Press release...
COMPASS TO BRING INSIGHT, ANALYSIS TO LOCAL NEWS COVERAGE
Knoxville’s new subscription-only online publication goes live in September
Hello, Knoxville! This is a press release to you from us, veteran journalists and inquisitive guys about town Scott Barker and Jesse Fox Mayshark.
We are thrilled to introduce you to Compass, our new website and newsletter dedicated to covering local government, politics and business. Compass will focus on Knoxville and Knox County, and help to explore the issues and interests that are shaping our community. We want to understand and illuminate the changes affecting the city we love.
You can learn more about it and subscribe at compassknox.com. We will start publishing on Sept. 4.
We bring decades of experience to this effort.
Scott was a local government reporter and editorial page editor at the Knoxville News Sentinel for 18 years. He covered the Black Wednesday scandal of 2007 in depth, and he was part of the paper’s successful effort to hold officials accountable for sunshine law violations.
Jesse also worked at the News Sentinel, was editor of Metro Pulse, and was a staff editor for The New York Times. He worked for the last six and a half years in communications for Mayor Madeline Rogero at the City of Knoxville. (He will be leaving coverage of City government to Scott, who will also lead our coverage of next year’s City elections.)
“During my time with the City,” Jesse says, “I watched up close as our local media eroded rapidly. Knoxville and Knox County are growing and changing, and there is almost nobody left telling the stories of what’s happening. I think people want to know more about what’s going on in our community and why. We want to fill those gaps.”
Compass will be a subscription-only publication. Subscribers will have access to articles on www.compassknox.com and receive a newsletter via email each weekday highlighting coverage updates. Thursday reports will include an in-depth feature story and other updates. You can expect well-reported profiles of major local figures, analysis of complex issues, stories about business and development trends.
“We anticipate our readers will be as interested in and dedicated to our community as we are,” Scott says “Our goal is to provide the information prized by decision-makers in government and business, nonprofit organizations, neighborhood groups, PTAs and others who are shaping the future of Knoxville and Knox County.”
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Discussing:
- Flooding in Blount County (3 replies)
- Do we need an ark? (5 replies)
- Speaker Casada's protection of Byrd fixin' to blow up (2 replies)
- Occasional crossword (2 replies)
- Closed Primaries Bill Moves Forward (11 replies)
- Hey, Bernie. Your 15 minutes are up. (21 replies)
- National emergency! (1 reply)
- Nashville Scene - Democratic Lawmakers Propose Changing TNDP Structure (8 replies)
- $40 million resort coming to South Knoxville (20 replies)
- Voting administration and neutrality (9 replies)
- Can you pass the citizenship exam? (7 replies)
- Bar Marley set to open after long delay (4 replies)
Upcoming events:
- Feb 27 2019 - 12:00pm (3 days 22 hours from now)
TN Progressive
- Rockslide Closes I 40 near TN - NC State Line (RoaneViews)
- Trump Team Cozy with Legalized Loan Sharks (TN Citizen Action)
- Fun Stuff...Wyatt Earp Department (RoaneViews)
- CARE Plan Fails to Deliver (TN Citizen Action)
- Prescription Drug Price Crisis (TN Citizen Action)
- So Many Enemies He Needs Some Executive Time to Relax a Little (Joe Powell)
- GOP Wants to Strip Nashville and Knoxville of Powers for Police Oversight (RoaneViews)
- Automatic For The People (TN Citizen Action)
- Wall Wall Wall...Oh and a White Nationalist Arrested in Washington Planning to Kill Nancy Pelosi and Almost Everyone! (RoaneViews)
- Arconic (formerly part of Alcoa) splitting up again (BlountViews)
- Paper ballots coming to Blount County? (BlountViews)
- 260 million Year Old Sand Painting (Whitescreek Journal)
TN Politics
- Glen Casada’s Op-Ed About Sexual Violence Is Traumatizing for Survivors (Nashville Scene)
- Van Huss' Attempt to Add God to State Constitution: Not an 'Only in Tennessee!' Moment (Nashville Scene)
- Speaker Casada's Hell Week (Nashville Scene)
