In November, Bishop Bonnar announced our new upcoming print magazine and multimedia website: The Catholic Echo. Since that time, our staff has continued to work hard on what is a complex transition. We want to give you an update, and respond to some common questions we’re receiving.
When will The Catholic Exponent publish its last issue?
After this issue, The Catholic Exponent will publish its last two issues on February 10 and February 24. February 24 will include a special section honoring the legacy of The Catholic Exponent. Our February issues will also include Lenten announcements.
When will The Catholic Echo website launch and what are its benefits?
The Catholic Echo’s multimedia website will launch in February. Our online format at thecatholicecho.org will allow for coverage of Catholic life, features and announcements in a way that is more comprehensive than our traditional print format. In addition, we will be able to publish stories and announcements more quickly online than we have been able to in our bi-weekly print newspaper, or than we will be able to in our forthcoming print magazine. In short, the website will offer everything that is in the print magazine, and much more, published in a more rapid format. We will also be able to deliver stories and announcements on our website directly to our readers via an email newsletter and social media.
When will the Catholic Echo print magazine launch? What will it look like and how often will I receive it?
The Catholic Echo magazine will launch in late Spring 2023, allowing our staff some time to complete our creative reboot. We are excited about publishing an attractive magazine that includes in-depth features to help Catholics grow in faith and connect to our six-county Catholic community. This will largely be a monthly magazine, published 10 times per year, with two combined issues during times that are less busy. This is more often than some dioceses publish, but in considering the needs of our parishes and faithful, we felt that moving towards a monthly model would feel as similar to our current publication schedule as possible.
I use The Catholic Exponent to find out about events beyond my parish, and am not very comfortable with the internet. How will you support me?
Not all announcements can appear in print, and this was true with The Catholic Exponent, too. While online publishing has become dominant for all publications, we are committed to serving all parishioners. In addition to our print magazine as an attractive companion for all Catholics, our diocesan efforts will also include compiling parish events, as we have in the past, and disseminating those events to each parish to publish in their bulletins and announcements. We are currently updating our approach to these efforts.
I currently subscribe to The Catholic Exponent. Will I receive the Catholic Echo? Do I need to renew?
All registered households will automatically receive the Catholic Echo — this is a big change to our current model, but has proven to be successful in other dioceses in using the magazine to reach all parishioners as an outreach tool. Additionally, for those readers who subscribe directly through our office (not through their parish), and who are not registered at a parish in the diocese, all current subscribers to The Catholic Exponent will receive the first few issues of the Catholic Echo. For these readers whose subscriptions to The Exponent have recently lapsed, they will be given the chance to subscribe to continue receiving the Catholic Echo magazine. Any non-parishioners whose Catholic Exponent subscriptions have not lapsed will continue to have their subscription fulfilled by the Catholic Echo. When their subscription expires, they will be invited to renew at the new rates. Information for new subscribers will be available later this year.
How can registered parishioners financially support the Catholic Echo?
Registered parishioners will automatically receive the magazine, regardless of contribution, but parishes will receive an invoice as they have in the past. This will help offset the cost of sending a magazine to each registered household and maintaining an open-access website. We are working hard to try and limit the cost to each parish, but your parish may ask you to contribute through a second collection or special envelope marked “The Catholic Echo” or (until envelopes can be changed) “The Catholic Exponent.” We ask you to be as generous as you can be to help your parish offset the cost of reaching not only you, but also other parishioners.
What about the new “Diocesan Communications Collection?”
The new Diocesan Communications Collection, which took place earlier this month, will partially benefit The Catholic Echo’s launch but will financially support wider diocesan communication costs distinct from The Catholic Echo’s normal operational expenses. This includes our new social media studio and social media operations, radio and television production, website updates, internal communications that directly benefit parishes and media relations. Thank you to all who supported the Diocesan Communications Collection this year. You can still give online here.
What if I or my business is able to be a financial leader?
For those able to be a leading contributor, we invite you to please contact Justin Huyck, Director of Communications at 330-744-8451 or jhuyck@youngstowndiocese.org. Additionally, the Catholic Echo is currently in the process of engaging with new and current advertisers about our new advertising opportunities, and I invite you to contact me or Karen Mason, Manager of Advertising and Revenue, at 330-744-5251 or kmason@youngstowndiocese.org.
