WEBVTT - Interview Only w/ Ashley Trice & Rob Holbert - How a Free Alt-Weekly Became Alabama's Best Investigative Paper 0:00:00.040 --> 0:00:02.080 Well, This episode of the Chuck Toddcast is brought to 0:00:02.080 --> 0:00:05.360 you by ship Station. When your company is growing fast, 0:00:05.559 --> 0:00:09.240 order fulfillment can make or break your success. Ship Station's 0:00:09.280 --> 0:00:15.480 intelligence driven platform brings order management, rate shopping, inventory and returns, 0:00:15.720 --> 0:00:19.960 warehouse systems, and comprehensive analytics all in one place, saving 0:00:20.000 --> 0:00:23.720 customers fifteen hours per week on fulfillment and guess what 0:00:23.920 --> 0:00:27.000 time is money? So with Shipstation, everything you need to 0:00:27.040 --> 0:00:30.280 manage getting orders to customers is in one place. 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So just because local 0:01:55.360 --> 0:01:57.600 news Day has come and gone, doesn't mean I'm done 0:01:58.120 --> 0:02:01.840 wanting to feature different life local news entrepreneurs as we 0:02:02.440 --> 0:02:06.920 essentially try to solve this problem of improving the nation's 0:02:06.960 --> 0:02:11.239 information ecosystem. Many of you know my philosophy. We got 0:02:11.240 --> 0:02:14.680 to we got to repair local before we'll ever repair 0:02:14.960 --> 0:02:19.240 trust in the national. My next the guests I have 0:02:19.320 --> 0:02:22.200 today this is a little more personal for me. Many 0:02:22.240 --> 0:02:23.400 of you know I spend a lot of time in 0:02:23.480 --> 0:02:29.239 Pensacola and essentially the Pensacola media market. As I've learned 0:02:29.400 --> 0:02:35.079 over my twenty years of being being an aggressive visitor. 0:02:35.120 --> 0:02:38.040 I guess or I'm not a native. My wife is 0:02:38.080 --> 0:02:43.120 the native. Is that Mobile and Pennsylvania are one media market, 0:02:43.240 --> 0:02:46.959 so that this joining me today are the founders of 0:02:47.000 --> 0:02:51.280 the lan yapp daily, based in Mobile but basically covering 0:02:51.280 --> 0:02:53.880 the Alabama Gulf Coast. That is, those of us that 0:02:53.960 --> 0:02:56.000 live in the just on the other side of the 0:02:56.000 --> 0:03:00.840 Florabama line. You know what happened. It's in the Alabama 0:03:00.840 --> 0:03:03.000 Golf Coast matters to the Florida Golf Coast too. So 0:03:03.080 --> 0:03:06.760 Ashley Trice and Rob Hulbert are joining me. Welcome to 0:03:06.800 --> 0:03:07.359 the podcast. 0:03:08.160 --> 0:03:10.119 Thanks for having us, Chuck. We're excited to be here, 0:03:10.320 --> 0:03:11.120 glad to be here. 0:03:11.680 --> 0:03:15.600 So, you know, I'm always curious how this got. Uh, 0:03:15.760 --> 0:03:20.720 you know, let's give me the origin story. How how 0:03:20.720 --> 0:03:22.919 did you come to be? I know that advanced media 0:03:23.200 --> 0:03:26.359 and Alabama dot Com. Al dot com has been a 0:03:27.080 --> 0:03:29.440 sort of the primary you know, the old mobile Press 0:03:29.440 --> 0:03:32.519 register and things like that paint a picture of the 0:03:32.560 --> 0:03:35.080 landscape and mobile and and what got you started in 0:03:35.120 --> 0:03:35.920 your origin. 0:03:35.640 --> 0:03:41.800 Story got well, so I moved back from Austin, Texas, 0:03:42.000 --> 0:03:45.680 and I really while I lived in Austin. I really 0:03:45.760 --> 0:03:50.440 enjoyed the Austin Chronicle, their alternative paper, and I'm from 0:03:50.520 --> 0:03:54.360 this area, and so I moved back home. And Rob 0:03:54.400 --> 0:03:56.840 and I had mutual friends who was actually a journalism 0:03:56.960 --> 0:04:00.160 professor of mine at one time, and we start we're 0:04:00.240 --> 0:04:02.520 talking of it was like, I can't believe this was 0:04:02.560 --> 0:04:05.200 back in two thousand and two that my bill doesn't 0:04:05.240 --> 0:04:08.320 have an alternative paper in a market that size. You know, 0:04:08.320 --> 0:04:11.120 we were one of the largest markets without an all weekly. 