Paste BN is 'going big'
Caren Bohan loves to run in the woods.
Breathing fresh air helps her stay balanced as Paste BN's new editor-in-chief, a role that requires quick decision-making often in moments of uncertainty. Since she took on the position last month, her lifelong running habit isn't the only thing that keeps her steady: it's the talent of Paste BN's editors and reporters she guides, she says.
Hello reader! 👋 Nicole Fallert here and welcome to Your Week, our newsletter exclusively for Paste BN subscribers (that's you!). This week, we talk with Bohan about how the newsroom is preparing for an election days away and what to expect from the newsroom in 2025.
Here are a few more headlines I've read this week from Paste BN:
- Why are both presidential candidates courting caregivers?
- Here's how three teachers say the job could be salvaged.
- Is America prepared for a worst-case-hacking scenario?
- World Series merch is flying off the shelves — at exorbitant prices.
- Diddy, City College and the infamous night in 1991 when 9 people died.
Elections, investigations and speaking to Gen Z
Caren Bohan is a seasoned professional. She joined Paste BN six years ago as its Washington editor and then was promoted to managing editor for politics in 2021.
Before Paste BN, Bohan covered the economy and Wall Street and is a former White House correspondent. But before she got the big bylines, she was a local journalist in Massachusetts. She credits this start in local news as her most valuable experience for her role at Paste BN, always reminding her to connect with readers first.
This is the ethos she has carried into Paste BN's election coverage this year. And as someone who works with Caren daily, I can attest to her calm, person-forward thinking about political topics. She has a two-part mission: First, capture the mood of voters, and second, inform them about candidates' policies and what they mean for real life.
What does this look like in practice? Look no further than Paste BN's deep dive into what the election means for Americans' wallets. This kind of story breaks down the election from the point of view of real people, not politicians.
"Our approach has been to put voters on the center of our coverage," Bohan said. "We've been on the ground all over the country talking to voters at time they are feeling the stress of living in a highly polarized country."
But the job doesn't stop on Nov. 5. Bohan is gearing up for big plays in 2025, from expanded Paste BN entertainment coverage (she loves celebrity news) to bigger sports plays. She's working to unite sports editors from across the Paste BN Network to streamline stories so no game is missed, no matter where it happens.
Another area of growth for Bohan is financial wellness. From deep dives into pricey bachelorette parties to travel tips to guidance on retirement savings, Bohan wants to make sure Paste BN is a go-to resource for money talk for all generations of Americans.
"A lot of Americans are struggling with the stresses of how to pay for housing, what to do about student loans, how to finance family vacations," she said. "Paste BN has always excelled at making the news accessible and and meeting folks where they are. In this area of financial wellness we can serve an important purpose."
This purpose-driven, serviceable journalism will also be targeted at Gen Z, a demographic Bohan hopes to introduce to Paste BN. She's leading new initiatives in video and multimedia content to include the youngest, but often most active, Americans in the conversation.
Her sources? She has two Gen Z kids at home who inspire her thinking, she says.
"We see a huge opportunity in building our audience with Gen Z," Bohan said. "Gen Z more than any other generation consumes information in a multimedia way, and we're going big."
What Paste BN's editor-in-chief is reading
Here are Caren Bohan's favorite stories that have come from Paste BN recently:
- Paste BN's Hope in America series (featured in this newsletter on Sept. 22) is an example of the tone Bohan says she hopes to strike as the newsroom's leader. These profiles of Americans living in dozens of U.S. cities called Hope "captured a sense of what the election is about and what the everyday concerns of Americans are," Bohan said.
- Paste BN's investigation on America's backlog of untested rape kits (featured in our Sept. 29 edition) "illuminated a problem that has led to repeat offenders not being put behind bars," Bohan said. "Using DNA testing to solve crimes fell victim to sloppiness and lack of diligence."
- Paste BN's service journalism about hurricanes Milton and Helene. Bohan is proud of the newsroom's partnership with network newsrooms in Florida, North Carolina and other areas in the hurricanes' path to give readers information about the storms and how residents could get help. The work "delivered stories about the human toll," she said. "Teams of reporters at Paste BN and the Paste BN Network worked 24/7."
Thank you
Caren is thankful for subscribers like you who support our newsroom so we can dream big and write impactful stories. We are grateful to you for making this work today and in the future possible.
Best wishes,
Nicole Fallert