September was a critical month at the Center.

We hired Jefferson Morley, a 15 year veteran of the Washington Post, to serve as National Editorial Director, and steward overall news strategy for our state programs and our national program, scheduled for launch in early December. Jeff served as assistant editor for the Sunday Outlook section of the Washington Post and as world news editor for washingtonpost.com while launching the World Opinion Roundup column. Prior to his tenure at the Post, Jeff was an editor at the New Republic and The Nation. He is the author of the forthcoming book, “Our Man in Mexico,” a biography of CIA spy Winston Scott, to be published in spring 2008 by the University Press of Kansas.

With Jeff’s magazine experience from the Nation and New Republic, daily newspaper experience from the Washington Post, and track record as an editor of the Post’s web site, he is ideally suited to help lead the way to the 21st century newsroom. In describing his goals, Jeff said they were to “combine old-fashioned fact gathering and fairness with attitude, and Internet-era values of interactivity and transparency.”

In September we also successfully launched our Michigan program with 10 Fellows from the Wolverine State at MichiganMessenger.com. In its first month, Michigan Messenger provided round-the-clock coverage of a budget showdown that threatened basic government services, investigated the role of Unification Church in Michigan state politics, and staved off the shutdown of a nursing home through its reporting.

Two superb mentors guide our Michigan program: Alan Fisk is a former assistant city editor and investigative projects editor at the Detroit News, 15-year veteran of the New York Times, and currently a journalism instructor at Oakland University’s School of Journalism. Tony Collings is a former CNN Washington and foreign correspondent, former Newsweek London bureau chief, and current lecturer in communication studies at the University of Michigan.

Soon after launching Michigan, Colorado welcomed Rowena Alegría, editor and Spanish-language columnist at Viva Colorado and former Denver Post reporter, as editorial mentor for ColoradoConfidential.com. Minnesota welcomed Jim Boyd as their editorial mentor. Jim is was deputy editorial page editor at the Minneapolis Star Tribune where he worked for 25 years, a former Nieman fellow at Harvard University, and winner of the 2005 Arthur Ross Award for Distinguished Reporting and Analysis on Foreign Affairs from the American Academy of Diplomacy.

In terms of numbers, September was another great month for readership and media placement, with 300,000 site readers and 10 million impressions on broadcast media and newspapers, with CIM Fellows making 11 appearances on radio and television. A major scoop helped drive traffic: CIM Fellow Eric Black reported that US Attorney Rachel Paulose is under investigation by the federal Office of Special Counsel because she allegedly mishandled classified information, fired the employee who brought it to her attention, and made racist remarks about another employee. Detailed numbers are available in this month’s Key Performance Indicators report.

All hands are now on deck for the launch of our national program, based in Washington, D.C., which will cover the workings of federal government and Congress with a team of bloggers and seasoned journalists.

These are the most popular stories from last month, responsible for our great readership:

Colorado
Inside Florence Supermax: Locked Doors, Locked Mouths
Mitt Romney vs. Doug Bruce
What the Public Wants: Britney vs. Iraq

Iowa

Harkin Steak Fry Liveblog and Coverage
Will Thompson Have a Prayer at Christian Alliance Dinner?
Some Thoughts on John Edwards

Michigan

Bad Moon Rising: Michigan and Unification Church, Part I
Hate Group Won’t Chill Free Speech
Budget Crisis: The Full Coverage

Minnesota

Palouse Under Investigation by Feds
No Sharp Elbows at the Strib
Minneapolis Airport Sting Nabs Senator