0:04:11.840 --> 0:04:16.839 And Rob and I started talking and we raised the 0:04:17.000 --> 0:04:22.120 astronomical sum of five thousand dollars to start a really 0:04:22.680 --> 0:04:27.840 sad looking twenty page newspaper that I'm embarrassed to look 0:04:27.880 --> 0:04:30.520 at to this day. But we got to go in 0:04:30.560 --> 0:04:34.200 with a five thousand circulation. You know, we thought we 0:04:34.240 --> 0:04:38.200 would have you know, hundreds of advertisers by in six months, 0:04:38.200 --> 0:04:42.159 and it probably is. We're still waiting for that to happen. 0:04:42.240 --> 0:04:45.560 But we kept it going somehow, and we were about 0:04:46.120 --> 0:04:49.240 twenty five years. We'll celebrate twenty five years next year. 0:04:49.720 --> 0:04:53.920 But you mentioned, you know, the Press Register Advanced Media. 0:04:54.520 --> 0:04:57.360 They you know, when they decided we were bi weekly 0:04:57.400 --> 0:05:00.680 at first, and when they decided to they were going 0:05:00.720 --> 0:05:04.240 to be a digital first publication. They went to three 0:05:04.240 --> 0:05:07.599 times a week first and then now they've dropped to 0:05:08.120 --> 0:05:12.359 only digital and that really you know, and they became 0:05:12.360 --> 0:05:16.000 a statewide focused paper instead of Golf Coast and. 0:05:15.960 --> 0:05:19.080 So they combined there, they basically combined the Birmingham and 0:05:19.120 --> 0:05:21.040 mobile operations, all. 0:05:20.920 --> 0:05:23.680 Of them together. So it really gave us the opportunity 0:05:23.720 --> 0:05:27.080 to step up hyper local coverage. We were more entertainment 0:05:27.080 --> 0:05:30.520 at first. Now we are really heavy on local news, 0:05:30.600 --> 0:05:34.800 investigative recording, and you know, so that really opened the 0:05:34.800 --> 0:05:37.200 door for us and it's really helped. I mean, you know, 0:05:37.400 --> 0:05:39.560 I would say help us. I guess it's not the 0:05:39.600 --> 0:05:43.000 right word, but it gave us opportunity. So yeah, so 0:05:43.080 --> 0:05:43.640 here we are. 0:05:43.720 --> 0:05:46.400 Give me the give me the revenue stream models. I mean, 0:05:46.440 --> 0:05:50.440 I know everybody works on a combination of advertising, membership. 0:05:51.320 --> 0:05:53.279 Are you a nonprofit or for profit? I ought to 0:05:53.360 --> 0:05:54.120 probably start for that. 0:05:54.680 --> 0:05:58.000 We're for profit. We sort of have a hybrid model. 0:05:58.240 --> 0:06:00.280 The paper started off as a free paper, or as 0:06:00.360 --> 0:06:04.640 most all papers are. What we have done is our website. 0:06:04.880 --> 0:06:08.120 We've transformed that into sort of the daily paper. So 0:06:08.200 --> 0:06:10.679 if you want access to that is behind a paywall. 0:06:10.800 --> 0:06:12.200 So Okay, well you. 0:06:12.160 --> 0:06:15.000 Can still if you want the readers digest can you know, 0:06:15.400 --> 0:06:18.360 can readers digest version of the paper. You can still 0:06:18.360 --> 0:06:21.159 pick it up for free if you want daily you know, 0:06:21.400 --> 0:06:24.640 seven eight non stories a day that we're doing. You've 0:06:24.640 --> 0:06:27.880 got to pay for the paywall. So and it's been great. 0:06:27.920 --> 0:06:32.279 I mean, we we print is still our biggest revenue stream, 0:06:32.400 --> 0:06:35.800 but we can survive without the digital income either. 