By Jody Hope Strogoff
THE COLORADO STATESMAN

We’re supposed to cover the news, not make it.

But lately that hasn’t been the case.

The demise of The Rocky Mountain News a couple of weeks ago, along with almost daily accounts of layoffs and financial uncertainty in the newspaper industry, has suddenly transformed news gatherers into news makers. It’s an uncomfortable feeling, to say the least, when the tables are turned on the ones who usually ask the questions. It makes us even more uneasy because we don’t know the answers to such heady questions as whether our profession — our livelihood in most instances — will survive. And, if it does, in what newly generated form?

When I saw former Rocky political reporter Lynn Bartels at the Democrats’ Jefferson-Jackson Day Dinner last weekend, she seemed to be alternating between bouts of mourning over the demise of her old employer just eight days earlier and euphoria over landing a similar reporting position with her former competitor, The Denver Post. She and the handful of News compatriots who were lucky enough to be picked up by the Post have been treated “like royalty” at their new home, Lynn told us with a little amazement in her voice. She’s relieved and content.

Unfortunately, that isn’t the case for some 200 or so fellow newsroom employees who were stripped of their jobs with the recent shutdown of the 150-year-old Colorado institution. People with familiar names were included in the media massacre. These Pulitzer-prize-winning columnists, photographers, reporters and editors have families and responsibilities — and most are ill-prepared for sudden unemployment after many years of relative security.

A year ago, we all were excitedly anticipating the arrival in Denver of the Democratic National Convention. So much news to cover! So much attention bestowed on our great city and state! So much hope for an economic bonanza! Denver Post publisher Dean Singleton and his media company underwrote the purported million-dollar tab for the gigantic party welcoming visiting national and international media to Elitch’s on the Saturday night before the start of the convention last August.

Throngs celebrated the noteworthy occasion with fun food, open bars and convivial conversation. We felt such self-congratulation at being a proud citizen of the “host” city.

Were we really that naïve?

Somehow we thought we were immune.

But by then — indeed even a few years before that historic event — the Internet, blogosphere and other forms of so-called “new media” already had begun to invade our traditional ways of communicating. It was a new era, and it caught many of us off guard.

Some newspapers redefined their focus as a new generation of readers found alternate ways to get their news. Some papers adjusted better than others to these strange new times.

Ultimately, many newspapers lost subscribers as a younger, more sophisticated generation fired up their laptops for abbreviated online versions of news, instead of continuing their previous reliance on old-fashioned newsprint. Craigslist and other electronic networking sites compounded the problems of metro daily papers, which, in the past, had offered robust classified ad sections that kept readers in the know and newspapers in the black.

It was a changing paradigm, one that would send some newspapers over the brink while forcing others to make major adjustments.

Then came the horrific economic downfall.

The newspaper business, not unlike so many other segments of the economy, suffered a massive hit.

The consequences hit home with a pronounced thud, like the sound of a once-thick Sunday newspaper hitting the driveway in the quiet predawn of a weekend morning.

Just an hour ago, I learned — from an online newspaper site, ironically — that the Fort Collins Coloradan, a member of the Gannett media and publishing empire, will soon shut down its presses and outsource its printing to the Denver Newspaper Agency. The net loss of jobs to the hometown community? Forty-eight positions.

They’re neither the first nor the last to publicly mark their casualty status.

Maybe that’s why some of us newspaper folks were a little irked by Jared Polis, who was forced to explain his quasi-giddy comments — recorded unbeknownst to him at a recent Netroots Nation convention — bragging that new media had played a role in the demise of the Rocky Mountain News and other “traditional” media.

I know, I know. The fresh-faced Congress member who made much of his fortune from online business ventures said he meant no harm. He has subsequently apologized — or at least attempted to take the sting out
of his recent remarks, which continue to lurk somewhere out there in
cyberspace.

Jared, whom I’ve known for a long time and consider a friend, has good intentions, and I know he didn’t mean to insult or harm us. But his comments were, nevertheless, hurtful.

