Tag Archives: Birmingham Magazine

Intern – Birmingham Magazine (2011)

Our pal Carla Jean at Birmingham Magazine reminded us that the deadline to apply for an unpaid, part-time editorial internship in the spring (January-April) is Dec. 1. For more information, see our previous post.

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Need a job? Check our job board.
Have a job to fill? Contact The MOB for your free listing.

August event: The Birmingham Magazine Showcase

  • Birmingham MagazineTuesday, Aug. 17
  • 5:30-7:30 p.m.
  • Infomedia, Teklinks building, 201 Summit Parkway, Homewood [map]
  • $10, RSVP required ($20 late fee)

How Can Traditional Media Co-Exist with New Media?

Learn from staff members at Birmingham Magazine as they demonstrate how they’ve incorporated social networking to engage readers online.

See how they got started with new media and what innovative tools lie in the magazine’s future including the new City Guide iPhone app.

Join us Tuesday, Aug. 17 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Infomedia. (See directions below.)

  • 5:30-6 p.m. – networking
  • 6-7 – Birmingham Magazine presentation
  • 7-7:30 – City Guide iPhone App presentation

Invite your friends and colleagues in media (print, broadcast, online, etc.), public relations, advertising and marketing.

Please RSVP by Friday, Aug. 13, 5 p.m.

Note: You must RSVP for this event — NO WALK-INS.

Special thanks to our location sponsor Infomedia.

Questions? Contact us or leave a comment.

P.S. Please join our free mailing list for all the updates straight to your In box.

Want to sponsor a MOB event? It’s easy.

Directions to Infomedia:

  • Take I-65 to Exit 256A, Oxmoor Road (Homewood).
  • Head west on Oxmoor for 0.4 miles.
  • Turn right onto Summit Parkway (just before Hamburger Heaven).
  • Head uphill, turn right into the Teklinks parking lot.
  • At the main entrance, we’ll be in the big conference room on the left.

EXCLUSIVE: Over the Mountain Journal changes editors after 17 years

Over the Mountain Journal, a suburban Birmingham biweekly newspaper, has changed editors after 17 years.

Publisher Maury Wald laid off editor Cara Clark in March “due to the economic slump we’re continuing to struggle with.” The newspaper also laid off Lucy Merrill, features writer for 14 years.

On Monday, Laura McAlister began as the new editor of Over the Mountain Journal. McAlister, shown at left, formerly served as Web editor for the Birmingham Business Alliance and Birmingham Magazine.

Clark, shown at right, said by e-mail:

“As it was explained to me, (Over the Mountain Journal) has sustained revenue losses for many months now, and the publisher could no longer afford to pay my salary.

“With the newspaper industry suffering nationwide, it has been a concern, but our editorial staff (both of us) thought we had a strong enough niche in the community to keep things going. It was quite a surprise when we were told the situation.

“For me, it came at a time when I’d just returned from nearly a month-long embed with the troops in Afghanistan. I think it was time for a change, but a bit more preparation would have been helpful. Still, I hope to return to Afghanistan this summer. Meanwhile, I’m looking for work locally, as I’d just signed an apartment lease before the layoff.

“Being with the troops and experiencing life in Afghanistan was a long-time dream and life-changing experience. It taught me much about myself, including my ability to adapt to inhospitable circumstances in a war zone. I left at the end of December and returned near the end of January.”

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Cara Clark: Facebook | LinkedIn

Laura McAlister: Facebook | LinkedIn

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Read more Birmingham media updates.

Have a news tip? Let us know!

Intern – Birmingham Magazine (2010)

Our pal Carla Jean sent us this posting for Birmingham Magazine:

Birmingham Magazine tells the stories of the people, places and events that make Birmingham unique.

The magazine offers an unpaid, part-time editorial internship each semester, offering college students the opportunity to build resumes and portfolios as they write front-of-book pieces and monthly departments, assist in developing online content and fact-check listings.

Hard work and talent are rewarded with great clips; the fall 2009 intern wrote a six-page feature story for the December 2009 issue.

Applicants must be available a minimum of 15 hours per week. Prior journalism experience is expected, whether with college publications or elsewhere. Applicants should also be comfortable with AP Style.

Application deadlines:

  • Summer (May-August): April 1
  • Fall (September-December): July 1
  • Spring (January-April): Dec. 1

Send a cover letter, resume and three to five clips to cwhitley[at]bhammag.com.

• • •

Need a job? Check our job board.
Have a job to fill? Contact The MOB for your free listing.

Intern – Birmingham Magazine

Our pal Carla Jean sent us this posting for Birmingham Magazine:

Birmingham Magazine tells the stories of the people, places and events that make Birmingham unique.

The magazine offers an unpaid, part-time editorial internship each semester, offering college students the opportunity to build resumes and portfolios as they write front-of-book pieces and monthly departments, assist in developing online content and fact-check listings.

Hard work and talent are rewarded with great clips; the fall 2009 intern wrote a six-page feature story for the December 2009 issue.

Applicants must be available a minimum of 15 hours per week. Prior journalism experience is expected, whether with college publications or elsewhere. Applicants should also be comfortable with AP Style.