0:06:35.920 --> 0:06:38.479 At this point, it's interesting that you say prints the 0:06:38.480 --> 0:06:41.520 biggest revenue stream because I've learned this as I've been 0:06:41.560 --> 0:06:44.880 doing I've spent about the last year or so trying to, 0:06:46.400 --> 0:06:49.159 you know, figure out, you know, what's you know it's this, 0:06:49.600 --> 0:06:52.440 is it scalable? What's something that could be done that 0:06:52.480 --> 0:06:55.359 could help sort of because you know a lot of 0:06:55.400 --> 0:07:01.240 these startups have hit you hit a ceiling, right and 0:07:01.400 --> 0:07:05.720 the next phase of expansion, you know it would if 0:07:05.760 --> 0:07:08.560 you could create a network effect, then then everybody could 0:07:08.560 --> 0:07:10.440 sort of break through to the next level. And just 0:07:10.480 --> 0:07:14.400 trying to figure out what would work and what doesn't. 0:07:14.720 --> 0:07:19.320 And I've run into quite a few entrepreneurs who now 0:07:19.480 --> 0:07:23.120 who make money on print now, but waited to do 0:07:23.160 --> 0:07:25.400 it until they knew that it wasn't going to cost 0:07:25.440 --> 0:07:28.200 them money, right, like they waited to do the You know, 0:07:28.280 --> 0:07:31.680 they in some ways print once a week and that 0:07:31.760 --> 0:07:33.880 does well. They don't try to push it, you know, 0:07:34.000 --> 0:07:36.560 anymore unless they have the ad dollars to support it. 0:07:36.600 --> 0:07:39.720 How would you describe and how often do you still 0:07:39.760 --> 0:07:42.080 print just one weekly or doprint more often than that. 0:07:42.320 --> 0:07:45.320 Yeah, we're doing just once a week still, you know 0:07:45.600 --> 0:07:49.720 it is it's still as she said, it's still it's 0:07:49.760 --> 0:07:54.040 the biggest part of our revenue. But the daily the 0:07:54.080 --> 0:07:56.800 paper is daily at this point, and you know, we're 0:07:57.720 --> 0:08:01.760 sixty seventy stories a week online would probably as far 0:08:01.760 --> 0:08:04.120 as news stories, we're probably putting seven or eight of 0:08:04.160 --> 0:08:07.480 those in the papers. So there's huge difference in what 0:08:07.560 --> 0:08:10.520 people can read online versus what they're reading in the 0:08:10.520 --> 0:08:11.080 print version. 0:08:11.080 --> 0:08:13.200 But there's no appetite I will tell you for us 0:08:13.240 --> 0:08:17.400 to become a daily printed product ever, right, that will 0:08:17.440 --> 0:08:18.240 not happen. 0:08:18.280 --> 0:08:21.200 I mean, I mean there's not the demand for it, correct, 0:08:21.960 --> 0:08:22.560 And it's just. 0:08:22.800 --> 0:08:26.920 The expense, is right, I mean, it's it's crazy. I mean, 0:08:27.000 --> 0:08:30.240 after payroll, it's our biggest expense and you know it, 0:08:31.440 --> 0:08:34.560 and finding a printer is even getting more and more difficult. 0:08:34.640 --> 0:08:37.199 I mean, there are two printers in the entire southeast 0:08:37.280 --> 0:08:41.920 that can do a publication like ourselves, kidding, So that's. 0:08:41.760 --> 0:08:42.680 A big issue. 0:08:42.720 --> 0:08:46.640 I mean, I think that's a huge issue for small newspapers, 0:08:46.679 --> 0:08:50.680 is right, printers. I mean I've often said that I 0:08:50.720 --> 0:08:53.640 think that the printers will be the biggest recent newspapers 0:08:53.679 --> 0:08:56.960 go away versus the Internet. Is printers fail. 0:08:57.400 --> 0:08:58.079 There's just not. 0:08:58.160 --> 0:09:02.320 Very many around and have very few options, you know, 0:09:02.360 --> 0:09:04.800 from here we're printing Baton Rouge right now. 0:09:05.679 --> 0:09:08.640 We have the next option is outside Atlanta. 