When we set out to reinvigorate the Valley Advocate a little more than a year ago, we had some goals in mind. We wanted to bring our venerable newspaper back to its roots: alternative stories, for alternative people — and some mainstream folks who are still cool.
We decided that we should strive to give voice to the voiceless and tackle topics other news agencies have missed. But we also wanted to remain strong allies of the local arts scene, especially of people who are breaking new ground when it comes to “creation.”
Oh, and we also set out to have fun — lots of fun.
And though I have no desire to strap on a flight suit and stand on a Navy ship with a “Mission Accomplished” banner flapping behind me, I do want to humbly offer up the newest incarnation of the Advocate for your reading enjoyment.
This week marks the relaunch of the Valley Advocate. The paper has changed a lot and we wanted a new look to reflect the exciting things going on in the paper and online.
There’s a lot of new things to love about the Advocate. In fact, that wholelottalove feeling is where we got the cover idea for this week’s edition; we wanted to celebrate the newspapers and the community that has given it a home for 42 years.
Recently added to the Advocate family are columnists Naila Moreira and Will Meyer. Moreira writes the Down to Earth environmental column, which runs the second Thursday of the month, covering deeply local topics like Coke’s draw on the Northampton water supply and plastic bag bans. She is a science writer, journalist, poet, and naturalist living in Western Mass. She teaches writing at the Smith College Jacobson Center and she is the Writer-in-Residence at Northampton’s Forbes Public Library, 2015-17. Catch Down to Earth the second week of the month.
Meyer authors the twice monthly Basemental music column and describes himself as a “bedroom journalist” and a “basement musician.” He plays in several bands, including Bucket and New Mom, and he’s a refurbished industrial pillar of the DIY scene. Meyer explains DIY thusly: “Exhausted by the exploitative pay-to-play model often used by established venues — in which up-and-coming bands have to sell a certain amount of tickets to make any money — my musical peers and I continually choose to build alternatives to the mainstream music industry by doing it ourselves.”
There’s also a new marijuana column, O, Cannabis!, written by yours truly. With so much happening with medical marijuana and the recreational legalization measure likely on the ballot, the time seemed right to have a place in the paper for pot talk — everything from economic impact to munchies.
Some of the biggest changes for the Advocate, however, are online. We’ve adopted what we’re calling “the mullet approach” to the management of valleyadvocate.com. You know, business in front, party in the back! From Monday through Wednesday you can expect to see an Advocate homepage loaded up with news — hard-hitting, weird, and/or must-have info — but Thursday through Sunday, things change. The site gives itself over to the good times and local nightlife as it becomes Advocate @Play. On those days, the homepage will feature a new look and organization dedicated to putting the who, what, where, when and why of your weekend plans front and center.
We’re also sending out a newsletter now twice a week. On Tuesday, get links to the Advocate’s latest news and on Thursday receive a roundup of fun things to do on the horizon. Sign up at the bottom of the valleyadvocate.com page.
Getting to this point hasn’t been easy. The editorial team — Jeffrey Good, Hunter Styles, Peter Vancini, Jennifer Levesque, Catherine Gibbs, and Chad LeBaron — have worked tirelessly to redesign and focus this paper. The sales crew — Jonathan Stafford, Colleen McGrath, Bethany Nowak, Marija Boily, and Susan Comee — have been hustling to spread word of the Advocate’s relaunch. Thank you all for the late nights, long work weekends, deadline-induced indigestion and neck sprains, and enduring truly lame breakfasts eaten hastily between planning meetings. We hope you, the readers, think the end result was worth it.
The Valley Advocate will continue to grow and change, staying responsive to the community and the times. But we’re always going to stay committed to covering your hometown, in our own upside down kind of way.
Let us know what you think about the new Advocate. Contact Kristin Palpini at editor@valleyadvocate.com.
