals and businesses, we all know how challenging economic conditions are right now. That's certainly true for us at The Modesto Bee.

Even though our audience is at an all-time high, even though we are by far the preeminent source of news, advertising and information for our region, and even though we are a strong and successful company, we are not immune from the same challenges and changes that many of you are experiencing.

You've probably read or heard about some of the things we're doing at The Bee, from implementing operational efficiencies to reducing our work force to printing The Modesto Bee at our sister paper in Sacramento.

We're doing so not only in response to the current economic climate, but also to align ourselves and our resources for continued business and journalistic success in the future.

Our actions have prompted considerable discussion in the community -- and have resulted in quite a few misconceptions, none of them true: that the paper is losing readers, that online has taken away most print readers, that the paper is being sold, that The Modesto Bee will become The Sacramento Bee. And on and on.

Let me share some facts and perspectives about the changing world of news and information -- and why we're confident and committed to our future as The Modesto Bee.

We're proud to be the place people turn to for local news and information. And the fact is, more people are turning to us today than ever before. Each week more than 316,000 readers -- 71 percent of all adults in Stanislaus County -- read The Bee. When you include the unduplicated reach added by online readership of modbee.com, we serve 74.5 percent of all adults in a given week. That's a reach that no one -- no single TV station, no radio station, no one -- comes close to matching.

We're also the leading and most effective advertising medium here. We provide a portfolio of offerings that include not only our daily paper and Web site but direct mail, niche publications and other direct marketing products in order to reach the people who don't subscribe to our newspaper.

And we're proud to be part of one of the country's leading news companies, sharing the advantages of an extensive network of newspapers, Web sites and Internet investments.

While traditional printed newspapers remain the economic engine of the company, the digital age continues to change the way readers consume information and advertisers reach their customers, and we are changing with them. More than 10 years ago, we began investing to develop modbee.com. Now, more than 500,000 people visit our site each month, a 60 percent growth in the past two years. Our online revenues have grown more than 90 percent in that time.

Despite that growth, the economic downturn and changing media landscape have reduced revenue for all news media, including us. We need to operate more efficiently to live within our means. That's why we made the decision to partner with our sister paper in Sacramento to print our paper. Yes, it is 80 miles away, but due to shared resources, a dedicated press, increased capacity of equipment and streamlined processes, we're able to significantly reduce costs with only minimal changes in newsroom and delivery deadlines.

In the coming weeks, our editor, Mark Vasché, will be sharing more about what that Modesto Bee will be like. But you can be confident that it will continue to be filled with news and advertising that is local, relevant, timely and useful -- all done each and every day by the largest staff of journalists and advertising reps in our community and region.

Offering employee buyouts, downsizing, changing printing locations -- all these are actions we'd rather avoid, but all are necessary as we adjust operations to meet new challenges.

We don't intend simply to survive. We intend to thrive as we continue to be your most trusted source of news and information.

The Modesto Bee has been around for more than 70 years -- and we plan to be around for many, many years to come.

Margaret R. Randazzo,
president and publisher

Randazzo can be reached at mrandazzo@modbee.com or 578-2091.

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