Dollar General Q1 beats Street, on track to open 575 U.S. stores; boosts guidance

Barnes & Noble announces the shortlists for the Barnes & Noble Children’s & Young Adult Book Awards. These annual awards give a national platform to new and emerging talent in Children’s Publishing. The shortlist in each category of Picture Books, Young Readers and Young Adult is selected by the booksellers at Barnes & Noble who specialize in Children’s bookselling in stores across the country. Barnes & Noble has an astonishing track record for discovering, establishing and championing the careers of many authors with its Book Clubs, Monthly Picks and Book of the Year, and the Children’s & YA Book Awards play a similar role, launching hitherto little-known authors that will shape children’s literature for years to come. Last year, for its inaugural Overall Winner, B. B. Alston’s debut, Amari and the Night Brothers, enchanted the hearts of Barnes & Noble booksellers from coast to coast and went on to achieve extraordinary success.

Three Gannett newspapers in New Jersey — Asbury Park Press, Home News Tribune and Courier News — have unionized with the NewGuild of New York, the union announced last week. “Our newsrooms have served our communities for over a century, and by forming the APP-MCJ Guild, we are ensuring our journalists are given the necessary means to serve for the next 100 years,” states Ryan Ross, on-air host and visual journalist for the Asbury Park Press. “We respect the right of employees at Asbury Park Press, the Courier News and the Home News Tribune to make a fully informed choice for themselves whether to unionize or not to unionize,” says Thomas C. Zipfel, Gannett's labor relations counsel.

Hearst - Steven Swartz has issued two statements pledging his company’s commitment to supporting “a fairer and more just society,” which he stated was “a core principle” of the company. In his second memo, he also announced the company’s fundraising initiative to support the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and Equal Justice Initiative. In addition to already donating $500,000, the company is pledging to match up to another $500,000 from employee donations. Reader’s Digest Foundation - The Reader’s Digest Foundation is committing $2 million to United Through Reading, a nonprofit organization dedicated to connecting military families with the experience of shared storytimes. Seeker - Group Nine Media’s science publication is releasing a free educational offering for home education, “Seeker Learning.” In addition to offering access to its library of content, Seeker will open up a dialogue between the brand, teachers and parents looking for specific content.