; Ed.tor's Letter take your eyewea to new heights The JAI's Unique Role T he content has changed but the reason for being hasn't. For 67 years, the news and commentary that make up the Jewish News have informed the Detroit Jewish community like no other source. We link the broad and diverse expanse of Jewish Detroit through the multilayered coverage we provide in print and online. In this regard, we're a vital component of who Detroit is and what we represent as a community. The 2005 Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit population study revealed that the IN touches more than 80 percent of the Jewish community it serves. We're mighty proud of the role we play. We don't take it lightly. We tinker continuously with our print content and design to keep them fresh and inviting. We've also taken significant strides along the winding pathway that is the World Wide Web. In fact, I share this self-assessment with you today as we plan to relaunch JNonline.us over the next two months with an interactive digital edition and a com- munity-focused Web site. The Web site will include a community forum with discussion boards, blogs, polls and event calendars. It also will boast photo galleries that you can download or print from as well as a revamped community directory. Watch for updates on the online excite- ment we hope to stir, including sneak- peek opportunities. But know these C Web enhancements will supplement our popular print products, not replace them. Industry trends aside, we have no plans to stop publishing the Jewish News each week. Though we've shrunk in population over the last 20 years, Detroit Jewry con- tinues to provide national models for fundraising, eldercare services and life- long learning. In some communities, the Jewish federation and the Jewish news- :7417,17- paper are at odds. Here, the circum- stances are different. Federation and the Jewish News share more than a common audience. We respect each other's independent roles, but also work diligently as partners for the good of the community. community. The sweep of the interplay among our communal, religious and organizational sectors keeps our community humming and ever-changing. Against this dynamic backdrop, the print version of the IN, which is welcomed into thousands of Metro Detroit homes each Thursday, may be the unifying link that girds us as a real community. Connecting The Pieces While the Web in general, and JNonline in particular, can provide large quantities of information of varying quality, it is still the IN that makes all parts of the community feel and act as one. But the number of ads sold dictates the size of each issue. So buying local on a regular basis benefits our advertis- ers and enlarges our news hole. With gusto, our staff attacks the panoply of possibilities and assembles the weekly jigsaw puzzle of local, national and international content. We agonize over the balance between news generated here, like the impact of Michigan's economy on Jewish life, and news affecting Israel, like nagging questions surrounding the relationship between Washington-based CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations) and a U.S.-based llamas support network. We strive to not just inform, but also challenge and enlight- en. As a niche publication, we're part of the community we cover. We don't swoop in and out as news flows and ebbs. We're a pillar of the Detroit Jewish com- munity for the long haul. Rabbi Eric Grossman, head of school at the Frankel Jewish Academy in West Bloomfield, unwittingly underscored that point in a pre-Purim conversation with IN Publisher Arthur Horwitz. Grossman has lived in various com- munities, including Boston, Toronto and Detroit. In each community, he has led many Shabbatot — Shabbat retreats — for teenagers. One of the activities they do is a game wherein all of the community's Jewish communal assets are listed on sepa- rate cards. The teens are asked to select the three cards they consider the community's bedrock — the must-haves. Only in Detroit is the Jewish newspaper — the Jewish News — always one of the three bedrock cards selected. That's telling. It also heightens the standards for us in how we mix and match content in hopes of hitting home runs amid the wide- ranging concerns, interests and needs of our amazing com- munity. Some readers condemn the same story that others applaud. That's what drives us and keeps us hopping; this con- stant churn guards against our growing complacent. All of which is why the weekly JN, the cornerstone of our products, is so vital and deserving of advertiser, reader and communal support. We appreciate that loyalty very much — and require it to stay vibrant. yr. ■ en ereeeer WT.! ibon.n.10nne *I, • •■• 1[13 on.. a In nalw. nnernnnt..n ne nnn. ■ s/ Annt ant, , nnn nnlina nnnOnanni,nl-n nnn- n Ann. ,n0A TA ,n+ Ty n tn= nn. ..• Our Expanding Base Given the number of people who read our print and online prod- ucts, it's a slam-dunk to say we now provide unique content to more readers than ever in our storied history. Young families of former Detroiters in Chicago, New York, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles as well as retirees in Arizona, California and Florida stay linked to their hometown Jewish community through JNonline. Many of these IN fans also choose to receive the actual newspaper via mail despite a higher out-of-state rate. Strong interest out-of-state in what we write about in the weekly IN, on JNonline and in our two monthly publications, Platinum and Teen2Teen, is a remarkable tribute to the attrac- tion our community maintains, even among Jewish Detroiters who live elsewhere. We may be only the 21st-largest U.S. Jewish community in terms of population, but let there be no mis- take: We rock when it comes to defining what it means to be a CHROME HEARTS FREUDENHAUS MYKITA PERSOL RAY BAN 92 LAFONT 91 LUNOR* P 0 C overspeedan,ean be ea,terg— ane `""" '"'""` ROBERT MARC* bobber. , • 1,e9 81 I O Is the Jewish News integral to your 1 Z Jewish experience? (/) I— Ca Z z 0 a. 0 - BEAUSOLEIL ORIGINAL VINTAGE AND CONTEMPORARY EYEWEAR AND ACCESSORIES FEATURING CHARLEY HARPER PRINTS, AND RARE, VINTAGE JEWELRY FROM THE COLLECTION OF JOANN GOLDBERG EYE DR. JOE ALES 245 WEST MAPLE JUST EAST OF BATES, DOWNTOWN BIRMINGHAM 248-646-6699 www.optikbirmingh• .com MOST MAJOR OPTICAL INSURANCE ACCEPTED, INCLUDING VSP Will you find the time to visit our enhanced Web site? IISIVELY IN MICHIGAN AT OPTIK BIRMINGHAM ,R4 March 19 . 2009 A5