The Morning Report
Get the news and information you need to take on the day.
Things are changing at Voice of San Diego and we want you to know what’s happening and why.
No. 1: It’s Time to Raise Your Voice! — Become a Member
Today, we’re launching our new Raise Your Voice membership program because we need you to help us build and sustain this member-based news organization.
Many people have enjoyed this service for free over the past seven years. We take great pride in knowing we’ve played an important role in educating people about our city, but we need people who appreciate our work to support it.
Our mission is twofold: to cultivate a community of educated and informed citizens while, at the same time, building a sustainable revenue source to fuel our efforts.
Over the past 12 months, more than 1,000 different people donated to Voice of San Diego at various giving levels. They’re now the founding members of a new community and they’ll start receiving the benefits of the Raise Your Voice program immediately.
Every month, when our members join us for coffee, they remind us of the things that really matter in the community. But we need far more of them.
We’re on a quest to recruit 5,000 members by the end of the year to ensure we’re as independent, strong and feisty as we need to be to pursue this mission effectively.
If you’ve been regularly reading the Morning Report or our stories online, it’s time to make it official by joining the Raise Your Voice community today!
Starting today, if you become a Voice of San Diego member you’ll be part of an inner circle who will be invited to participate in our investigations, weigh in on our discussions and attend our special events. You’ll also receive exclusive new offerings including a weekly “Member Report” with inside tidbits of news and analysis you won’t find anywhere else from CEO Scott Lewis.
We’ll let you sample many of these benefits over the next month but you can always find out more by visiting our new membership page. Just select the benefit level that appeals to you and join online or follow the instructions to join via mail.
No. 2: A New Name
If you received the Morning Report via email today that we’re dropping the “.org” from our name and reverting back to Voice of San Diego, just like when we launched in 2005.
This may seem like a subtle move but it symbolizes how much we’ve grown and evolved. We’ve become so much more than a website. Our site is simply one of the tools we use to uncover the truth and turn the chaos of news into a story people can access and understand.
We also produce content on NBC, KOGO and San Diego Magazine. And you can constantly follow us on social media or run into us moderating a debate or giving speeches around town.
The service we provide is about civic education in whatever form it takes.
Maybe it’s a bus tour through controversial land-use locations or school reforms. Or simply a few beers with like-minded residents. That’s what you get when you join our community.
No. 3: New Look
We’re also updating our look and rolling out a new and improved website next month that better showcases our work. It’s more streamlined and simple to navigate. We think you’ll love it.
There are a few other surprises in store over the coming month, so stay tuned.
Tell us what you think. We want to hear from you, we want to meet you and we want to welcome you to our community, because you are the Voice of San Diego.
I’m Scott Lewis, the CEO of Voice of San Diego. Please contact me if you’d like at scott.lewis@voiceofsandiego.org or 619.325.0527 and follow me on Twitter (it’s a blast!):
Like VOSD on Facebook.