0:09:09.520 --> 0:09:12.600 So my word, yeah, that's just yeah, you know, so 0:09:13.480 --> 0:09:14.360 having to deal with that. 0:09:14.320 --> 0:09:17.000 On a daily with a daily publication, there's no way. 0:09:17.320 --> 0:09:20.600 Yeah, let me go to something you still consider your 0:09:22.559 --> 0:09:26.560 in this day and age of independent media, Does alts 0:09:26.800 --> 0:09:27.840 mean anything anymore? 0:09:28.760 --> 0:09:32.360 Well not to us, I mean, like we're still members 0:09:32.360 --> 0:09:35.840 of the Association of Alternative News Media, but we always 0:09:35.880 --> 0:09:38.679 feel like we're like the step children of it at 0:09:38.679 --> 0:09:42.720 this point. But I mean, especially since we are, I 0:09:42.720 --> 0:09:45.680 think everyone considers us the paper record here in Mobile 0:09:45.760 --> 0:09:47.040 Now I don't, I don't. 0:09:46.800 --> 0:09:50.320 You're now the Mobile paper. And because the Press Register 0:09:50.360 --> 0:09:51.680 really is more of a state. 0:09:51.440 --> 0:09:54.600 Wide paper, right exactly, so you know, I mean, and 0:09:54.960 --> 0:09:57.640 it was really important for us. I mean, one of 0:09:57.640 --> 0:10:01.079 our driving philosophies is not to take you know, a 0:10:01.120 --> 0:10:04.560 political lean to one side or the other. We want 0:10:04.600 --> 0:10:07.000 to be the paper for everyone, not just one side 0:10:07.000 --> 0:10:09.400 of the aisle. I mean, and we're in Alabama. I 0:10:09.400 --> 0:10:11.880 mean it would certainly probably be advantageous for us to 0:10:11.920 --> 0:10:15.800 be conservative, but we we thought we would. We don't 0:10:15.800 --> 0:10:18.360 want to lose readership, so it's very important. I mean, 0:10:18.480 --> 0:10:20.439 of course we have opinion pieces and stuff like that, 0:10:20.480 --> 0:10:23.480 but as far as the new coverage, we. 0:10:22.960 --> 0:10:24.760 Try to well because I mean, look, let's be honest. 0:10:24.800 --> 0:10:26.720 You hear the words Alt Weekly, and there's an automatic 0:10:26.720 --> 0:10:30.600 assumption that it's super lefty, not just liberal right, super lefty. 0:10:30.880 --> 0:10:33.760 I mean they are, yeah, they are. And it's I mean, 0:10:33.800 --> 0:10:36.160 we are always a sort of strange animal when we 0:10:36.160 --> 0:10:39.400 go to the conventions, but it's like, yeah, it is, 0:10:40.520 --> 0:10:42.480 you know. I think the big thing for us always, 0:10:42.640 --> 0:10:45.800 I mean, when we we wrote up our statement of 0:10:45.840 --> 0:10:48.959 principles to begin with, you know, just to sit down 0:10:48.960 --> 0:10:51.520 and say, like a big thing for us is to 0:10:52.400 --> 0:10:55.680 make a newspaper that people are dying to read, because 0:10:55.720 --> 0:10:58.160 then everybody's going to happen because you got to read it. 0:10:58.240 --> 0:11:01.120 Ye at least like the you know, the county's biggest 0:11:01.160 --> 0:11:04.120 yam on the front page either were not paper either. 0:11:04.240 --> 0:11:05.679 So yeah, I think we were. 0:11:05.760 --> 0:11:08.400 I think we were in the state's most aggressive investigative 0:11:08.440 --> 0:11:09.880 newspaper without doubt. 0:11:10.080 --> 0:11:13.520 I mean you did. So we have been venturing into 0:11:13.679 --> 0:11:16.160 the Florida market a little because our next governor is 0:11:16.160 --> 0:11:18.319 actually a Florida resident instead of. 0:11:19.679 --> 0:11:23.080 One of my favorite stories I've seen that ad. So 0:11:23.280 --> 0:11:26.240 I we have. You know, I'm probably given away too much, 0:11:26.280 --> 0:11:28.040 but you know, we we spent a lot of time 0:11:28.080 --> 0:11:32.079 on Pennscula Beach and they have this little cable access 0:11:32.120 --> 0:11:36.160 channel about sort of you know the area if you will. 0:11:36.559 --> 0:11:40.160 It's probably more geared towards I'm still struggling with this 0:11:40.320 --> 0:11:43.640 calling it