I couldn’t help but make a snide little comment to Jared when I saw him at the JJ Dinner last weekend. I should have bitten my tongue, but I was still smarting at his insensitivity. Congressman Polis was ever gracious, of course. His face flushed red only momentarily as he sought to smooth over the few seconds of awkwardness between us.

He even offered us a compliment, or so he thought.

He said he appreciated that our newspaper is now accessible on line.

And there, as they say, is the rub.

To remain competitive in the news business these days you pretty much have to post at least a portion of your content online. Our thoroughly modernized world and its increasingly sophisticated inhabitants demand as much. But by doing so, by bowing to pressure to deliver your product in an instantaneous and more convenient electronic manner, you give readers one less reason to subscribe. Fewer paid subscriptions means less revenue. That translates into tighter budgets for newspapers, and, potentially, smaller newsrooms. Or, in the case of The Rocky, no newsroom at all.

The Colorado Statesman, fortunately, has not been hit as hard as some of our fellow newspapers. In fact, despite all the economic turmoil at the end of last year — which continues to linger today — our little paper had its best year ever and turned a profit. I think some of our success was naturally generated by 2008 being a healthy election year. Candidates still like to see their mugs in print and will advertise to do so.

And all those legal notices that run every week certainly help our bottom line. But if you look carefully at the fine print, you’ll notice that most of them are listings of foreclosures in Denver — which means that while we’re making money, it’s with the knowledge that it’s because, in part, someone is in danger of losing their home. It doesn’t make us feel very good.

The Statesman also benefits from being a “niche” publication, a special-interest medium that is not as reliant on other, more traditional forms of revenue, such as classified ads, the paper versions of which are quickly disappearing.

But we’d be less than truthful if we didn’t acknowledge that it’s tougher these days than it was even a few months ago. The cost of printing has skyrocketed. Postage costs have risen, too. Companies are downsizing, and discretionary newspaper advertising budgets are usually one of the first things to go. Even with fewer newspapers, competition from online publications and other “new media” has taken its toll. And, with most people watching even their pennies these days, subscribers are more apt to let their subscriptions lapse — especially when they can get the news “free” online.

Welcome to the grim newspaper world of 2009.

We acknowledge the challenges ahead and hope our readers will continue to support our 111-year-old newspaper through annual subscriptions, for one thing, despite the fact that we currently post a lot of our editorial content free online. We hope our weekly calendar of political events, our popular Gossip column and the numerous photo spreads that appear exclusively in our print edition will encourage your support and the support of our advertisers. Moreover, we hope that our independent and locally owned publication, which serves as a public forum for the discussion of ideas, will remain an integral part of the political community here in Colorado.

Good news is to share

All is not totally glum, fortunately. We take solace in some “good” news and proudly share with you some of our recent achievements.

Two weeks ago, The Statesman received eight awards in the annual newspaper contest sponsored by the Colorado Press Association. It was the most we’ve ever won in one year. Four of our five first-place awards — including the “Public Service” honor we’ve received many times in the past for Jerry Kopel’s compelling weekly legislative columns — last year came to us through the hard work, talent and dedication of former reporter Chris Bragg. One of our entries in the Public Service contest category consisted of his yearlong series on the problems with voting machines in Colorado during the important 2008 election year. This project involved tireless hours of investigative reporting by Chris, and we are delighted that his efforts were recognized by our peers in the Oregon Press Association, who judged this year’s contest.

Chris also brought top honors to The Statesman for his series on the Democratic National Convention — not the one held in Denver last year, but the one held in 1908. His “Celebrate 1908” series provided readers with a unique look back at all the festivities in Denver 100 years ago.

Before Douglas Bruce even left Colorado Springs for the Colorado Legislature, Chris smelled a story and had the foresight to ask if he could follow the freshman legislator on his first day. His first-hand account of Bruce’s first day — including the now infamous “kick” Bruce bestowed on a Rocky Mountain News photographer — garnered Chris another first-place award.

