Guidelines for submitting information to JTNews

There are several different types of information that can be submitted to JTNews, and several ways of submitting that information. Our preferred method of communication is via e-mail, but fax or the post office can work as well. While we welcome phone calls for pitching stories or obtaining information, to reduce instances of errors we cannot accept calendar listings or other submissions over the phone. If you have further questions, please see if your questions can be answered below.

Advertising

JTNews accepts advertising in a variety of sizes. For rates on different sizes and ad deadlines for the year, click here to contact any of our sales representatives via our Contact page.

The JTNews Calendar

JTNews lists any item of Jewish interest happening in Washington State in our community calendar. Submissions by e-mail, to calendar@jtnews.net are preferred. If you would like, you may also submit items to the JTNews calendar online, by clicking on the JTNews Calendar page and clicking on the “Submit a calendar event” link. Deadlines for the calendar are 10 days before publication.

Calendar listings should always include the following:
– Event name
– Contact information (contact’s name, phone, e-mail address and/or Web address)
– Date and time of event
– Address of event
– Cost of event
– A short description (20 words or fewer) of what will be taking place.

New! You can now submit calendar items from our Web site! Click here, then fill out the pertinent fields. If you have a photo to submit with the event, you may upload that as well. All listings submitted via the Web are subject to approval, but go online as soon as they are approved. Regular deadlines still apply.

Submitting photos to JTNews for publication

One of the best ways to bring life to any newspaper is through photographs.
Because of JTNews’ small size, it is not possible to cover every event, but we are always happy to acknowledge what’s happening in town using standalone photos. If you hold an event that we are not able to send a reporter to, we encourage you to send in photos, and we will do our best to print at least one.

What JTNews looks for in a photo:

– Is it compelling? Have you caught the photo’s subject in action? Whether it’s pounding his fist on a podium or hammering a nail into a wall, action is always more interesting than a group of people smiling for a camera. Think about what catches your eye when flipping through the Seattle Times, and try to emulate that.
– Is it telling the story? Are you showing the people actually involved with making this event happen or participants having a good time? Which would you rather see in a newspaper?
– Is it in focus? Does it have good enough contrast? Is it too dark or too light? If we can’t tell what’s happening in a photo, we can’t print it.

How to send in a photo:

Digital photos:

JTNews prefers digital photos for publication. Photos should be sent to us either via e-mail or via a web link.
Please make sure your photos come to us as high resolution, in JPEG or TIFF formats. If the resolution is too low, we are not able to process them to a viewable size appropriate for print. For instance, if you post event highlight photos on your website, there’s a strong chance those photos won’t have a high enough resolution for us to use.
Technical specifications for turning in a digital photo are, at minimum:
72 dpi: 600 pixels wide
170 dpi: 400 pixels wide
300 dpi: 200 pixels wide
If you are unable to ascertain photo dpi and width, look at the photo’s file size. As a rule of thumb, anything below 400K will likely be too small for us to print. Please do not manipulate your original photos. The JTNews art  department can do any necessary cropping or color adjustments.

Hard copy photos:

JTNews can accept hard copy photos, either in color or black and white. Our art department has the equipment necessary for scanning and sizing, so there’s no need to do any special treatment. Please mail or drop off the photos by our deadline. If you would like the photos back, make sure you leave a note with the address and a self-addressed stamped envelope.

Upcoming news briefs

News briefs are short (100-150 word) articles to preview events occurring in the near future or to seek submissions for scholarship programs, writing contests and the like. Because JTNews receives several of these briefs each week, we must pick and choose what can fit into our limited space. Much of the information for news briefs comes from press releases sent out by individual organizations. If you would like to submit a brief, please e-mail the information to the calendar editor, and request that an item be placed in both our community briefs page and the calendar. The item will be placed in the calendar regardless. If you need assistance in submitting a news brief, i.e., how it should be written, the best issue for the release to be printed, contact the editor for further discussion. All submissions must be received no later than 10 days before publication to be considered for this section.

Letters to the editor

JTNews welcomes letters to the editor. Click here for guidelines on size and content when writing a letter.

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