the thirty A district. You know, I know 0:11:43.679 --> 0:11:46.360 that that's got it's become branded and like you know, 0:11:46.520 --> 0:11:49.200 yeah right, the Amptons of the South rank. You know, 0:11:49.400 --> 0:11:52.600 I'm sure that the reality shows are all checking in 0:11:53.120 --> 0:11:58.520 on that. And I remember when Coach Tupperville would talk 0:11:58.520 --> 0:12:01.120 about how great it was to live in North Yeah, 0:12:01.160 --> 0:12:03.000 I mean those hats were right there. It was just 0:12:03.040 --> 0:12:06.760 little tourist AADs it might have been for Navarre Beach 0:12:06.920 --> 0:12:08.240 actually that he was doing it. 0:12:08.400 --> 0:12:12.240 He is closer to between the bar and seaside. But yeah, 0:12:12.320 --> 0:12:15.640 our investigative reporter, though, has spent i mean hours going 0:12:15.640 --> 0:12:18.400 through all of the expenses, and you know, I mean 0:12:18.800 --> 0:12:19.600 it's pretty clear. 0:12:20.080 --> 0:12:21.880 I mean, if you really follow the letter of the law, 0:12:21.920 --> 0:12:24.040 there ain't seven years there. And he kind of knows it, 0:12:24.080 --> 0:12:25.440 doesn't he it's pretty tall. 0:12:25.520 --> 0:12:28.320 He can't, he won't, he won't address it. So it 0:12:28.320 --> 0:12:30.240 seems like a simple thing to me go away. 0:12:30.400 --> 0:12:34.160 Yeah, is it done? I mean, if they've already allowed 0:12:34.240 --> 0:12:36.839 him to be on the ballot, right he is. His name. 0:12:37.360 --> 0:12:41.480 Only only mechanism at this point is the court system. 0:12:41.559 --> 0:12:44.720 And I don't think that I do anything unless his competitor, 0:12:44.760 --> 0:12:48.120 Doug Jones also and the Democratic Party also files something along. 0:12:48.280 --> 0:12:53.320 He's got a editor, a Republican candidate that has filed 0:12:53.320 --> 0:12:56.000 something at this point, but they haven't really moved on it. 0:12:56.160 --> 0:12:57.520 So yeah, I mean, I. 0:12:57.480 --> 0:13:00.320 Think it's a done deal as far as you know, 0:13:00.400 --> 0:13:04.840 actual any sort of legal remedy. But you know, is 0:13:04.880 --> 0:13:06.560 it done in terms of voters? 0:13:06.640 --> 0:13:08.560 I don't know. I don't know, you know, I don't 0:13:08.640 --> 0:13:09.480 think they love that. 0:13:09.920 --> 0:13:12.880 I mean everyone just assumed. I mean, do I think 0:13:12.920 --> 0:13:14.120 you will be the next governor? 0:13:14.200 --> 0:13:17.760 Yes, But I will tell you this, I look at 0:13:17.760 --> 0:13:19.520 one of those right in fact, I just. 0:13:21.920 --> 0:13:22.199 People. 0:13:22.440 --> 0:13:24.720 I always say this about governor's races, and it's true. 0:13:24.760 --> 0:13:27.160 In every state, no matter how red or blue it is, 0:13:28.040 --> 0:13:32.079 governor's races have more voters who take it more personally 0:13:32.760 --> 0:13:36.040 rather than ideologically. Like it's just there's a reason to 0:13:36.040 --> 0:13:40.439 get a Republican governor of Massachusetts at a fairly reasonable frequency. 0:13:40.679 --> 0:13:43.160 There's a reason to get a Republican governor of Maryland. 0:13:43.360 --> 0:13:46.080 There's a reason to get a democratic governor of Kansas, 0:13:46.200 --> 0:13:48.720 you know. And you get so close in a place 0:13:48.760 --> 0:13:51.840 like Mississippi, right there is it is. You don't see 0:13:51.840 --> 0:13:53.240 it in the center races. You don't see it in 0:13:53.320 --> 0:13:55.959 the federal races. That's a lot people usually wear. The 0:13:56.160 --> 0:13:59.720 voters wear their jersey colors in federal races, but governor's 0:13:59.800 --> 0:14:02.000 races it can be different. So I'm and you. 0:14:01.960 --> 0:14:04.199 Want your governor to actually live in the state. 