By Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
In the coming days, Northeast Oregon Now readers will start seeing new content from a familiar local news organization.
Northeast Oregon Now and EO Media Group, owner of the Hermiston Herald, have entered into a partnership.
Northeast Oregon Now is owned by the Umatilla Electric Cooperative and Good Shepherd Health Care System.
This pairing allows Northeast Oregon Now and the Herald to share content.
“This has the potential to be a win-win for each news outlet,” Herald publisher Andrew Cutler said.
Cutler explained that media companies are facing shrinking resources, and partnerships between news organizations benefit the public, as well as one another.
Kari Borgen, EO Media regional publisher, agreed.
According to Borgen, the Herald’s mission is to “produce critical news that gains our community’s trust,” and “we are committed to reporting and distributing local news and information because a well-informed public keeps our communities strong.”
Cutler and Borgen continued, saying the “old days” of newspapers competing against one another to break important news before other sources are gone. Nowadays, they said, it is more important for credible news to be delivered to the public, regardless of a story’s origin.
Already, the Herald publishes stories from other EO Media newspapers, such as the East Oregonian. Also, the Herald occasionally prints articles from the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin and other newspapers, with which the Herald also has agreements.
The two news outlets – Northeast Oregon Now and the Hermiston Herald – will otherwise remain separate and independent of one another. Northeast Oregon Now will also continue to be a free-access website without a subscription cost.
Borgen and Cutler said they respect Kane and his website.
“He is as well-versed in what goes on in Hermiston as anybody who’s there,” Cutler said.
Kane, whose work includes being Hermiston Herald editor from 1995 to 2008, said he is happy to partner with the Herald now.
“I think what we can do for each other is bolster our work,” he said. “We’re both going to have content, stuff we don’t normally cover.”
He added he intends to meet regularly with Herald staff. He said he expects new ideas to come from these meetings.
Kane’s resume includes previous employment with different media organizations, including the Tri-City Herald, The Observer in La Grande and the Twin Falls Times-News. Further, he boasts multiple Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association awards.
He said he first started thinking about work as a journalist when in high school. These thoughts increased, Kane said, when he was in his mid-20s.
Kane studied journalism at Columbia Basin College, which he described as very influential.
After he finished his studies, he said he sent out several resumes, took work in the area and furthered his career. Meanwhile, Kane, a Hermiston resident, said he continued to enjoy living in and serving this region.
“Northeast Oregon is my home,” he said. “I’ve lived in this area all of my life and I can’t imagine going anywhere else.”
The Hermiston Herald website can be found at hermistonherald.com.
Congratulations Michael
Hey! Thank you, Jeanne!
Congratulations. It’s good to see Michael Kane, editor of Northeast Oregon Now, being recognized by Hermiston Herald as the valued contributor and professional editor that he has always been. Likewise to see the expanded capabilities that should result from the cooperation of the two organizations.
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