Publisher’s note: My column won’t be appearing this week. Instead, both Per and I agreed that this column written by Tim Waltner is extremely important to our readers. We are dedicated to local journalism, but we have watched too many small papers close due to many aspects.
This piece was published in the Freeman Courier Freeman, SD, on Sept. 3.
BY TIM L. WALTNER
Publisher emeritus, freeman courier
This is not personal. It’s not about me being the retired publisher of the Courier or the fact that our son, Jeremy, and his wife, Stacey, are the publishers today. It’s my observation as someone who cares about the community that’s been my home for seven decades. And it’s not just about my community. It’s about anyone who cares about their community – literally, anywhere in the world.
A gut punch.” That’s how Dave Bordewyk, executive director of the South Dakota NewsMedia Association, “
described the abrupt closure of four newspapers in the state last month.
On Aug. 7, News Media Corporation, which published 25 different newspaper titles in Arizona, Illinois, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming, announced it was immediately shutting down all of its operations.
The (relatively) good news is that within a couple of weeks, Champion Media, a community newspaper company based in Mooresville, NC, announced it was acquiring and restarting the Brookings Register, Huron Plainsman, Redfield Press and Moody County Enterprise at Flandreau.
But what happened in those four communities is a sobering reminder that many newspapers are struggling, not just in South Dakota but around the world. The decline of community newspapers reflects a dramatic shift in the traditional business
PUNCH’ model for newspapers and changing readership trends as people increasingly rely on online sources for information.
To be fair, the industry was slow to adapt. I recall attending sessions at newspaper conventions in the late 1990s where “the experts” underestimated the impact of the internet on both revenue and readership and, for too long, failed to adjust to the changing landscape.
Historically, newspapers had relied heavily on advertising to pay for production costs, enabling them to keep subscription rates relatively low. It was the business model that sustained newspapers for decades.
Comparing the newspapers of the 1990s with the newspapers of today is sobering. The dramatic loss of display ads in the paper over the past three decades tells you all you need to know. I counted the number of ads in the Courier the first week of August 2005 — 42 display and 53 classified ads. The first week of August this year there were 24 display and four classified ads.
While there are numerous contributing factors, the impact is significant. The loss of that revenue means a dramatic shift to increased subscription prices. And fewer pages (and stories and photos). And staff cuts. And curtailed office hours. And other major adjustments in how newspapers do business. And, in some cases, newspapers have closed. It’s only then that the people who live in the communities realize the impact of losing their newspaper.
That was certainly the case last month.
An Aug. 8 Associated Press story noted “Brookings Mayor Ope Niemeyer said the closure of his town’s newspaper ‘absolutely’ leaves a big hole in the community.” He said the Brookings Register “did a great job telling readers what was going on … It brings the community together. It’s an entity that’s going to be irreplaceable.” And that’s the potential reality of hundreds of communities in which the survival of their community newspapers is tenuous. As was the case with the Brookings Register, when a paper closes, there are immediate efforts to revive it.
But that doesn’t always happen.
So what can be done? First, newspapers need to take bold steps to remain vital and adapt to changing realities. Second, newspapers need to be honest and direct with their readers about the challenges, struggles and realities of publishing a newspaper. Third — critically — if the community wants to keep its newspaper, it needs to step up before a paper closes.
Here are some tangible and practical ways you can help do that.
• Subscribe to the newspaper’s print or online edition. This provides a direct revenue stream and enables you to receive content regularly and remain in touch with your community.
• Subscribe for a friend or family member.
• Donate; many papers accept donations, even if they are not non-profit organizations.
• Interact and engage with your paper. Read, contribute stories and photos and offer suggestions. Write a letter.
• Volunteer to assist.
• Advocate. Talk to your family, friends and neighbors about the importance of supporting local news. Share stories and posts. Tell others about stories you read and encourage them to read – and subscribe.
• Advertise in your community newspaper. If you own a business or are part of an organization, promote your products and services. Recognize your staff. Share your history. Mark your business milestones. Sponsor special stories and sections. Give a shoutout to a community volunteer, leader or someone (or organization) who deserves a public pat on the back. Thank your customers for their patronage.
• Advertising is not limited to businesses and organizations. If you’re having a garage or rummage sale, promote it in your newspaper. Recognize someone for their birthday, anniversary or accomplishment. Give a shoutout to a business or organization for a job well done. Share a message that you’d like the community to see. Place an ad to spark support for a pet project or issue. Use your newspaper to invite people to join your organization.
Community newspapers keep us connected, informed and engaged. And their impact transcends the issues they publish. They provide continuity, stability and a living history for our communities. They link us to businesses, government and each other in ways that social media simply cannot – as Brookings Mayor Niemeyer put it, “an entity that’s going to be irreplaceable.”
The sobering reality is that if your paper shuts down, there will likely be a call to do many of the things I’ve outlined here to resurrect it. Why wait? Avoid the trauma and the scramble. Actively support your community newspaper now – before the “gut punch” of closing becomes your reality.
Tim L. Waltner became a community journalist with the Freeman Courier in 1973. He retired in 2020.
