Monthly Archives: February 2012

Forum Communications Co. buys press for new newspaper production center in Duluth, Minn.

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Forum Communications Co. has purchased this former beverage distribution facility in Duluth, Minn., to house a new Goss newspaper press to be installed there.

DULUTH, Minn. – Forum Communications Co. officials have announced the purchase a new state-of-the-art newspaper press and a new industrial property in which to house the press and become the center of a new production center in Duluth. The facility will serve the Duluth News Tribune and other regional newspapers owned by the company, and other publications.

Company executives said that the Goss newspaper press should be operating in the new production center, located in a former beverage distribution business in the northern part of the city, by late September.

The administrative and newsroom functions of the Duluth News Tribune, however, will remain at its downtown location, said Publisher Ken Browall.

The total cost of the production center project will range between $5 to $7 million, said Forum Communications Co. CEO Lloyd Case, making the project the company’s largest capital investment of the year.

“Every year, Forum Communications invests a certain amount of profits back into the company,” Case said. “We just believe newspapers are here to stay. We’re going to continue to invest in our properties and provide our employees with state-of-the-art equipment and facilities. That’s our philosophy.”

Paper loaded on the current press at the Duluth News Tribune in downtown Duluth, Minn.

Company officials said the purchase of the new production center was necessary because the new press can’t be installed in the newspaper’s downtown building and simultaneously keep the current press operating. In addition, the new site is move-in ready and contains the multiple loading docks, large garage doors and the space needed not only for a newspaper production center, but also a distribution center.

The Duluth News Tribune also currently prints the Duluth Budgeteer News, Superior (Wis.) Telegram, Lake County News-Chronicle in Two Harbors, Minn., and Pine Journal in Cloquet, Minn., which also are owned by Forum Communications. It also prints other regional newspapers.

Forum Communications Co. is a multimedia information company based in Fargo, N.D. In addition to the Duluth News Tribune, Forum Communications owns dozens of newspapers, websites and television and radio stations in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

FCC employees host ‘Living with Water’ community discussion

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Forum Communications Co. employees (at the front of the room) from The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead and WDAY-TV in Fargo host a discussion on the company's month's long multimedia reporting project known as "Living with Water." The Sunday (Feb. 19) discussion was held as a part of Concoridia College's Communiversity lifelong learning program.

Forum Communications Co. employees from The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead and WDAY-TV in Fargo hosted a community discussion Sunday (Feb. 19) in Moorhead, Minn., regarding the company’s “Living with Water” multimedia reporting project. The discussion was held as part of Concordia College’s F/M Communiversity Program which offers non-credit, educational, cultural and social opportunities for those interested in lifelong learning.

Forum Editor Matthew Von Pinnon moderated the panel discussion, and Forum reporters Kristen Daum, Marino Eccher and Patrick Springer offered their insights on what they learned during their months of research and writing on water topics, including flooding, diversion, and dam issues along the Missouri, Red and Sheyenne Rivers, along with ongoing concerns in the Devils Lake basin.

WDAY-TV metereologist John Wheeler discussed how weather patterns have played a role in water surplus and drought conditions.

Beginning last fall, FCC reporters from multiple locations – including Dickinson, Grand Forks and Jamestown, N.D.; Detroit Lakes, Minn.; and Mitchell, S.D. – undertook the “Living with Water” project, a multimedia reporting project involving print, broadcast and digital platforms, to build an understanding about water and its impacts on the lives of people in the Dakotas and Minnesota, including ways in which our uses of water impact other regions and how their uses impact us. Topics have included: coping with record-breaking flooding, demands for higher quality water and ways in which we ensure an adequate supply for the future.

The stories published five consecutive Sundays in The Forum, the Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald, The Dickinson (N.D.) Press, The Jamestown (N.D.) Sun and The Daily Republic in Mitchell, S.D., and will culminate this coming Sunday (Feb. 26). The stories also are being shared on WDAY-TV in Fargo, WDAZ-TV in Grand Forks and online at http://water.areavoices.com.

Forum Communications Co. releases photo gallery app for iPad

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News Lens app splash page.

FARGO, N.D – Forum Communications Co. announced today that it has released a new iPad app designed to aggregate the work of its dozens of award-winning photojournalists from newspapers throughout the Upper Midwest.”

The new FCC News Lens app contains more than 3,700 photo galleries, comprised of 44,000 photos taken by journalists in Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota, aggregating the news photography of 30-plus Forum Communications newspapers. And the volume of content is always growing.

More and more readers who are looking for high-quality news and entertainment content are turning to the iPad, which is a fantastic way to view the work that FCC’s photojournalists are producing in hundreds of communities throughout your region. Now, when you’re looking for photos about what’s happening in your community or photos from the big game or even photos of your town’s recent festival, they’ll be immediately accessible at your fingertips on your iPad.

View of the local newspaper menu available in News Lens app.

“This iPad app gives Forum Communications an exciting new platform to display the prize-winning photojournalism that takes place in our communities every day,” said Steve McLister, FCC vice president for print. “We’re proud of the work that our photographers do, and now we’ve found a way to share with you the work that all of our company’s fine photojournalists do, not just the work of your local newspaper professionals.”

The new app is designed to reward the consumer with a memorable experience, offering easy-to-use menus, touch screen navigation, key word searches and large, bold, high-resolution images of the day’s most telling news photos, engaging feature photos and breathtaking special photo projects. You can find the new app and directions on how to download it in the Apple store.

In addition to being a great way to stay in touch with the news generated by FCC’s hundreds of professional journalists, the News Lens also offers advertisers a unique new way to gain exposure to the wide and diverse audience that views our digital products. This new product allows advertisers to use a geo-targeted approach in delivering their message to an audience they know is mobile and tech savvy, capturing for them the users that are most likely to use their services.

An example of the large, high-resolution images available in the News Lens app.

“We strive to give our clients the most unique opportunities to expose their businesses to our wide audience, and the News Lens app certainly is one our most unique,” said Chris Dorsey, FCC digital sales director. “Contact us to learn about combining advertising in the new photo app with advertising on platforms such as the printed newspaper or the paper’s website to deliver the results you’re looking for.”

For more information about using this new content app to promote your business throughout the Upper Midwest, contact FCC Digital Sales Director Chris Dorsey at 701.451.5740 or at cdorsey@forumcomm.com.

For more information about the News Lens, or other FCC digital products in general, contact Digital Content Operations Manager Devlyn Brooks at 701.241.5545 or at devlyn.brooks@fccinteractive.com.

The FCC News Lens app is owned by Forum Communications Co., a multimedia information company based in Fargo, N.D. In addition to digital content apps, Forum Communications offers opportunities to market your business through dozens of newspapers, websites and television and radio stations across the Upper Midwest.