An Insider's Look at Spitfire's Favorite News and Communications Resources  

Spitfire Strategies staff use a wide range of online news and communications resources to stay on top of current events, policy developments and the changing media world. Many of these resources provide a fresh perspective on events and policies that differs greatly from mainstream news coverage. This month, we present our favorite resources – the ones we wouldn't let a day or week go by without reading – in hopes that they will help you to find new perspectives on complex policy issues, track developments, and plan effective communications efforts.


Before Your Morning Coffee

NBC's First Read and ABC's The Note offer early-morning, email digests of the day's top political news. "Seeing the most important political stories first thing in the morning helps me to get a jump on responding to new developments."
--Kendra Beach, account executive

 
Outside the Mainstream Media

Alternet, an independent online news source, "is very committed to offering grassroots-level coverage, and you will find things there that don't get picked up in the national media."
-- Piper Kerman, senior associate

The American Progress Action Fund (sister to the Center for American Progress) sends out a daily e-newsletter, The Progress Report, that you can subscribe to on their Web site. "It offers a thorough, daily look at national and state issues through a progressive lens, and synthesizes news from a wide range of media outlets and blogs. Hot links in the text make it easy to click and find additional information."
--Jill Greenberg, vice president

In addition to covering international issues such as the war in Iraq, Al Jazeera's English-language site offers a valuable outsider's view of domestic U.S. issues. "It's interesting to know how foreign outlets view how we cope with internal strife. For example, I checked it during the Hurricane Katrina fallout and the Roberts nomination."
--Brendan McCarthy, account executive

 
In the Blogosphere

Three of the most influential Web blogs, Daily Kos, Eschaton and Talking Points Memo, provide in-depth commentary on news issues from a liberal perspective. "As blogs grow in influence, it's important to know what the top bloggers are saying about key issues and to think about how you can incorporate them into your communications efforts."
--Colleen Chapman, vice president


On the Media

Mediabistro is a Web site aimed at journalists and freelance writers. The site's "Revolving Door" feature lists personnel changes at newspapers, magazines and television networks each day. "The site is a must for anyone who needs to keep up with newsroom changes, new shows and other developments in the media world."
--Kristen Grimm, president

The Washington Post's Web site hosts daily online chats on a variety of issues, from cooking to politics. Their series of "Ask the Post" chats allows participants to ask the paper's editors how the newsroom works and why certain coverage decisions are made. "The archived chats are a treasure trove of information that can help guide the development of pitches to The Post and increase your understanding of how newspapers operate in general."
--Danielle Lewis, account executive

The Poynter Institute's Web site includes a host of columns on media and communications topics. One favorite is the Romenesko column, which provides daily updates and analysis of media industry news. "It also introduces great debates about journalistic ethics and practices in today's saturated media culture. Essentially it is a blog, or rather a selection of media stories, but I think of it more as online journalism since it existed well before the term ‘blog' became so widespread."
--Matthew Briggs, account coordinator
 

Odds and Ends

Slate's Explainer feature takes on topics as diverse as how caviar is harvested and why the White Sox aren't the White Socks. What the topics have in common is a connection to recent news stories. "I find it contributes to my general bank of knowledge about things in the news and helps me make connections between seemingly unrelated pieces of news."
--Robin Deliso, account coordinator

The Stanford Social Innovation Review is a quarterly journal with "great articles on the philanthropic sector in general, and managing nonprofits in particular. A recent issue included articles on how nonprofits can distinguish themselves from for-profits through branding, and smart nonprofit hiring practices."
--Cher Jacques, account coordinator