John Majeski is the editor for New Tampa Patch. He spent 8 years in journalism before moving to Florida last summer. As a reporter in New Jersey, he handled everything from murder-suicides and investigative pieces to light features. He also shot and produced online news videos.

World Trade Center site redevelopment and the hottest penthouses hitting the market were both regular topics John covered when he later went on to work as a section editor and writer for a real estate trade publication in New York City.

Currently, John heads the Patch site for New Tampa, the community that has served as his home since Summer 2010.

He can be reached at john.majeski@patch.com or (813) 528-6772.

Ashley Reams has built her career in community journalism, covering small towns, getting to know the people who live and work in them, and sharing their stories.

Ashley was born and raised in Powhatan, VA, a rural community outside of Richmond. She graduated from Powhatan High School in 2001 and Longwood University in Farmville, VA in 2005.

After college, Ashley began writing for The Advocates, a pair of newspapers that covered four towns in Carroll County, MD.

In 2007, she left Maryland for the warmer temperatures of Tampa, FL. She took a reporting job with the Zephyrhills News and quickly moved up to managing editor.

Then, Community News Publications, a company that produces The Laker in Pasco County, the Lutz News in Hillsborough Lutz and Carrollwood, and other smaller publications in central and eastern Pasco, hired Ashley the next year. There, she had a hand in just about every editorial aspect of the paper, writing, editing, proofing, and helping design some of the layout.

Ashley began freelancing for Patch in January 2011, reporting and taking pictures for Land O’ Lakes, Carrollwood and Seminole Heights.

Then, she took a freelancing job with the St. Petersburg Times in February.

Now, Ashley is happy to be back at Patch covering Temple Terrace, the city she has lived in since 2010 and plans to call home for the rest of her life. She’s excited for Patch to be a part of this great community.

Reach her at ashley.reams@patch.com or 813-367-7411.

Beliefs 
At Patch, we promise always to report the facts as objectively as possible and otherwise adhere to the principles of good journalism. However, we also acknowledge that true impartiality is impossible and human beings have beliefs. So in the spirit of simple honesty, our policy is to encourage our editors to reveal certain key beliefs to the extent they feel comfortable. 

This disclosure is not a license for our editors to inject these beliefs into stories or to dictate coverage according to them. In fact, the intent is the opposite: we hope that the knowledge that our beliefs are on the record will force us to be ever mindful to write, report, and edit in a fair, balanced way. And if you, the user, ever think you see evidence that we failed in this mission, we wholeheartedly invite you to let us know.

Politics

How would you describe your political beliefs?

I am not affiliated with any party, nor do I vote along party lines. However, I tend to have liberal views when it comes to social matters.

Religion

How religious would you say you are? Casual, observant, devout, non-religious?

I am not religious, however I respect people who are no matter their religion.

Local Hot Button Issues

What do you think are the most important issues facing the community? Where do you stand on each of these issues?

The Bascis:

Associate regional editor

Phone: 813-482-7648

Email: sherri.lonon@patch.com

Born in Rochester, N.Y., Sherri Lonon moved to Land O' Lakes via Amsterdam, N.Y., when she was 12. Lonon attended Pine View Middle and Land O' Lakes High before going on to receive her degree in history from the University of South Florida.

Always an avid writer, she began her career in journalism in 1990, writing mostly about local communities such as Land O' Lakes, Lutz, Carrollwood, Town 'N Country and Plant City. She also served as the community relations coordinator for the Hillsborough County Water Department. She is married and has two young daughters.

Chris is a Regional Editor for Patch in South Florida. His coverge area includes Sarasota, Bradenton and Hillsborough County. He works with Local Editors at Patch to ensure that visitors are getting news, events and information that matter to them and their daily lives. He is a proud graduate of UCF in Orlando, Florida.  He is also an award winning news photographer who has also worked as a journalist and newsroom manager for the last 10 years. Chris has worked in television, print and online news throughout his career and is passionate about telling stories that are useful to the audience.  Before joining Patch, Chris was the Audience Editor for TBO.com in Tampa, Florida, where he was in charge of the online production staff and managed planning stories and coverage for the website.

