20 Under 40 - 1997 Profile: Brian Stallcop, The Sun, Bremerton, Wash.

PRESSTIME

By Presstime Magazine

First Published: December 1997

Talk about taking a pulse. Shortly after assuming the post of managing editor at The Sun in Bremerton, Wash. (morning, circulation 38, 856), Brian Stallcop set a goal of making more than 50 public appearances in a year. He talked to townsfolk about what they liked and did not like about recent changes at the newspaper. He reached his goal—and got an earful.

As he handed out papers at the 5 a.m. ferry to Seattle and broke bread with the United Methodist women's group, no one was shy about voicing displeasure with The Sun's innovations.

"We added a Sunday edition, which they were required to buy, and they didn't like that," Stallcop says. What upset them most: paid obituaries. Readers thought local news got short shrift; they wanted beefed-up sports, too.

Today, local news provides focus to the A section, and sports reporters cover high-school and pro teams. Readers who paid for obits got their money back.

The reward for listening? Daily circulation is up 11 percent, and the Sun's "read yesterday" number increased from 38 percent to 49 percent of adults in their market, according to a proprietary survey.

Stallcop credits the entire staff for the turnaround but counts revamped sports, new daily business sections and weekly theme pages, including one for military subjects, as personal accomplishments.

As for tomorrow, Stallcop waxes philosophic about his role. "I don't know if I will retire in the newspaper business as such, nor do I know if newsprint and ink will be the ultimate product. I do know I will be working in a content- and information-driven business. That's what we do best."

That, and listen.