The “news café” has officially become an international trend. Just as the Register Citizen in Torrington, Conn., made waves in the United States with its innovative newsroom project last year, the Winnipeg Free Press is doing the same in the Great White North. In April, the Manitoba-based daily newspaper opened a News Café in Winnipeg’s historic Exchange District. Complete with a full menu, the café offers social events, discussions and the chance to meet with the Free Press journalists who are there working on stories. inVocus talked to deputy online editor John White over email to get an in-depth look at the paper’s new venture.
inVocus: What has the community response been like for the News Café?
JW: It’s been amazing. The food side was a hit from the start. [Executive chef] Dom Amatuzio has done a stellar job with the menu and the serving/kitchen teams. It’s tough to get a seat some days during the lunch rush. On the interactive side, we’ve seen major interest from people, especially during major events like election nights and our flood coverage.
inVocus: What motivated the paper to open the café?
JW: I created the business plan and my emphasis was on getting back into the community and making our brand relevant to a new audience. I also wanted to create a community hub for people to meet and talk about the issues, either on their own or as part of one of our town hall events. After relocating to an industrial park in 1991, we lost touch with people, so we were eager to get back downtown and to open our doors.
inVocus: Are different journalists assigned to the café each week?
JW: It’s fluid based on what those people are working on. You never know who’s going to be there, which is fun for people.
inVocus: Are journalists finding that residents approach them in the café? Are reporters finding story ideas there?
JW: Oh yes. When our columnists are in there they get approached all of the time with ideas. And our video team works out of the café with our social media reporter and they get approached regularly. People are very pleased that they can have that kind of interaction and be heard.
inVocus: Was the Winnipeg Free Press inspired at all by the Register Citizen?
JW: For sure. I spoke with [Register Citizen publisher] Matt [DiRienzo] at length about best practices after their launch and incorporated several of their concepts in my secondary pitch.
inVocus: How is your news café different from the Register Citizen’s?
JW: We’re different in that we only have some of our editorial staff there at any given time, we host many special events with high-quality video production, and our restaurant side is top of the line. They’ve gone much further on the transparency side by opening up the entire newsroom.
inVocus: In your opinion, what are the best aspects of the News Café?
JW: The energy around the brand. People are excited to be involved with our brand, and thrilled that they can meet journalists. That is very gratifying – having a central hub for not only customers but staff. Photographers can drop off video cards and have them processed right away. Also, reinvesting in the downtown and specifically the Exchange District is cool.
inVocus: How would you like to see the News Café evolve in the next few months?
JW: We’re looking to bring in the next phase of my plan which involves another element from Torrington – the Media Commons. We want to hold media labs to teach people the basics of journalism and equip them with gear to tell their stories. On top of the town hall aspect of the plan, this is the main piece in my mind to really give something back to the community.
–Lauren Cohen