- Clemmons Blasts Briley Over Homeless-Camp Clearing, Affordable Housing (Nashville Scene)
- Lee proposes $40M for school safety officers (TN Journal)
- Not Just Yet for Cyntoia Brown-Inspired Reform Measure (Nashville Scene)
- Proposal Limiting Police Oversight Clears First House Hurdle (Nashville Scene)
- Lighting strikes Tennessee Tower (TN Journal)
- Bill to close Tennessee primaries advancing in House (TN Journal)
- Lee to include repeal of ‘gym tax’ in budget proposal (TN Journal)
- How nigh is the end? House leadership plots course (TN Journal)
- Former Knoxville mayor speaks out against gutting police oversight panels (TN Journal)
Knox TN Today
- Dogwoods ahead (Knox TN Today)
- Phil Nichols, art professor, has died (Knox TN Today)
- Scenic Knoxville urges strong parking-lot landscaping standards for Recode (Knox TN Today)
- Jan Coe brings mindfulness through sound therapy (Knox TN Today)
- Saints and sinners on a mission (Knox TN Today)
- Salute to Charlie Daniel (Knox TN Today)
- Urban Wilderness water bottles to support the outdoors (Knox TN Today)
- Fondue bash offers chance to enjoy ‘vintique’ (Knox TN Today)
- Services Saturday for Betty Jo Smith (Knox TN Today)
- Roger: Over and out (Knox TN Today)
- Wesley House champions hope, changes lives (Knox TN Today)
- Put on your racing shoes – it’s time to take in the arts (Knox TN Today)
Local TV News
- KFD currently working water rescue - WATE 6 On Your Side (WATE)
- East Tennessee school closings due to illness, flooding (WBIR)
- Flooding causing problems throughout East Tennessee - WATE 6 On Your Side (WATE)
- Flooding causing problems throughout Knoxville - WATE 6 On Your Side (WATE)
- JOMO Week: Families disconnect from phones to reconnect in the Smokies (WBIR)
- Zoo Knoxville to combine wine and safaris at new 'Wild Vine' event (WBIR)
- New kind of Krystal coming to Knoxville (WBIR)
- Rockslide closes I-40 at Tennessee-North Carolina state line - WATE 6 On Your Side (WATE)
- McGhee Tyson Airport celebrates 2.22 million passengers on 2-22 (WBIR)
- 10 About Town: February 21 - 24, 2019 (WBIR)
- Train derails near Sutherland Avenue in Knoxville - WATE 6 On Your Side (WATE)
- Sheriff: Dandridge man killed wife before taking his own life - WATE 6 On Your Side (WATE)
News Sentinel
- Nearly 100 Knox roads closed, several rescued from high waters, emergency shelters open as flooding swamps East Tennessee (KNS News)
- East Tennessee flooding: Here's what roads are closed, underwater, slope concerns (KNS News)
- NCDOT: I-40 rockslide forces week-long closure at state line (KNS News)
- Raw video: KFD crews rescue victims from a van stuck in floodwater at Concord Street (KNS News)
- 2019 political cartoons from the USA TODAY Network (KNS Opinion)
- I-40 closed at NC state line due to landslide (KNS News)
- THP trooper offered to destroy evidence against Knoxville police officer, video reveals (KNS News)
- Check out Tesla, a famous Mustang and more at the Knox News Auto Show (KNS News)
- Glen Casada needs to stop defending David Byrd and show him the door | Opinion (KNS Opinion)
- What to do about Tennessee’s rural hospital closure crisis | Opinion (KNS Opinion)
- Our problem is not electric scooters like Lime, Bird, Lyft or Uber. It is Nashville's lagging infrastructure. | Plazas (KNS Opinion)
- Are men the new marginalized minorities on campus? | Opinion (KNS Opinion)
- Planned Ancient Lore resort work prompts visit from inspectors (KNS Business)
- Knoxville Biz Ticker: NAI Global Ranked Among Top 5 Commercial Real Estate Brands (KNS Business)
State News
- Memphis Grizzlies: Rookie Jaren Jackson Jr. sidelined indefinitely with deep quad bruise (Commercial Appeal)
- How Penny Hardaway, Memphis basketball can cool off red-hot Wichita State (Commercial Appeal)
- ‘A light in a world full of darkness,’ community mourns 5-year-old cancer victim (Tennessean)
- FreightWaves to launch first U.S. market to ease freight risk - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- Biologists say EPA rollbacks could harm endangered species in Chattanooga - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- Vols hope to take learned lessons to LSU - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
- The Cumberland River is nearing flood stage. Here's what you need to know. (Tennessean)
