Everybody Needs A Weekly Newspaper

Periodically, I try to remind my readers about the value of the weekly newspaper. I must confess I am biased because long before I entered politics I was writing columns for a weekly paper and helping put together the paper days in advance of publication.

Weekly papers have a great history. The first weekly papers were Hamed Relation and Advise . They were published at the beginning of the 17th Century. Both were distributed in Germany.

Weekly papers have had their ups and downs. Many years ago, they were fortunate to be blessed with national advertising. You could see advertisements for Coca-Cola, Cheerios and many national airlines. Those were the glory days.

Once the national advertising slowed down the papers were faced with the challenge to stay alive. They found many ways to stay afloat. Some were fortunate to get designated as a place for legal notices. Others had to work especially hard to get the local advertising to stay in business.

The Covid-19 pandemic was another challenge. If people are confined to their homes, getting information from the weeklies

Inside Politics

was not a high priority. But publishers like Angela Anton persisted and this great newspaper chain survived.

These are still tough days for any publishing business and new ideas are always needed. Today, many readers get their local news on line and do not pick up the paper at some local store. But their weekly paper is full of important local news, features, articles on interesting topics and opinion columns.

I know the only way I can stay informed on local politics and learn about serious issues is by reading my weekly newspaper.

If I have schoolchildren and am posting negative things online, this kind of pollution creeps into their speech at home and at work. And like me, few people want to get into an argument so they just breathe in the polluted talk and inwardly cough .

In the 1940’s Walt Disney’s anti-fire campaign featured Bambi saying, “Please Mister, don’t be careless. Prevent Forest Fires!” Word pollution often begins with carelessness. I know few people who aim to cause hurt and distress in the course of their day. One way to do a personal “fire-check” is to pray at the end of the day and recall all the people you encountered. First thank God for those encounters. Second try to replay some of what you said (or posted) and see if those words and attitudes are blessings for others or not. Our good words and deeds also spread, but alas, not necessarily as quickly or as far as our destructive words. On the first evening after the Canadian smoke had lifted, I sat in the coolness of my garden and breathed in the aroma of peonies. While the fragrance permeated the garden (and later the house when I cut some to bring inside), it didn’t drift much further than that. This intimate, beautiful moment was shared by only a few but it was a treasure to remember. interested in sports teams, game results and look for a photo involving their children or friends, the weeklies are the source. One team photo can attract multiple viewers all of whom heard about the pictures by word of mouth.

I suggest that we bring the sweet fragrance of kind, affirming, forgiving and loving words to folks near us. (For example why not write something spontaneously affirming the next time you’re texting or posting?) And even if you’re not using the virtual world to express your loving character, take some time in the real world to show care for another.

I prefer peonies over orange skies. How about you?

If you are a political candidate experience tells you that your advertisement will be seen by countless numbers of people. A favorable article can bring positive comments from your neighbors who notice the activities of their elected officials. No politician interested in good press should forget to send his or her press releases to your favorite weekly.

There is only one source for in-depth news about your local school board, county legislator and town board. If you didn’t hear about some action taken by your elected officials chances are you failed to buy the local weekly. The weekly newspaper is the place to learn about government actions and reading them is a must.

So, it is time to salute your weekly newspaper and above all support it. Encourage local merchants to take advertisements and tell your friends and neighbors to make the weekly paper part of their required reading.