Southwest Alumni Seeking Input for Mizzou Student Innovation Competition
Janaury 3, 2024
By Adriana Keeton, [email protected]
Washburn native and Mizzou Broadcast Journalism student Lacey Reeves is asking readers to participate in a survey project she is completing for the 2024 RJI Student Innovation Competition this month. Submitted Photo.
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Look for the above postcard insert in this week’s issue of the Advertiser to assist Reeves with her project. Submitted photo.
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Lacey Reeves, Southwest graduate and Mizzou Broadcast Journalism student, is seeking reader input for her project “Most Important News Stories: Ranked” in this week’s issue of the Barry County Advertiser.
The 2024 RJI Student Innovation Competition in which Reeves is competing for a first place prize of $10,000, asked students to create something to help a newsroom measure the impact of their news coverage for their community with the impact measurements not revolving around traditional metrics like clicks, views or visits- but the real life impact of the journalism and its benefit to the communities it serves.
“I want to measure the news impact in Barry County because rural communities often get left out by regional news outlets that mostly cover larger cities,” said Reeves. “It’s important for people to know what’s going on and to stay informed in their communities and in a perfect world, people shouldn’t have to pay for news, it should be free.”
Statistics from the Missouri Press Association show that there are currently 207 member newspapers publishing in the state of Missouri. Of those, 174 are weeklies and 33 are non-weeklies and of those 207, less than 5% are a free distribution newspaper, according to Reeves.
“The Advertiser is one of the last newspapers in Missouri that provides news to a rural audience for free, and when the closest TV station that covers the area is over an hour away, rural communities like Barry County are left without coverage,” Reeves opined. “Without the Advertiser, Barry County would no longer have a place to get their news in the county for free. That’s why I want to know what stories are most important to the Advertiser’s readers each week.”
In this week’s issue of the Advertiser, readers will find a return postage paid survey postcard insert to complete and return to Reeves by the January 25, 2024, deadline. Respondents will be asked to rank their top five story categories in the paper from a list of options, which will assist Reeves with her project, as well as provide the publisher with data about which stories the community considers are the most valuable or memorable.
Respondents will be entered into a drawing on February 1, 2024, for two gift certificates to The Rib in Cassville for participating in the survey.
Reeves graduated from Southwest in 2019 and earned her bachelors degree in Broadcast Journalism in 2023 from Mizzou. She is currently seeking her masters degree as part of the journalism accelerated grad program with plans to graduate in May of 2024.
The Washburn native is currently a reporter and anchor for newscasts each week at the Mizzou owned NBC affiliate station KOMU in Columbia. She has interned for KY3 News in Springfield and has written stories for the Barry County Advertiser.
The 2024 RJI Student Innovation Competition in which Reeves is competing for a first place prize of $10,000, asked students to create something to help a newsroom measure the impact of their news coverage for their community with the impact measurements not revolving around traditional metrics like clicks, views or visits- but the real life impact of the journalism and its benefit to the communities it serves.
“I want to measure the news impact in Barry County because rural communities often get left out by regional news outlets that mostly cover larger cities,” said Reeves. “It’s important for people to know what’s going on and to stay informed in their communities and in a perfect world, people shouldn’t have to pay for news, it should be free.”
Statistics from the Missouri Press Association show that there are currently 207 member newspapers publishing in the state of Missouri. Of those, 174 are weeklies and 33 are non-weeklies and of those 207, less than 5% are a free distribution newspaper, according to Reeves.
“The Advertiser is one of the last newspapers in Missouri that provides news to a rural audience for free, and when the closest TV station that covers the area is over an hour away, rural communities like Barry County are left without coverage,” Reeves opined. “Without the Advertiser, Barry County would no longer have a place to get their news in the county for free. That’s why I want to know what stories are most important to the Advertiser’s readers each week.”
In this week’s issue of the Advertiser, readers will find a return postage paid survey postcard insert to complete and return to Reeves by the January 25, 2024, deadline. Respondents will be asked to rank their top five story categories in the paper from a list of options, which will assist Reeves with her project, as well as provide the publisher with data about which stories the community considers are the most valuable or memorable.
Respondents will be entered into a drawing on February 1, 2024, for two gift certificates to The Rib in Cassville for participating in the survey.
Reeves graduated from Southwest in 2019 and earned her bachelors degree in Broadcast Journalism in 2023 from Mizzou. She is currently seeking her masters degree as part of the journalism accelerated grad program with plans to graduate in May of 2024.
The Washburn native is currently a reporter and anchor for newscasts each week at the Mizzou owned NBC affiliate station KOMU in Columbia. She has interned for KY3 News in Springfield and has written stories for the Barry County Advertiser.