- Why debates over same-sex marriage, LGBT clergy are threatening to divide the United Methodist Church (Tennessean)
- Williamson legislators confronted over House Speaker Glen Casada's rape comments (Tennessean)
- Bickerstaff Boulevard: The Grizzlies coach's road to NBA, sports history in Memphis (Commercial Appeal)
- Memphis pastors say church, business, school initiative can lift wages, ease poverty (Commercial Appeal)
- Overnight storms produce rare weather occurrence Tuesday in Chattanooga - Chattanooga Times Free Press (Times Free Press)
Local .GOV
- Knoxville's Major Road Upgrades Continue to Prevent Flooding (Knoxville)
- Black History Month: Bob Booker Recalls Entertainment Venues in Segregated Knoxville (Knoxville)
- Black History Month: Restoration of Odd Fellows Cemetery Continues with City Support (Knoxville)
- Black History Month: City Continues to Help Preserve Cal Johnson's Legacy (Knoxville)
- Chilhowee Park Stakeholders Participate in Planning its Future (Knoxville)
- Go Big! Knoxville Promotes Need for Mentors (Knoxville)
- Stay healthy this flu season (Knox County)
Plumb Creek Park up above and up close
(Knox County)- Free flu shots available Dec. 5 at the Knox County Health Department (Knox County)
- Knox County to host 20th Annual Holiday Festival of Lights (Knox County)
- KCHD releases status report on sexually transmitted infections (Knox County)
- Restrooms Closing for the Winter (Knox County)
Wire Reports
- Hololens headsets for the Army blasted by Microsoft workers - Polygon (Business)
- Charges dismissed against water park owners in case of 10-year-old decapitated on 17-story slide - Fox News (US News)
- Buffett appears to fault Trump, laments deals dearth in Berkshire letter - Reuters (Business)
- Russian Spy or Hustling Political Operative? The Enigmatic Figure at the Heart of Mueller’s Inquiry - The New York Times (US News)
- Donald Trump still shows some strength in the Midwest heading into 2020 - CNN (US News)
- Trump vows to veto move to block his emergency declaration if needed - CBS News (US News)
- Stocks To Watch: Food For Thought - Seeking Alpha (Business)
- Why teacher strikes are touching every part of America - CNN (US News)
- R Kelly attorney says accusers are LYING as singer is booked on 10 counts of sex abuse - Daily Mail (US News)
- New York's dance with Amazon shows us how to fight for a city's future - The Guardian (Business)
- Lime Scooter Software Glitch Causes Random Braking, Dozens Of Rider Injuries - Forbes (Business)
- Day Around The Bay: Elon Musk Just Took Out Mortgages On Five Mansions - SFist (Business)
- 10 funds with the biggest positions in Kraft Heinz - InvestmentNews (Business)
- Southwest Airlines' top pilot speaks out on operational emergency - Chicago Business Journal (Business)
- Will the nation's third-largest church split up over LGBTQ debate? Methodist leaders try to reach an answer. - Salt Lake Tribune (US News)
Lost Medicaid Funding
Search and Archives
TN Progressive
- BlountViews
- Cup of Joe Powell
- Left Wing Cracker
- RoaneViews
- Southern Beale
- Tiny Cat Pants
- Vibinc
- View From My Kitchen Table
- WhitesCreek Journal
Nearby:
- AC Entertainment
- Backyard Farmer 101
- Blount Dems
- Cameron Brooks
- David Hunter
- David Moon
- Domestic Psychology
- Ellen Smith
- Gerald Witt
- Frank Murphy
- Herston TN Family Law
- Inside of Knoxville
- Instapundit
- Jack Lail
- Jim Stovall
- Knox Dems
- Knoxify
- Les Jones
- Lynn Point Records
- Michael Silence
- Mike Donila
- MoxCarm Blue Streak
- Outdoor Knoxville
- P.E.N. Studio
- Pittman Properties
- Property Scope
- Reality Me
- Rikki Hall
- Stop Alcoa Parkway
- Suzy Trotta
- Tom Humphrey
Beyond:
- Andy Axel
- Enclave
- Pith in the Wind
- Post Politics
- Quiet Life
- Smart City Memphis
- TN Dems
- TN Ticket
- TN Trivia
- Bob Stepno
- Facing South
- Lovable Liberal
At large:
- Agonist
- Atrios
- Burnt Orange Report
- Buzzflash
- College Dems
- Crooks and Liars
- Daily Kos
- Democratic Strategist
- Democrats.org
- Digby's Hullabaloo
- Ezra Klein
- The Fix
- Huffington Post
- Media Matters
- Open Secrets
- Political Wire
- Politico
- Seeing the Forest
- Skippy the Bush Kangaroo
- Suburban Guerrilla
- Talk Left
- Talking Points Memo
- Think Progress
- Truthdig
- Truthout
Congratulations and good
Congratulations and good luck!