Chris won yet another first-place writing award for his story about Colorado State University’s exploratory program to transform algae into fuel. A story about pond scum may not sound appealing, but Chris turned in a terrific enterprise story that looked at CSU’s innovative research into energy alternatives in our newly burgeoning green economy.

Chris — no surprise — was in high demand after his award-winning work with The Statesman, and in December was offered a coveted position at a top-notch political publication in New York City. He is now thoroughly entrenched in covering the politics of the Empire State. The Statesman’s loss is certainly New York’s gain. Chris was — and is — a terrific reporter, and we’re extremely proud of his accomplishments, past and current.

Doug Young, our highly creative film reviewer whose Politi-Flix column graces our pages throughout the year, was another big winner in the CPA contest, receiving first place in the Humorous Column Writing category for his poetic treatment of the movie The Bee Movie.

Doug, who works as a fulltime environmental policy adviser for Sen. Mark Udall, has an incredible knack for mining political nuggets from the films he views, and he writes powerful political prose for our highly specialized audience of political movie buffs. Doug has been contributing his outstanding film reviews to The Statesman for many years now, and his insight and imagination are tops. We are so fortunate to be able to showcase his work. Last year Doug attended the Cannes Film Festival, and he will be returning there this year to bring our readers more discerning firsthand accounts.

The Statesman also received a third-place award in the Serious Column Writing category for a column about the death (and remarkable life) of Jack B. Weil, who passed away last year at the tender age of 78. The award also recognized a second column about Denver Post Publisher Dean Singleton’s 2007 front-page editorial, in which he blasted Gov. Bill Ritter for his support of a controversial labor-backed bill.

Another story about labor unions in Colorado and their relationship with the business community garnered our newspaper a third-place writing award for former reporter John Schroyer.

And the entire staff, spearheaded by copy editor Janet Simons, received a second-place award for our headline writing during the contest period. Headline writing is always a fun aspect of the job, and we hope to drum up more witty headers to keep you amused in the future.

In memoriam to a true artist and newspaperwoman

Dan Lynch and Cheryl Meyer at the 2008 Jefferson-Jackson Day Dinner.

And, finally, as we contemplate the loss of The Rocky and quietly yearn for the more innocent days of our past, The Statesman mourns the passing of the newspaper’s founder and editor, Cheryl Meyer, who died of cancer over the weekend. I hope you will oblige me as I tell a little about her and offer a tribute to her life.

After three years of working for a small weekly newspaper in Steamboat Springs in the mid-’70s, I relocated to Denver, hoping to land a newspaper job. If I could have designed the perfect job back then, it would have combined my dual love for the intrigue of politics and the intricacies of journalism. At the time, it seemed like wishful thinking. Politics was not yet the hot topic that now supports several cable networks.

When I heard that a relatively unknown little political publication in Denver called The Colorado Statesman was looking for a reporter, naturally I jumped at the opportunity, although I doubted that a paper based entirely on covering politics could provide me — or anyone else, for that matter — much of a living.

I showed up for my job interview at the newspaper’s “quaint” office in Denver’s Capitol Hill and met, for the first time, a petite, fire-engine-red-haired dynamo by the name of Cheryl Ann Meyer. We seemed to hit if off. She had an engaging personality and a wild, distinctive laugh, which was just the first of many clues into the zany and wry sense of humor that would often peek through her otherwise quiet but charming demeanor.

We walked five blocks down Pennsylvania Street to a small hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant by the name of Las Delicias, then a less-than-1-year-old establishment that barely sat eight people in a single, small room crammed with three little tables. Over bowls of green chili, we talked about politics and newspapering, traded stories and dreams of the future, and tossed around ideas of how we might work together at her tiny weekly newspaper, no more than 12 or 16 pages in size back then.

I would begin my career at The Colorado Statesman a few weeks later with the promised $600-per-month salary finally sealing the deal. (In truth, my compensation was occasionally supplemented with $5 coupons from the now defunct Yum Yum Tree on S. Colorado Blvd., one of the first food court-type restaurants which provided the newspaper with food coupons in partial payment for their ads in the paper.)