0:14:04.720 --> 0:14:07.600 Yeah, there is that I I you know, and Doug 0:14:07.679 --> 0:14:11.000 Jones is no shrinking violet. I mean, if I expect 0:14:11.040 --> 0:14:13.160 that race to be under five points at a minimum. 0:14:13.360 --> 0:14:16.640 I think I think we you know, we've had a 0:14:16.679 --> 0:14:20.280 pretty good history lately of of whoever the anointed one 0:14:20.400 --> 0:14:23.920 is South loses and that's. 0:14:23.760 --> 0:14:27.680 Not quite a bit. And so you know, we'll see, 0:14:27.880 --> 0:14:28.320 we'll see. 0:14:28.360 --> 0:14:30.440 I think it's gonna be a lot tighter than people 0:14:30.480 --> 0:14:31.200 would suspect. 0:14:31.560 --> 0:14:33.800 Oh, I think so too. I mean, you know, there's 0:14:33.840 --> 0:14:37.800 also just governor's races in general. When you've had one 0:14:37.880 --> 0:14:43.160 party more than a decade, there is just fatigue, you know, 0:14:43.280 --> 0:14:45.960 there is there's a little bit of fatigue, and then 0:14:45.960 --> 0:14:48.600 you throw in the national wins and the other you know, 0:14:48.640 --> 0:14:50.720 and the idea of there may be needs to be 0:14:50.760 --> 0:14:54.600 a check right, a check on on super majority power 0:14:54.600 --> 0:14:55.160 and things like that. 0:14:55.240 --> 0:14:58.400 Coming home very inactive governor at this point, and so 0:14:58.720 --> 0:14:59.800 we'll see what happens. 0:14:59.800 --> 0:15:03.000 You that's a that's a that's a very generous. 0:15:03.440 --> 0:15:04.760 I'm being generous today. 0:15:05.360 --> 0:15:08.560 The very generous description of the governor. You know, she's 0:15:09.720 --> 0:15:15.080 she's an enigma to me. I mean, she doesn't she's 0:15:15.080 --> 0:15:17.360 been pretty low key the entire time she's been there. 0:15:17.600 --> 0:15:20.000 I think that would be also very generous. 0:15:21.880 --> 0:15:23.920 I think that was her appeal though, because we had 0:15:23.960 --> 0:15:24.960 to come off you know. 0:15:25.600 --> 0:15:29.000 A couple of scandalous things as well. 0:15:34.560 --> 0:15:38.480 Yeah, gives us plenty to write about. So you know, we're. 0:15:41.640 --> 0:15:43.360 I will say this, I'm going to miss that k 0:15:43.560 --> 0:15:46.440 Ivy pistol ad. 0:15:48.240 --> 0:15:55.080 You know, yes, I think Tommy can probably match her 0:15:55.080 --> 0:15:58.200 in colloquialisms. We'll see. You know, he's got plenty of 0:15:58.240 --> 0:15:58.640 his sleeve. 0:16:00.280 --> 0:16:02.440 It's interesting to me that it's the Auburn coaches that 0:16:02.440 --> 0:16:04.720 I'll want to run for office and not the Alabama Yeah. 0:16:05.320 --> 0:16:07.760 I mean, I mean, I assume burst Borough will run 0:16:07.800 --> 0:16:15.440 at some point. I mean, yeah, I want to go 0:16:15.520 --> 0:16:20.120 back to how you're so when so you start as 0:16:20.160 --> 0:16:24.120 an all weekly, the Mobile Press Register starts to sort 0:16:24.120 --> 0:16:29.440 of shift its focus, uh, and you start to add reporters. 0:16:29.920 --> 0:16:32.680 Was it gradual? And and when do you feel like, 0:16:33.440 --> 0:16:36.000 you know, local government understood, Oh, these guys are going 0:16:36.040 --> 0:16:38.760 to cover what we do and the Mobile Press Register 0:16:38.800 --> 0:16:40.680 isn't anymore. Was it just sort of one of those 0:16:40.960 --> 0:16:43.720 all of a sudden it happened or was it a 0:16:43.760 --> 0:16:44.560 gradual shift? 