I’ve gone light on the blog today. My newspaper needed me. Though I enjoy writing and investigative reporting, I am the publisher of the Independent News, the alt-weekly for Northwest Florida. We have an amazing staff – young, intelligent and dedicated individuals who believe our paper can make a difference. They allow me to fight dragons and keep the paper going on a day-to-day basis. The issues of the this past month are a testimony to their skills.
Alt-weeklies in small Southern towns are journalism of the possible. We survive week to week, knowing that we aren’t supposed to survive against Gannett. Yet we do. We believe written words matter, that good journalism can influence public policy and that someone has to champion lost causes.
Words have no impact unless someone reads them. Thank you for reading the IN and this blog. What we accomplish is due to you and your support. It’s your influence that drives the point home.
The paper is doing well. Even though we turned down the BP advertising, we are having a good advertising month. So we will continue the fight.
I will be back strong tomorrow.
-Rick
