Posts Tagged ‘New Orleans Times-Picayune’

A New Orleans Institution in a New Era

Tuesday, May 29th, 2012
Cafe du Monde

Cafe du Monde

A fun morning ritual of my frequent visits to New Orleans is enjoying coffee and beignets at Cafe du Monde (shown here in one of my older photographs) while reading the local newspaper, the Times-Picayune. So I was saddened to read that its print schedule has been reduced; it will now print only on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, leaving New Orleans without a major metropolitan daily newspaper. More resources will be shifted to the web for digital news gathering and reporting. In my work with local small businesses on disaster preparedness and recovery issues, I have had the pleasure of meeting reporters from the Times-Picayune, who shared their stories of working through Hurricane Katrina, for which the paper won two Pulitzer prizes. Reporters and editors worked round the clock to give the community critical information even as their own families and neighbors evacuated and their own homes flooded. Their dedication to duty was a constant when everything else in the city was in upheaval. In the aftermath of the storm, the Times-Picayune doggedly pursued stories of promised relief aid, what worked and more, often, what didn’t. More recently, the newspaper has provided consistent coverage of local corruption and brought needed transparency to institutions that had not been held to account. What I most appreciate about the newspaper is its broader civic commitment.  Times-Picayune reporters have shared with me their experiences and lessons learned about disasters to contribute to sharing best practices with the larger small business community. While struggling and failing newspapers across American communities have sadly become the norm, the loss of the daily paper in New Orleans has particularly severe impact, given its contribution to building back a better New Orleans. In a city where many institutions are dysfunctional, the Times-Picayune is a world-class institution that inspires local pride. I hope the paper finds the means to return to its daily print schedule. New Orleans is a poorer city without it.