0:16:45.320 --> 0:16:46.240 I mean I think it was. 0:16:47.120 --> 0:16:51.000 We started really dipping our toe into more investigative reporting 0:16:51.080 --> 0:16:53.600 and doing story I think people realized, even when we 0:16:53.600 --> 0:16:56.360 were a biweekly that we were doing stories that the 0:16:56.360 --> 0:17:01.040 Press Register wasn't doing. I thing really weird. We probably 0:17:01.600 --> 0:17:04.200 got a lot of people's attention was in a previous 0:17:04.240 --> 0:17:07.560 mayor's race that we really did a lot of reporing 0:17:07.600 --> 0:17:11.639 about some expenditure issues and going off to the city. 0:17:12.040 --> 0:17:14.760 And I think I had a big part of that 0:17:14.800 --> 0:17:17.720 mayor being replaced. 0:17:16.920 --> 0:17:18.520 And establishing a little credibility. 0:17:18.720 --> 0:17:21.800 Yeah, And I think that's really where And then you know, 0:17:21.880 --> 0:17:24.280 once they once the press resister said they were going 0:17:24.320 --> 0:17:26.200 to go three days a week, we just realized we've 0:17:26.200 --> 0:17:27.800 got to go weekly to be. 0:17:29.560 --> 0:17:30.919 We're really filling the gaps. 0:17:36.000 --> 0:17:38.080 This episode of the Chuck Toddcast is brought to you 0:17:38.080 --> 0:17:40.359 by Soul. 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They spend most 0:19:38.160 --> 0:19:42.160 of the time there, very little down here. It's very 0:19:42.240 --> 0:19:42.680 rare that. 0:19:42.640 --> 0:19:46.120 They break that's sort of surprising to me. Isn't the 0:19:46.160 --> 0:19:48.480 fastest growing part of the state the Gulf Coast. 0:19:48.440 --> 0:19:53.600 Yes, and which is right next to you know, is 0:19:53.880 --> 0:19:54.840 the fastest. 0:19:55.040 --> 0:19:58.280 We could probably spend several hours of dissecting their whole plan. 0:19:58.680 --> 0:20:00.240 Ail dot com. 0:20:00.080 --> 0:20:04.480 And is it still new house or did they get advanced? 0:20:04.560 --> 0:20:04.760 Yeah? 0:20:04.800 --> 0:20:08.000 Yeah, yeah, it's interesting, you know, it does. I think 0:20:08.040 --> 0:20:13.880 one of the most innovative UH local news sites going 0:20:13.960 --> 0:20:17.080 is an advanced media site in Massachusetts, mass Line. They've 0:20:17.119 --> 0:20:21.240 been incredible and and and they've been expansive and they've 0:20:21.240 --> 0:20:25.080 been though also a statewide focus, I think, but but. 0:20:26.200 --> 0:20:28.000 You know, and it might work in other states. I 0:20:28.000 --> 0:20:30.240 mean mobile, I mean and I know every city likes 0:20:30.240 --> 0:20:32.800 to think of themselves as the speciality. 0:20:32.920 --> 0:20:35.320 Sure there is sort of a coo. Yeah, but but 0:20:35.440 --> 0:20:38.400 in the South in general, where it's a little more parochial, 0:20:38.520 --> 0:20:39.160 right yeah. 0:20:39.119 --> 0:20:42.240 And I think, I mean, we consider ourselves more closely 0:20:42.400 --> 0:20:45.320 related to New Orleans than we do Montgomery or Birmingham, 0:20:45.400 --> 0:20:49.040 you know. So yeah, I think along. 0:20:48.840 --> 0:20:51.159 The right, I mean Mobile and Pensacola, Like I I 0:20:51.240 --> 0:20:53.040 you know, one of the things I've learned over the years, 0:20:53.080 --> 0:20:56.639 I worked at NBC and the Pensacola NBC affiliate is 0:20:56.680 --> 0:21:00.760 in Mobile, you know, And so it was you know 0:21:00.920 --> 0:21:03.919 where you have one of these where pet Sicole actually 0:21:03.920 --> 0:21:07.240 only has one affiliate that's technically in penscol And I think, 0:21:07.240 --> 0:21:12.280 what both CBS at CBS, Fox and NBC are automobile. 0:21:11.800 --> 0:21:15.080 Right, yeah, I mean it's it's a we have a 0:21:15.119 --> 0:21:17.840 lot more in common with the coast. Along the coast, 0:21:17.920 --> 0:21:21.639 I mean, it really feels more like a similar state. 0:21:21.800 --> 0:21:25.960 If you go New Orleans down to know more to I. 0:21:25.960 --> 0:21:27.960 Mean, you probably could go start at the thirty A 0:21:28.080 --> 0:21:29.200 and go all the way to New Orleans. 0:21:29.280 --> 0:21:32.879