The Indiana Publisher

March IP 2021

Hoosier State Press Association - The Indiana Publisher

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Publisher The Indiana Volume 86, Issue 3 • March 2021 Published on second Thursday monthly Any child or grandchild of an HSPA member newspaper employee or independent contractor is welcome to apply for the annual Legacy Scholarship offered by the HSPA Foundation. Students can be majoring in any area of study — not just journalism. There are two $1,000 awards available. For information and the application, see pages 12-14 Newspapers across state collaborate on Covid-19 anniversary coverage Ruth Witmer Hoosier State Press Association On Jan. 26, 19-year-old Evansville resident Isaiah Mays, on the verge of receiving his high school diploma, died from complications of the Covid-19 virus. Two weeks earlier, on the other end of the state in South Bend, 85-year- old musician Marge Dudek also suc- cumbed to the disease. They are two of the more than 12,000 Hoosiers who have died in the last year during the coronavirus pandemic. This March represents the one-year anniversary since the first Covid-19 death in Indiana, since life for everyone in the country has been defined by lockdowns, quarantines, mask wearing and, now, vaccinations against the deadly disease. In human terms, the toll has been staggering — more than 29 million cases and more than 530,00 deaths in the United States alone. Covering the pandemic has been an ongoing challenge for news organiza- tions, including telling the personal sto- ries of the people lost to the disease. "For a long time, we've been think- ing here at the Times about ways to put a human face on all of these numbers and statistics that we were reporting so diligently every day," said Marc Chase, executive editor of the Times of Northwest Indiana and midwest regional editor for Lee Enterprises. Chase spearheaded a collaborative project with newspapers across the state to mark the one-year anniversary since the pandemic changed the human land- scape of Indiana, the country and the See Hoosiers, page 2 Legislative Update Deadline is March 26 to apply for a Foundation's $1,000 Legacy Scholarships HSPA monitoring Open Door Law, public notice and access to public records bills Open Door Law The three bills that would change how members of governing bodies of local government units can participate in meeting electroni- cally are moving forward in the General Assembly. HSPA has been working with all three authors to improve the language. S.B. 369, authored by Sen. Linda Rogers, R-Granger, and H.B. 1437, authored by Rep. Cook, R-Cicero, would allow members of local governing bodies to be count- ed as part of a meeting quorum and partake of votes while participating electronically. Both bills were amended to require 50 percent of the govern- ing body to be physically present at meetings – answering a concern raised by HSPA. HSPA supports the efforts of Sen. Rogers and Rep. Cook while con- tinuing to work on minor tweaks to the language in both bills. Prior to the pandemic, local board members could participate electronically in discussion, but could not vote or be counted as present. S.B. 68, authored by Sen. Stacey Donato, R-Logansport. This bill would allow conservancy district The Times of Northwest Indiana was one of the Indiana newspapers dedicating coverage to Hoosiers lost to Covid-19. See Bills, page 10

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