Cheryl purchased this newspaper, then known as The Colorado Democrat, with business partner Walt Kinderman in the early 1970s. The Colorado Democrat had existed as the house organ for the Colorado Democratic Party since 1898, but the party had pretty much abandoned it over the years. Cheryl and Walt transformed the one-party publication into The Colorado Statesman, a bipartisan political newspaper covering the organizational workings of both Colorado parties, and politics in general. Under Meyer’s editorial leadership, the paper broke political stories of statewide significance and became a fixture of Colorado political life. She assembled a staff, which, at the time, included a young reporter by the name of Janet Simons, who eventually went to work at the Rocky Mountain News (and who, in 2008, rejoined The Colorado Statesman as assistant editor). When Janet’s reporting position at The Statesman initially became available in late 1978, I was hired by Cheryl to take her place.

After she sold the newspaper to Bob Sweeney in 1980, Cheryl was retained to do periodic graphic layout and design, earning the paper a wall full of awards from the Colorado Press
Association. Cheryl also initiated our popular “Gossip” column and, at the time of her death, continued to contribute to The Statesman as its artistic director. Cheryl is responsible for much of the newspaper’s graphic design and “feel,” which she developed over the years.

Cheryl continued her work in graphic arts after selling the paper, forming Studio 1712, Inc., but she could not contain her creative impulses. She obtained a U.S. Patent for a plastic jewelry organizer, the “Bangle-Hangall,” a series of interlocking wall trays capable of storing a lifetime collection of earrings and other jewelry. She also designed and manufactured a line of artistic metal furniture in partnership with her son, Channing Meyer. Her products were distributed nationally, but her designs were copied by corporate pirates. She filed suit in federal court and won a settlement from one distributor. Her settlement recouped her investment, but the continual knock-offs persuaded her to turn her attention to fine art.

Cheryl is best known for her unique stained glass, clay and metal creations and crosses. She marketed her artwork through a Web site, cherylmeyerdesigner.com.

Cheryl was born in Lyons, Kan., on March 9, 1939, to Philip and Beulah Grey Maher. Her father was a prosperous and respected Kansas pharmacist, but his business collapsed when he and his wife were hospitalized for treatment of alcohol and drug addiction. For a time, Cheryl was separated from her younger brother, Brent Maher. A Presbyterian minister took her in and kept her until her parents were able to reunite the family. Shortly thereafter, they left Kansas and came to Colorado. Cheryl graduated from Englewood High School in 1958.

Cheryl couldn’t make it to college, so she launched herself into upward mobility the old-fashioned way — through talent, competence, grit and remarkable personal magnetism. Hired to work in the mailroom of a Denver mutual fund, she quickly became head of the company’s personnel department. Her passion for art soon made her restless even in that very good job, and she quit to begin a new career at Salesvertising, then one of Denver’s premier ad agencies. She started at the firm as a secretary and girl Friday. While she was there, she completed the “Famous Artists” correspondence course in art and graphic design, leading to a position on Salesvertising’s crew of commercial artists.

Cheryl left Salesvertising to found her own commercial art studio. Over the years, she acquired major clients, including Public Service Company, for whom she created not only ads and annual reports, but the designs painted on Boulder’s city buses, which were then operated by Public Service.

At this juncture, Cheryl and Walt purchased what was to become The Colorado Statesman.

Cheryl died at the Denver Hospice on March 7, 2009, at age 70. She is survived by her loving husband, attorney and former newspaperman Daniel F. Lynch (who was kind enough to supply some of this personal information), her son, Channing, and granddaughter, Satori Bahus-Meyer. She was attended by these survivors at her death, as well as by her former husband Carter Meyer, her brother Brent Maher, and scores of fellow artists and friends.

As Cheryl was a lifelong fan of jazz and green chili, a fiesta is planned sometime in the near future to celebrate her truly inspiring life.

— Jody@coloradostatesman.com