Here’s a sampling of the BND’s 2021 coverage plans that you helped to shape
This is a letter that Jeffry Couch, the BND’s editor and general manager, sent to subscribers this week
Dear Readers,
I hope this note finds you safe and healthy.
Today, I want to share with you some of the BND’s 2021 coverage plans that you helped to shape through your suggestions and questions. We’ll add to the list throughout the year, so please continue offering your ideas.
As we begin 2021, the local impact of the pandemic and your need for useful, actionable information continues to be a big part of our job. Most of the COVID-19 questions from BND readers now center on vaccinations, their availability in the region and other details.
We’re listening, and as a result, we’ve made it a priority to regularly publish vaccine information, including question and answer articles as new information becomes available. We are also adding a standing Q&A feature about vaccines that we will post and regularly update, at least until the need no longer exists.
So if you have questions about COVID shots, please contact us at newsroom@bnd.com, and include “vaccines’’ in the subject line.
Other plans for 2021 include:
Expanding our accountability reporting on all of our government-related beats. Readers tell us they value watchdog reporting, and we’re committed to bringing you more.
Completing a staff accountability project that will focus on the broad topic of government transparency and access to public information. We are still working on exactly what this project will look like, so now is your opportunity to weigh in. What are your suggestions? Please send them to jcouch@bnd.com for consideration.
Beginning Chapter 2 of our expanded coverage of East St. Louis and surrounding underserved communities, including the soon-to-be established town of Cahokia Heights. We are hosting listening sessions with residents in these communities to get their feedback and hear their coverage ideas. The sessions will serve as a model for BND listening sessions around the region. We are also launching a new, biweekly newsletter called Mother Baltimore as part of this coverage (you can sign-up for the newsletter here). We will share more on this and related efforts soon.
Detailed reporting on municipal elections, including an Election 2021 guide with exclusive subscriber-only content, and periodic stories about major races.
Sponsoring at least one virtual mayoral debate in Belleville. We have not picked a date or sent an invitation to the candidates, but we will be doing so soon. We are working out the logistics of such an event and will announce our plans as soon as we nail it all down. It will include an opportunity for you to suggest questions to ask the candidates during the debate. Stay tuned for more details.
Our team is discussing other possibilities and open to more ideas. Please share your ideas for coverage topics, new content or specific stories by writing to jcouch@bnd.com or by calling our tips line at 239-2500.
None of this work is possible without the support of generous subscribers like you. We hear and see your commitment to strong, independent community news coverage every day. Your subscriptions help fund what is an expensive undertaking — covering local news in all of its forms, as we have since 1858.
We couldn’t do it without your continued support, and we thank you for it.
And we thank you for supporting the local charities and nonprofits that help people in need and that we highlighted at bnd.com this Christmas season, including a new partnership with United Way of Greater St. Louis to help feed our less-fortunate neighbors. It’s not too late to contribute or volunteer. Here’s the URL to find out how: http://bit.ly/bndgiving.
The BND team appreciates your continued partnership, from your coverage suggestions to your financial support to your generosity toward people in need. We are committed to making your investment pay off with strong, and expanded, news coverage in 2021.
Jeffry Couch
This story was originally published February 4, 2021 at 8:00 AM.
