Change

Posted 8/21/12

We at The River Reporter are proud of our record as a thoughtful and professional community newspaper. We strive to uphold the highest standards of journalism in our local news coverage and are …

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in

Change

Posted

We at The River Reporter are proud of our record as a thoughtful and professional community newspaper. We strive to uphold the highest standards of journalism in our local news coverage and are pleased to have won several awards over the years. We consider our community and organizational news to be an essential part of our support for the many towns and villages in the Upper Delaware River Valley. We work hard to be your go-to source for information about educational, cultural, leisure and entertainment activities. We don’t want these things to change.

The world around us, however, continues to change, and today many long-established ways of doing things increasingly do not apply, including for our local newspaper. Just as the Internet has changed our individual lives, its impact is changing ours here at The River Reporter. Old business models are shifting. Advertisers, who traditionally have borne the cost of paying to publish a newspaper, now face increasing online competition for the same shoppers. As for news and information, many of our readers have migrated to the Internet where they have enjoyed reading our product at no expense to them. Yet, at the same time, the costs to produce The River Reporter have risen consistently over time—the cost of printing, postage, newspaper delivery and more.

Determined to survive in an industry that struggles daily, and facing inevitable changes in any case, we at The River Reporter have decided to embrace change as a necessary and positive step toward our long-range future. We need to be part of the changing paradigm.

In this changing world, it is time for individuals who value receiving a quality news product to help absorb a bit more of the cost for producing it. To that end, beginning on December 1, 2013, The River Reporter will begin to charge an online annual subscription fee of $35. In addition, the cost of our print edition will be raised to $42, as readers’ subscriptions come up for renewal. Print subscribers will receive free online access. Our newsstand price is also going to increase in December.

At the same time, we believe that the importance of local news will only increase in the future of the Upper Delaware River Region, and for this reason we would like to involve our readers more, and to improve and strengthen our dissemination of local news to you and for you.

Today we live in a world where the Internet is now the main source of news for everyone under 50, and that trend will only continue. For many people the distinction between bloggers and true journalists on the Internet is lost. We believe that it is essential for professional journalism to survive. We believe that The River Reporter is a news source that our readers value and rely on, and that we have a vital role to play in the future of the Upper Delaware River Region. Today we are asking you to stand with us as we enter this brave new world.

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here