Join esteemed journalists Wendy Liberatore, Judy Patrick, and Ken Tingley for spirited conversation about the present state of local news, and what’s needed to ensure its future. Ken Tingley, former editor of the Post-Star will begin with a brief presentation on the value of local newspapers and a reading from his book, The Last American Newspaper. At 7:00 PM, Tingley will be joined by Wendy Liberatore of the Times Union and Judy Patrick from the New York Press Association for a panel discussion moderated by library director Sarah Murphy. The panel will be followed by a Q & A and community conversation. The Last American Newspaper will be available for sale.

About the panelists:

Wendy Liberatore covers politics, crime and any story of interest in communities in Saratoga County and north for the Times Union. Previously, she wrote features on the arts and dance for the Daily Gazette, Saratoga Living and the Saratogian. She also worked as a writer of profiles for Spotlight magazine in Westchester County. She started her career in journalism as an education reporter with the Bronxville Review-Press and Reporter. 

Judy Patrick is vice president for editorial development for the New York Press Association, where she provides editorial assistance to the organization's 600-plus local newspapers. For more than four decades she was a local newspaper journalist, most notably at The Daily Gazette in Schenectady, where she was editor-in-chief. She appears regularly on WAMC's Media Project and Roundtable programs. She is a native of Greenwich and a proud graduate of both Greenwich Central and the University at Albany.

Ken Tingley was the editor of the Post-Star in Glens Falls, N.Y. from 1999 to 2020. During his tenure, the newspaper won a Pulitzer Prize in editorial writing in 2009, was recognized by the New York State Associated Press Association with its “Newspaper of Distinction” award nine times while winning more than a dozen national awards for its journalism. Since retiring, Tingley has authored two books. The first, The Last American Editor is a collection of his columns and the second, The Last American Newspaper looks at the impact newspapers have on their communities.