Chris, his wife and two young daughters live in Riverview, Florida. 

Phil Meyer is Professor Emeritus in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and was inducted into the North Carolina Hall of Fame in Journalism in the spring of 2008.  He joined the Journalism School in 1981 and served as Knight Chair in Journalism Professor from 1993-2008.  Prior to joining the school, he held a number of reporter and research positions at various media outlets. 

He has won numerous awards including the 2005 Sigma Delta Chi Distinguished Service Award for Research About Journalism (with Scott Maier). He was named a Fellow of Society of Professional Journalists in 2005. In 2004, the Newspaper Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication gave him its Professional Freedom and Responsibility Award. And in 2000 he received the American Association for Public Opinion Research Award for Exceptionally Distinguished Achievement.

Meyer is the author of several books including The Vanishing Newspaper:  Saving Journalism in the Information Age and Precision Journalism:  A Reporter’s Introduction to Social Science Methods.  Journalism Quarterly in 2000 listed this book as one of the 35 significant books of the 20th century in journalism and mass communication; and the American Association for Public Opinion Research, observing its 50th anniversary in 1996, listed it as one of 50 significant books on public opinion research.

He received his B.S. in technical journalism from Kansas State University and his M.A. in political science from the University of North Carolina.

Steven Berlin Johnson is a pioneer in the web world, as a co-founder of FEED, Plastic.com, and Outside.in, which was acquired by Patch in March of 2011. He also co-created Findings.com, which launched in late 2011. Steven was the 2009 Hearst New Media Professional-in-Residence at The Journalism School at Columbia University, and served for several years as a Distinguished Writer in Residence at NYU’s Journalism School. He is a bestselling author of seven books, and won acclaim and a Newhouse School Mirror Award for his 2010 Time Magazine cover story, "How Twitter Will Change the Way We Live." 

Speaking of Steven's editorial prowess, check out this video based on Steven's book, Where Good Ideas Come From, which was named one of the best books of 2010 by The Economist.

Brian was Editor-in-Chief of Time Out New York magazine before coming to Patch. Before that he worked for a variety of publications both online and off, including Details magazine, New York Magazine, and the old, dearly departed Sidewalk.com. He has written for numerous publications, from the New York Times magazine to Harper's Bazaar. He graduated from Bowdoin College and got an MFA in creative writing at Columbia University so he could put his novel in a drawer with distinction. He lives in Manhattan with his beautiful wife, adorable son, angelic daughter and the world's most dog-like cat. He’s proud as hell of what the Patch team has built.

Ken Paulson is president and chief executive officer of the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University and in Washington, D.C.

Previously, Paulson served as the editor and senior vice president/news of USA Today.  He is now a columnist on USA Today’s board of contributors, writing about First Amendment issues and the news media.

Throughout his career, Paulson has drawn on his background as both a journalist and lawyer, serving as the editor or managing editor of newspapers in five different states.

He also is past-president of the American Society of News Editors, the nation’s largest organization of news media leaders.

Paulson also was the host of the Emmy-honored television program “Speaking Freely,” seen in more than 60 PBS markets nationwide over five seasons, and the author of "Freedom Sings," a multimedia stage show celebrating the First Amendment that continues to tour the nation's campuses.  

He was an early advocate of making newspaper content available online, launching online newspapers in both Florida and New York in 1993.

For 12 years, Paulson was a regular guest lecturer at the American Press Institute, speaking to more than 5,000 journalists about First Amendment issues. He was honored with the API Lifetime Service Award. In 2010 and 2011, he served as chair of the PBS Editorial Standards Review Committee.

In 2007, Paulson was named fellow of the Society of Professional Journalists, “the highest honor SPJ bestows upon a journalist for extraordinary contributions to the profession.” In 2008, he  received the Robert S. Abbott Memorial Award for Meritorious Service in Mass Communications from the Southern Regional Press Institute. He has also been elected to the Illini Publishing Hall of Fame at the University of Illinois.

He is a graduate of the University of Illinois College of Law and the University of Missouri School of Journalism. He also has served as an adjunct professor at Vanderbilt University Law School. In 2008, he received an honorary doctorate in Humane Letters from American University.