Photo credit: Tyler Nelson
Louis Fortis, Editor/Publisher of the Shepherd Express
For the first time in 38 years, the Shepherd had to suspend publication in mid-March primarily to protect the health of our employees and their families. As you recall at that time, we did not have a good understanding of COVID-19 or its primary mode of transmission and exactly who was most vulnerable. Also, we had a Shelter in Place directive from Governor Evers to try to slow down the transmission of the virus.
Today, even though the number of new cases seem to be on the rise again in Wisconsin and 38 other states, we now have a much better understanding of COVID-19 and a decent understanding of how to protect ourselves if we follow some basic protocols. So, the Shepherd has decided to return to the streets.
During the almost five months without a print edition, there were major changes going on at the Shepherd. First, without a newspaper, we were able to focus all our resources online. We increased the content on our website and significantly increased our website readership. We also started to produce our e-newsletter daily for our over 50,000 subscribers.
It’s a Difficult Industry
When we stopped printing, many readers and even many of my good friends didn’t think we would ever come back as a print publication. I think almost everyone realizes that the media business is a very difficult industry with a difficult business model. With Facebook and Google having convinced much of the world that “print is dead” and they are the only places to advertise, most media companies have been severely hurt. On the bright side many advertisers are now realizing that print also works well for their businesses, and print is rated one of the top three most effective ways to advertise in some of the latest surveys.
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Like most small media companies, we understand the Shepherd will never be a highly profitable venture. However, we also understand that the Shepherd has an important role to play in Milwaukee, so we work hard to ensure we will be around for many more years. We have added creative ways to maintain revenue. We have cut costs. I have not taken a salary for years and I have no plans to ever start taking a salary again. I view the Shepherd as an important institution in Milwaukee, like Summerfest, The Rep, Potawatomi Hotel and Casino, the Outpost, the Pabst Theater, or the Urban Ecology Center. These are all important parts of the cultural fabric of Milwaukee, and I feel it is an honor to be managing this particular institution and keeping it strong for another generation. I tell my friends that since I don’t have children or grandchildren to spend my money on, I will use the money to help support the Shepherd. I believe it is that important for Milwaukee.
Who is the Shepherd Readership?
The Shepherd readership is large and though it dropped from its highest number according to the well-regarded Media Audit of over 270,000 readers around 15 years ago, it still has over 185,000 print and online readers. In addition to our large readership, Media Audit has consistently shown our readers are smart, active individuals who are engaged in their communities and are better educated and have higher incomes than the average Milwaukee area resident. Shepherd readers are the people who make things happen in Milwaukee.
The Shepherd has made many changes over the past 38 years, but the underlying goals have essentially stayed the same. The Shepherd is committed to honest, intelligent and courageous “call it the way it is” journalism that should be available to all our citizens without any price barriers. The Shepherd has been committed to helping move Milwaukee forward in a progressive direction and has supported all the wonderful things our fellow citizens are doing to make this such a vibrant community. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the Shepherd has always been on the front lines of Milwaukee’s and Wisconsin’s push for social justice.
Social justice, as many of you know, has not always been a popular issue, but this has changed over the past few months. After we have all witnessed the slow and brutal murder of George Floyd captured on cell phone video by a brave young woman who would not stop recording the murder, America has awakened to our need to create some serious change. While some have criticized the Shepherd over the years for its views on social justice and some rightwing business owners have refused to advertise even after admitting that “your readers are our customers,” a majority of Americans and the Shepherd Express are now on the same page on many social justice issues according to the recent national polls.
Our New Model Going Forward
So, going forward, what is the new Shepherd model? Over the past five months I have spent a lot of time on the phone with loyal readers, advertisers and fellow publishers of weeklies similar to the Shepherd, and I’ve had many meetings with key staff to work out our model going forward. Our goals will continue to be to provide the Milwaukee area and the state of Wisconsin with honest, courageous journalism, highlight the hundreds of progressive things that our fellow citizens are doing, support the arts and entertainment community and help promote all of Milwaukee’s unique businesses and nonprofit organizations which make Milwaukee such a great place to live, work and play.
Our readers said they wanted the Shepherd to continue what it is doing but would like us to explore some additions--an architecture and design section, a health and fitness column, an engaging business and economics section, more neighborhood features and many other great ideas to be done in a Shepherd way.
Our advertisers said they enjoy our publication, love our demographics and reaching that audience, and they want us to do whatever we can to make their ads “jump off the page.” Some of our fellow publishers are questioning the need for a weekly paper if you combine our daily online content with a well-designed monthly. The fellow publishers are also discussing ways to diversify our revenue streams, so we are not totally dependent on advertising.
All the above discussions have helped us shape the new Shepherd model. The Shepherd will continue to build our engaging online presence with our website that provides hour by hour news coverage and our daily e-newsletter that comes to your inbox every day. We will be slowly adding new sections over the next year as we find the right individuals to manage those sections. Our monthly printed Shepherd will highlight some of the best articles presented in an aesthetic and engaging glossy news magazine. We believe that the creativity along with our dynamic new format will cause our ads to “jump off the pages.”
Friends of the Shepherd Express
Finally, we will continue to expand our current efforts to diversify our revenue base beyond advertising. In January we created our Friends of the Shepherd program to enable our readers to conveniently provide monetary support. Each year, we would receive a few letters from readers who understood the difficult business environment media companies face and would enclose a check. They would say things like, “we have been enjoying the Shepherd for years and felt we need to help support it.”
The Friends of the Shepherd Express provide an easy way for our dedicated readers to help us continue to pay the bills by becoming subscribers to the Friends of the Shepherd Express. Through the Friends of the Shepherd, I met, over the phone, a 104-year-old Milwaukee area woman who has been a lifelong advocate for social justice and a strong supporter of the Shepherd. When the pandemic has been brought under control, she invited me to her home for coffee. What an honor!
We hope that the future Shepherd model provides you everything you expect from the Shepherd Express plus more.
Stay safe in these uncertain times,
Louis Fortis Editor/Publisher Shepherd Express
