Editor's notebook: Getting from a nest to a soaring newsroom will take more financial support

I am writing today for one purpose—to ask that you consider making a recurring financial contribution to The B Square Bulletin.

Look for the red "Subscribe" button in the upper right of the website screen. On your smartphone, it will appear at the bottom of the screen for the navigational menu.

If you've already subscribed to the "Almost Daily Bulletin" email newsletter, the button will say "Account." To modify your Account from a free membership, to one where you're contributing a fixed amount every month, click the button and follow your nose.

To be clear, your financial contribution gets you nothing more for yourself than you got before. Your financial help subsidizes access to local news and information for those who can't afford it. Your financial help means that the relaunched B Square might have a chance to fledge—and maybe one day soar across the whole city as Bloomington's local paper.

The analogy to birds has been made before, a few months ago, when The B Square first relaunched. At that point it was about building a nest.

Today's column is an update of sorts from the Mother's Day photo—of the red-tailed hawk's nest in the big eastern white pine tree on the corner of the Monroe County courthouse grounds. The hatchlings are getting bigger by the day. It's likely the same pair of hawks that last year nested in the big sycamore tree above Bryan Hall on the Indiana University campus.

Last year's brood included a fledgling that was discovered in distress near the law school, and was eventually scooped up for treatment by the Pipsqueakery. Despite best efforts, that young hawk did not survive.

It's a grim observation, but that's just how nature works. It's not guaranteed that The B Square will survive. Since the relaunch in late February, 379 of you have provided financial support. The draft budget for an expanded newsroom uses a projection of 6,000 individual contributors. There's a long way to go towards that goal.

The current level of reporting that you see on the website and in the "Almost Daily Bulletin" is the work of one person and a couple of occasional freelancers. Even this current level of reporting is not sustainable without significantly more support.

By the end of June, I hope the number of individual contributors has reached at least 600, which is just 10% the number that will eventually be needed. If it's less than 600, I'll reevaluate everything.

If you've already contributed, thank you! I hope you might encourage others to do the same. If you're waiting for the right moment to make a contribution, I hope you'll go ahead and decide that the moment is right now.

Online Method

Step 1: Visit the website and look in the upper right hand corner for the text that says "Sign in" or the red button that says "Subscribe."

If you're already receiving the Almost Daily Bulletin email message, then you are already a Member with an Account. If you're reading this in your email browser, that means you're a Member.

Step 2: If you're a Member, click the "Sign in" link. If you're not yet a Member, click the red "Subscribe" button. (If you're a Member, and you're already signed in, you'll just see a red "Account" button. Click that.)

Step 3: Pick one of the contribution plans.

Paper Check Method

A lot of people still prefer to send paper checks through the mail.

If that's your preference, make the check out to The B Square and send it here:

The B Square
PO Box 3355
Bloomington, IN 47402

Thank you for your support!

Dave Askins
734-645-2633
dave@bsquarebulletin.com