Thank you, Star readers. We want to work with you to inspire a better Kansas City
Thank you.
Two words. Simple and powerful. But I know you haven’t heard them enough from us.
So today I want to start with this: We are grateful for your readership. You are the reason we do what we do, and we appreciate you making our journalism a part of your day.
We know we are not perfect, but we love this city and aspire to provide you with coverage that shows how much we care about you and our neighbors. When we tell the stories of KCPD racism and boarding school abuse, for example, our reporters are thinking about you and what you need from us. You are our daily inspiration.
We are excited and optimistic about the future of The Star and our city, and I want to share with you today a few projects we have been working on. Through these initiatives and many more to come, we want to join with you to make a positive difference in our community.
These efforts have already begun.
Before the Nov. 8 election, we produced detailed voter guides that explained every race and offered all candidates an opportunity to share their views. Thousands of you used that guide online, and I heard from many readers who found it helpful. As one said, “I can’t believe how much information you were able to gather. This is why I subscribe.”
To make sure as many of our neighbors as possible knew about the guide, members of our service journalism team, in partnership with the Kansas City Public Library, made fliers and set up booths at community centers to share the information in person. We deeply appreciate the conversations we were able to have with you around this important election.
Also, as we announced last month, we are redesigning our coverage of the local governments and institutions that serve Kansas City, Wyandotte and Johnson counties. We have heard from hundreds of you, sharing your opinions and ideas. I’ve been struck by both your kindness and your honesty.
While we’re still talking with participants and gathering information, the feedback so far shows a wide range of topics you want us to cover more. Those topics include everything from housing and development to racism and local government accountability, with dozens of other suggestions in between. Please keep the ideas coming. You can share your views here.
One of my favorite responses so far: Several of you have asked us how you can take action and get more involved in your communities. We love this, and we are committed to doing everything we can to help.
Connecting better with you is our priority. My promise: You’ll be seeing much more of us in a variety of settings in the coming weeks and beyond.
Next month, plan to join us for complimentary holiday portraits. We’re going to set up one of The Star’s world-class photographers in front of some of Kansas City’s best holiday decorations. We’ll let you know when and where, and then you can stop by and have your portrait taken alone or with your favorite people.
After your photo is taken, we’ll send it to you by email free of charge within a few days, and you can use it however you choose. We’re working on the final dates and times and will share that information as soon as possible. Members of our staff and I will be there on a rotating basis, and we’re looking forward to meeting you.
And coming in January, we hope you’ll partner with us for a blood drive we’ll be organizing in collaboration with the Kansas City-area Community Blood Center.
We will be sponsoring a weeklong drive, including multiple locations where you can join in so everyone has a chance to participate. We’ll share all the details in the weeks ahead.
For now, just know this: Local donors are essential to helping our Kansas City-area medical providers overcome an ongoing shortage of blood. It’s easy. It’s safe. And it saves lives.
This is just the start of The Star’s renewed effort to engage more directly with you and all of the Kansas City-area community. We are making big plans for 2023, so if you have ideas please share them by email at gfarmer@kcstar.com.
We’re excited to hear from you.
- Greg Farmer is The Star’s interim executive editor. Reach him by email at gfarmer@kcstar.com or by phone at 816-234-4321.
