West Virginia After Coal, Huntington, WV 2000
Partners:
The (Huntington) Herald-Dispatch
West Virginia Public Broadcasting
The partners made economic revitalization the dominant issue in West Virginia legislative and political debate with “West Virginia After Coal,” a far-reaching exploration of the state’s prospects if it continues to rely solely on coal for its economic well-being.
The project provided a number of features to educate citizens and generate discussion including a newspaper series, a live town hall meeting and a dedicated website.
The Herald-Dispatch kicked off a six-part series, Sept. 17, 2000, with a ground-breaking investigation of how local governments were using coal severance taxes. The paper found virtually none of the money being used for economic development. Instead, it was being used to underwrite normal budgetary items such as postage and animal shelters.
The series also included results of a Pew-funded poll of 400 West Virginia residents, showing a large majority thought the state should reduce its reliance on coal.
The paper made the series available to any paper in the state and all or part of it ran in six of the state’s papers.
Public television and radio simulcast a live three-hour town hall meeting with more than 200 citizens participating at 10 different sites around the state. The partners’ Web site allowed users to chat live during the meeting. The site also features a searchable database of severance tax spending and it allows users to take the poll and see where they stand in relation to other West Virginia residents.
The project won the James Batten Award in 2001.
Contact:
Len LaCara
Former Managing Editor
Herald-Dispatch
Huntington, WV
Phone: (304) 526-2779
Email: llacara@aol.com
Beth Gorczyca
Reporter
Herald-Dispatch
946 5th Ave.
Huntington, WV 25701
Phone: (304) 526-2772
Email: bethg@herald-dispatch.com