March wrapup: From the Audience Desk
Good Saturday morning to you!
I’m sending three of our most popular stories from March, and then I’m answering an important question we got from the reader survey. And since you asked, as of this writing Victoria is winning the office March Madness pool. Our girl who wondered what the numbers meant beside the team names has better picks than Michael Phillips, the longtime sports writer.
Most Visited Story
The tragic story of Michael Barrett’s apparent suicide in prison, and accompanying article about his alleged hiring of a hit man to kill his wife were our most read of the month.
On a Lighter Note
There’s a palpable buzz in the air with the Squirrels’ opening day almost upon us. A whole lot of you enjoyed Michael’s rundown of the new CarMax Park. You can hear the excitement in his voice.
Code Refresh. It’s Complicated.
Sarah Vogelsong is the only reporter in the city digging into the nooks and crannies of Richmond’s upcoming code refresh initiative. Her story on allowing small businesses in neighborhoods sheds light on an important angle of this issue that hasn’t been reported on anywhere else.
About Transparency
Thank you to the 765 people who have taken our survey. (Not sent us your thoughts yet? There’s still time.)
Several of you wondered about the influence our newsletter sponsors might have over our content. It’s a reasonable question, especially given the landscape of local news today.
Our team, reporters and board are 100% dedicated to independent reporting in pursuit of the truth. We adhere to transparency standards set by the Institute for Nonprofit News.
Our stated goal is that no donor or corporate sponsor will have any more influence on what we cover and how we report it than any other member of the community. And we really mean it.
Operationally, reporters don’t tell our development team where to find sponsors, and our development team doesn't tell reporters what to write.The Richmonder newsroom is also separated from the development office. If you’re a regular reader, you see these boundaries reflected in unflinching Richmonder stories.
Another fun fact from the survey: You all are very anti-AI in journalism! You have our promise you’ll never see it writing stories for The Richmonder. Real and very bright humans will always write them. Every time. Every word.
Thanks for spending a little of your Saturday with me. Reach out any time.
Enjoy your weekend,
Beth
