By Marques G. Harper
AASFE Diversity Fellow
Ever try covering your city’s annual fair, music festival or charity event with a fresh perspective? Or ever had a hard time getting information you’d need to write the perfect entertainment advance?
As you already know, getting access or inspiration can be challenging. Having success has to do with advance planning.
That was the core message of AASFE session called “Local, Local, Local” in which editors and event organizers discussed how get the most from an annual fair or event.
The panel included Anthony Miller of the Savannah School of Art and Design; Kathy Blackwell, executive features editor of the Austin American-Statesman; Len Cripe, managing director of the Savannah Film Festival; Norma Martin, features editor for The News Tribune in Tacoma, Wash.; Maria Lancaster of the Savannah Music Festival; and moderator Mary Hader of The Washington Post. Here are highlights for getting the stories of the festivals and fairs you want as you work with event organizers and promoters and offer readers a fresh perspective.

Kathy Blackwell of the Austin American-Statesman:

• Ask readers to submit questions in advance of a show or festival and have organizers and promoters offer answers.
• Months in advance train online readers to go to your Web site for all stories and information and photos about the event.

• If you don’t have the staff members to cover a large fair, festival or series of events, put a call out for guest bloggers who could provide daily coverage.

“We didn’t have the hard time getting the 16 bloggers we needed,” she says. “It was one of those things that was done on the fly.”
The idea paid off: One guest blogger wrote about how a person with a disability got around the fair. Meanwhile, a blogger, who was separated from her children at the fair, was able to write about that experience. All were stories that likely wouldn't have gotten into the paper, Martin says.
“It was a way to get the community involved with something that goes along for so long,” Martin says.
 

Maria Lancaster of the Savannah Music Festival:

• Gather with event promoters weeks or months in advance to discuss potential story ideas.
• Ask event organizers to respond to online reader comments and start a dialogue.

• Before an event, try writing behind-the-scenes stories as a way to grab readers.