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Tuesday, July 4, 2023
Feels like summer in central Virginia now, doesn’t it? We hope you are having a great July Fourth and staying safe. And we hope that the news we provide helps you plan.
Travis Koshko, the chief meteorologist at CBS19, told us that we should be prepared for more hot and muggy days, and more smoky days with poor air quality. So get your water bottles filled and, while we have good air quality today, keep your KN95 or N95 masks ready for the rest of the fire season.
This week, our reporters are taking time to rest and work on longer term projects. Our Development Director, Michaux Hood, and I are also using this time to focus on the growth and sustainability of Charlottesville Tomorrow. Why? Because we hear from you, our community, time and time again, that while you appreciate what we do, you wish we could cover more of the news in the community.
So today, we want to give you some news about the newsroom, to help you better understand how we are building an organization that responds to your needs. First, I’d like to share more about a collaboration that is really important to us: Charlottesville Inclusive Media.
Watch: Charlottesville Inclusive Media tells media colleagues at a national conference why it’s so important to include more people in the news
Working with the contributors to our project, First Person Charlottesville, and our partners at Vinegar Hill Magazine and the In My Humble Opinion talk show has been so rewarding. Our purpose, after all, is to help build a strong local media ecosystem for central Virginia. And to do that, we need many voices.
I’m also really proud of the Charlottesville Tomorrow team. We are motivated every time we hear from you about how you use the news and information that we produce. We love that you send feedback about the things we do well and what we can do better. Keep that feedback coming! We read every message you send and try to get back to you with our small team as soon as we can.
Connect with us
In the first half of 2023, our work was also recognized by the Virginia Press Association and the Jefferson Foundation. Here are updates from the newsrooms about those honors.
Charlottesville Tomorrow wins Virginia Press Association awards for best government reporting and for giving a ‘master-class in data journalism’
Charlottesville Tomorrow receives the 2023 Thomas Jefferson Foundation Award in Citizen Service
How do we know we’re providing something that matters to you? In May, we (with the help of our newsroom pets) asked you to help us get 100 new and renewing contributors to help us grow our local journalism. We exceeded the goal with 106 people signing on! Thank you to everyone who gave and, thanks to our sustaining monthly donors who give each month. Thanks to so many who have given consistent support to Charlottesville Tomorrow over the years, too. You are how we do what we do.
On Friday, I’ll be sharing work from the community, some of the essays and podcast episodes that were created so far in First Person Charlottesville. Until then, enjoy the holiday!
Best,
Angilee Shah, CEO and Editor-in-Chief
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