Taking a crash course in business journalism

Mark B. Evans, the new editor at Inside Tucson Business, tells John Schuster of the Tucson Weekly that he’s having to take a crash course in business journalism.

Schuster writes, “‘I read and know business journalism, but I need a crash course on the bread and butter of business journalism and finding out what the readers of Inside Tucson Business want,’ Evans said. ‘Is their demand for business news currently being served by ITB? I think in part, but I think there are areas we can improve on, so I’ll talk to the business community and find out what they want from that publication.’

“Once he has the lay of the land, Evans hopes the next step is utilizing the publication to pursue business concerns in Tucson and Southern Arizona more in-depth.

“‘I don’t think it’s a very effective model for weekly newspapers in a metropolitan daily market to come out on Wednesday or Thursday with stories readers already read four days earlier in another publication or saw on TV already. You need to be giving readers information they didn’t know,’ said Evans, who prided himself on a more investigative reporting approach during his time as editor of the Northwest Explorer, before he joined the print version of the Tucson Citizen as an assistant city editor. ‘Trying to constantly dig up breaking news is difficult with a small staff, but taking stories that have already been covered and getting to the bottom of the story with some analysis and perspective can generate a lot of readership. And they’ll be impactful stories, stories of significance.'”

Read more here.