This is SUCH good news. I've
This is SUCH good news. I've already signed up and you should too.
Many thanks! We look forward
Many thanks! We look forward to publishing, starting Sept. 4.
Jobs
I assume you will have something to say about Pilot, Discovery, and Tennova layoffs?
It's a rather large job for two guys, even you two. Hope you've got your running shoes on.
Congratulations and I look forward to it.
Thanks! And yes, I'm sure we
(in reply to Treehouse)
Thanks! And yes, I'm sure we will!
Barking Shark Media. Lol.Was
Barking Shark Media. Lol.
Was thinking the other day it should be something clever like SharkBark. Barking Shark is better. Actually, perfect.
I believe so strongly in this I already bought a year membership
Good luck guys...
Thanks Dan! And yes, we will
(in reply to danandrews)
Thanks Dan! And yes, we will keep an eye on PBA. We'll tell them you sent us!
Thanks
Thanks, everybody. Especially Randy, for hosting this site and running the news release. We're excited to get started -- I spent more time in the City County Building today than I have in a long time. We'll do our best to make it worthy of the community.
Thanks again!
And I spent LESS time in the
(in reply to barker)
And I spent LESS time in the City County Building than I have in a long time, which also felt good.
I am pretty stoked
I mean I look at the Public Building Authority. Nobody is covering it.Yet that is literally the nerve center of Knoxville and Knox County and nobody is covering it.
CompaasBlab.
CompassBlab.
We are planning on having a
(in reply to Mykhailo)
We are planning on having a moderated (emphasis on moderated) FB group for subscribers.
Launch
The first week is in the books, and the response has been gratifying. We held a launch party for Compass subscribers this evening at Ironwood Studios, and I was overwhelmed by the support. It's going to be tough to meet their expectations, buy our expectations are just as high and we like to think of ourselves as a couple of tough hombres.
Randy has been a hero for local civic engagement, and I hope we can help out too. There's always room for more.
I got a subscription for my
I got a subscription for my 83 year old mother yesterday, and she actually called me this morning to tell me how thrilled she was when she read her first issue, and how grateful she is to you two for this.
That's great to hear! Also
(in reply to Mykhailo)
That's great to hear! Also great to meet you in person at the party Friday. Many thanks for the support.
It is amazing!
Very high quality. No fluff. No opinions, I recommend it to everyone
Thanks
(in reply to danandrews)
Thanks, Dan. It's been a wild week and half, but we're hanging in there. And hopefully doing good work. The reaction has been positive and humbling. Again, thanks for the kind words.
Compass Launch
Hey Guys, good luck!
You are right, the Sentinel has deteriorated under USA Today. Lost it’s local on-the-ground coverage. What does some guy scribbling in a basement in Memphis or Nashville know about our town? Or how it ticks.?
Thanks
(in reply to NiccoD)
Thanks, Nick. Of course, we're just two guys scribbling at home too, but neither of us works in our basements and we do live in Knoxville.
I've enjoyed chatting with you at the various Recode Knoxville meetings. It will be interesting to see how that plays out.
I do most of my scribbling on
(in reply to barker)
I do most of my scribbling on the couch. Definitely not in the basement, don't get good wi-fi there.
basement
(in reply to j.f.m.)
My basement is pretty scary. My soul might be damp and dank, but my workspace needs to be more airy. Plus it's easier to get to the kitchen when I'm upstairs!
Terrific News
Glad to see JFM back in the local news fray. I can't remember the last time I read anything from the KNS, so this is much welcomed in my home. One question - any chance you'll set up PayPal as a means of payment?
Hey
(in reply to Opinari)
What am I, chopped liver? Seriously, Jesse is a great journalist and I am blessed that we're working together. We tried to integrate the payment system with all the other systems involved in getting the site online. It ain't easy, but we think we have the best system for our business model. Let us know if you have problems with payment (we want your money!!).
Yeah, what he said. We
(in reply to barker)
Yeah, what he said. We started with credit cards, but PayPal can be integrated, it's just a matter of working out some things on the back end. Neither of us are tech whizzes, so we're taking all of that one step at a time. We definitely want to make it as easy as possible.
Outside the Paywall!
Good news everybody!
As of this morning, we have moved our entire first Special Report -- "A User's Guide to Local Government and Politics" -- out from behind the paywall. If you're not a subscriber, now you can read some of what we've been up to. If you are a subscriber, feel free to share with anyone you think might be interested. Thank you all for your support! This includes both the Knox 2018 guide and the "How It Works" sections on the city, county, school board and UT.
Links:
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