A Matter of Perspective
Maybe I am just weird, but I think the local newspaper is chock full of very interesting information and history in the making.
Recently I heard some people talking about how there was “nothing” in the local newspaper. They were saying (not directly to me but making sure I could hear) that they could read the newspaper in less than five minutes because of the lack of anything worthwhile within its pages.
I will admit that my feelings and ego were somewhat bruised.
Even though I don’t write as much as I used to for the newspaper, I know that there is a lot of work that goes into producing a weekly newspaper.
There is attending meetings or getting the minutes or recordings and then writing up the stories to explain what happened at those meetings.
There is putting ourselves out there to seek news and be open to reporting on it.
There are the missed times with family or friends or sleep so that we can cover an event.
There are countless hours spent thinking of new story ideas and ways to make the old sound new and exciting.
There is the disappointment of an idea not working out.
There is the sadness that accompanies writing about an accident or a crime that directly affects us, too.
There is the joy of seeing a story or photos come together in perfect harmony.
There is putting our stories on our website and making social media posts to engage with our readers.
There is the act of recording history as it happens.
Maybe that isn’t important to some people, but to many people it is important. To me it is important.
I can spend hours totally immersed in looking back over the years of newspapers that are housed at the newspaper office. I can start out looking for one thing and get so wrapped up in the stories and photos from the past that I forget what I was looking for in the first place.
I am not a prideful person by nature, but I do feel a sense of pride in the work we do each week to put out our award-winning content and photos.
There is a lot of skill, presentation, and, yes, a little bit of luck, too, in capturing some of the moments.
I guess the fact that people are complaining means they are at least looking at the newspaper. But I have to wonder if they would still complain about it if the newspaper wasn’t there at all?
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