When people want to get information out to the public, they naturally turn to the local newspaper. Especially for those who don’t deal with the newspaper often, this can be a frustrating process.

Who do you talk to? Where do you send information? How soon can you expect it to be published? What’s the difference between a news item and an advertisement?

Here’s a short tutorial on how to get your news in The Herald Bulletin:

Is it news? We generally publish information without charge when it relates to a community event or has general community interest. If the event is for profit and we believe it does not have mass appeal, we’ll generally send you to the advertising department to take out a paid advertisement.

Who should I contact? It depends on what sort of information you’re trying to get into the newspaper.

U For brief news or community items, e-mail to newsroom@heraldbulletin.com or contact Newsroom Coordinator Janis Bowling or Editorial Assistant Tammy Everitt at 640-4800.

U For news tips or news story suggestions, contact Associate Editor Steve Dick at steve.dick@heraldbulletin.com or 640-4863.

U For features story suggestions, contact Associate Editor for Features Scott Miley at scott.miley@heraldbulletin.com or 648-4230.

U For sports story ideas, contact Sports Editor Rick Teverbaugh at rick.teverbaugh@heraldbulletin.com or 640-4886.

U Send sports results and event information to sports@heraldbulletin.com or call the sports department at 640-4849.

A staff directory, with job titles, e-mail addresses and phone numbers can be found at theheraldbulletin.com. Click on “Contact Us”.

When and where will the information be published? We try to publish information about community events at least two days ahead of time. These items show up in the briefs on the Local & State page, the Community page or the Sports page, depending on their subject matter. They also show up in our Week Ahead or weekend entertainment calendars.

To assure that your information is published in enough time for people to make plans to attend, send the information to us at least a week in advance. You have four delivery options:

U Send it to the appropriate e-mail address (see above). We prefer this method.