KENT—Kent News, Inc. (KNI), the nonprofit publisher of The Kent Good Times Dispatch announces that it will participate in Democracy Day reporting and fundraising on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, along with newsrooms from across the country.
Democracy Day is a nationwide collaborative reporting project organized by the Center for Cooperative Media, as an effort to encourage news organizations across the country to report more — and better— information about the crisis facing democracy in the USA.
News organizations, including the KGTD, participate by producing at least one piece of meaningful journalism about democracy (as it relates to their community) on Sept. 15, the International Day of Democracy.
KNI board president Andrea Schoeny explained that as a participating newsroom, the KGTD is eligible for matching funds for any donations made on Sept. 15. This matching grant is up to $500 total, and is provided by NewsMatch, a program run by the Institute for Nonprofit News (INN).
“I am hopeful that our readers will see the importance of our municipal coverage and decide to donate this Sunday,” Schoeny said.
“We are currently compiling a voter guide that will consist of printed material highlighting important voting information, as well as digital material – stories, photographs and graphics – to further educate the public in preparation for the upcoming election,” Schoeny said.
“Everything online will be packaged together so the public can find all the information they need in one place,” she said, noting that KNI received a small grant from the Rural News Network to produce the guide.
Schoeny added that town hall has been helpful in providing accurate and easy to understand information for this project.
Sept. 15 also happens to be the day that the Town of Kent is hosting its event “Town Hall and You: A Civics Lesson.”
The informational presentation is in coordination with Kent Memorial Library, the town clerk, first selectman, and Registrar of Voters Office. Topics will include: town departments, boards and commissions, town meetings, referendums, elections, and communications.
According to an email from Kent First Selectman Marty Lindenmayer, the event will focus on “the who, what, when, where, and why of our local government.”
The presentation will be held in the large meeting room in the rear of Kent Town Hall, 41 Kent Green Blvd., on Sept. 15 at 2 p.m. and is open to anyone.
For more information and to RSVP, visit the library’s event page.
