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| The Black Panther (via Bobbyseale.com) |
Newspapers are very important tools for building movements. They can be used to distribute information, provide first hand reporting, offer an alternative to mainstream news coverage, and be a platform for voicing the concerns of the movement. The best newspapers can also mobilize the people around particular issues, challenge mainstream news coverage of the movement, educate, and be a space where the marginalized are centered and have a voice. News papers can also be a source of income for the movement. For example, the Black Panther Party For Self-Defense used sales from The Black Panther to fund bail money for members that were in jail and covered legal expenses. Newspapers are the best way to keep the people up to date with the movement, mobilize support, and most importantly, politicize the people.
Step 1: What Are Your Politics?
What do you stand for? What does the movement stand for? What is the movement fighting for? The answer to these questions will determine the politics of your newspaper and the lens that you are working with. Say your newspaper is explicitly feminist. Then the content and the issues addressed in the newspaper will have a feminist lean. The politics of your newspaper will influence every other aspect of your publication.
Step 2: Identify Your Audience
Who is your audience? Poor people of color? Or upper-middle class white people? Academic scholars or militant activists? The target audience of your newspaper affects everything from content, layout, to even word choice. The best newspapers should be made as accessible as possible to oppressed people of color, woman, and LBGTQ people of color. As a rule of thumb, your target audience should always be the oppressed.
Step 3: Outline Your Newspaper
You may start out with a basic list of what sections you would want in your newspaper. A front cover, table of contents, an introductory page, an acknowledgements page and a back cover page are bare bones necessities. After this, you can experiment with what sections would appear regularly. Maybe every issue there is a current events page, a comics section, or an art and culture page. Maybe there is history section or a politics section. You should also think about regular writers columns. Revolutionary art is a must that enhances any newspaper. Once a basic skeleton is made you can start adding articles.
Step 4: Design And Publishing
There are many online programs you can use to design your publication. Lucid Press is a great online resource for designing your newspaper and offers very useful design templates. Issuu.com is a great place to publish your newspaper and allows for you to convert your publication into an embed that you can put on your website.
Step 5: Distribution
You are finally ready to distribute your newspaper. Printing can be costly so always shop around for the best rates. Local printing options are always best. Email is another way you can get your newspaper out to people. You can make a sign-up form at mailchimp.com. You should also build an email list for your newspaper.