Send a cover letter, resume and three to five clips to cwhitley[at]bhammag.com.

• • •

Need a job? Check our job board.
Have a job to fill? Contact The MOB for your free listing.

EXCLUSIVE – Magazine roundup: Portico, Shelby Living, Thicket

From the world of Birmingham-area magazines …

• Birmingham lifestyle magazine Portico has recently relaunched its Web site, porticomag.com. What do you think?

EXCLUSIVE: Shelby Living launched today. This quarterly lifestyle magazine on Shelby County, from the publishers of the Shelby County Reporter weekly newspaper, also has a site at shelbyliving.com.

EXCLUSIVE: What’s up with Thicket magazine? We last reported in August that two of the four founding partners had left to run Birmingham Magazine. Since then, the September/October issue has been published, but no sightings of the November/December issue.

We asked senior editor and founding partner Todd Keith if Thicket had folded. Keith responded, “I wouldn’t say that. We are in discussions with several groups as well as individuals about the magazine and looking at a number of possibilities.”

When pressed further about the missing issue, the two partners who left but are still listed on the site, the current state and future of the magazine, and which groups or individuals were in discussions with Thicket, Keith responded, “We should have a more clear picture of where Thicket is going in the first quarter of 2010 and feel free to check back in at that time.”

Hmm …

Do Birmingham publications suffer from a lack of diversity?

Do Birmingham publications suffer from a lack of diversity? Do they reflect the city they serve?

The questions were prompted by a glance at the redesigned landing Web page for the Birmingham News. Granted, these are just the columnists, but the News and AL.com decided these are the ones to feature prominently with mug shots.

birmingham-news-columnists

Birmingham News columnists

All white, with two women out of eight columnists. The city population itself is 73.5 percent African American.

Compare that with the recently launched B-Metro magazine, which also features its columnists on the front page of its site …

b-metro columnists

B-Metro magazine columnists

We see a little more diversity, with three men out of nine contributors, one African American.

birmingham magazine columnistsAt Birmingham Magazine, the four columnists featured are all women, all white. (See graphic at right.)

(The Birmingham Business Journal doesn’t include writers’ photos on its site.)

The questions we have:

  • Should the writers featured on a Web site (and in the publication, too) reflect the diversity of its audience and market?
  • Do advertisers care about staff diversity? Do readers care? Or publishers?
  • Does diversity make a difference to the bottom line?
  • Can publications diversify, even as they’re cutting resources and staff members?
  • Are smaller publications — Birmingham Weekly, Black and White, Birmingham Times — facing the same issues?

Your comments are welcome below.

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Read more Birmingham media updates.

Have a news tip? Let us know!

EXCLUSIVE: Birmingham magazine hires Thicket’s editor-in-chief, advertising director

After the departure of five staff members at Birmingham magazine in July, including editor Joe O’Donnell and advertising director Cathy Fingerman, Media of Birmingham has learned about two hires from Birmingham-based Thicket magazine.

Julie KeithJulie Keith, Thicket’s editor-in-chief and co-owner, will serve as the new editor for Birmingham magazine. Before, she was executive editor of Birmingham-based Portico magazine and managing editor for the Better Homes and Gardens Crafts Group. Keith was a panelist at Media of Birmingham’s Freelancers Forum in September. Her husband Todd Keith is senior editor at Thicket.

Garrick Stone, Thicket’s advertising director and partner in the magazine, will serve as the new advertising director for Birmingham magazine. Before, he was sales director at Portico and a senior account executive at Birmingham-based Black and White.

Thicket launched in January 2008 as a bimonthly Alabama-focused publication with 10 issues to date. Birmingham magazine‘s current edition began in 1961 and publishes monthly through the Birmingham Business Alliance, which combined the Metropolitan Development Board and the Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce.

No word yet as to how Thicket plans to move forward.

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Read more Birmingham media updates.

Have a news tip? Let us know!

EXCLUSIVE: One-third of Birmingham magazine staff exits during Chamber merger

Joe O'DonnellThe Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce, which publishes Birmingham magazine, has been involved in a merger with the Metropolitan Development Board and Region 2020 to form a streamlined group. The name will be announced Tuesday.

But in the process, Joe O’Donnell, editor of Birmingham magazine for the past 22 years, pictured at left, ended his stay there Thursday. Media of Birmingham has learned that four other Birmingham magazine staff members have also left:

  • Robin Colter Creative director Robin Colter
  • Cathy Fingerman Advertising sales director Cathy Fingerman
  • Jane Higdon Account executive Jane Higdon
  • Mary Ellen Stancil Associate editor Mary Ellen Stancil

O’Donnell, who was offered a post-merger position at the magazine but declined, told the News:

“I’ve had a great staff, freelance writers and photographers over the years. It’s been a great run. I wish the new organization the best. I think the combination of the chamber, Region 2020 and MDB will have a great impact on the area.”

No word as to if these positions will be filled. The departures represent a third of the current staff of 15 to 16 members.

Have a news tip? Let us know!