The county fair holds a special place here at The Correspondent. It was at the fair two years ago where we made our “soft debut,” introducing the community to this outlandish idea we had — to start a print newspaper here in Morgan County, a newspaper owned by members of the community, producing news about the community.
Of course, the common refrain in the past decade or so is that newspapers are dying, especially print newspapers. And no question, this is true in many places. There is a troubling trend that’s played out across the country — and that includes our own backyard.
In 1999, the Kendall family, which constituted three generations of local newspaper ownership, sold the local newspapers to another family-owned company based in Northern Indiana. Twenty years later, that company sold all its newspaper assets to a behemoth corporation, which could not care less for the local newspapers. The result? “Ghost newspapers,” as they’re called in the industry, where you have a local masthead but no other local content or local reporters to produce it.
Before our very eyes, we’ve seen our once beloved “historic newspapers of record” whither on the vine and turn to dust.
Our initial dream was to buy them back and resurrect them, but the current owners wouldn’t budge. So on to Plan B.
When it came to newspapers, I — along with the eight other local owners — had a hunch. Not only are newspapers not dead, but there is a very real desire for local news, and in a printed newspaper, no less.
For my part, I was armed with some insider knowledge that bolstered my stance. A few years back, when I found myself serving as managing editor of four different newspapers here in Central Indiana, I’d receive biweekly circulation reports for the entire company. This included more than 500 newspapers from the East Coast to the West. This included large “metros” like the Indy paper down to small weeklies in rural U.S.A.
Any guess as to how the print subscribers stacked up to the digital, “e-edition only” subscribers?
It was a 2:1 ratio. From the big-city markets down to the rural and everything in between, 67 percent of subscribers still preferred print.
If the largest newspaper company in the world — which was actively trying to kill its print product and push all its subscribers to digital-only — still had to contend with the reality that print was the preferred medium, then what about us?
Well, the preference is clearly pronounced.
Any guess as to how that “print vs. digital” preference translates at the local level? Ninety-six percent! Out of more than 2,000 subscribers, only 82 are “digital only.”
As I’ve told many self-described “dinosaurs” who prefer holding a newspaper (or any other printed material for that matter), science is on your side! Google “print vs. digital” and see what results appear. Hint: Print wins in nearly every category.
The reason newspapers are preferred is that it’s a multi-sensory experience that’s inherently enjoyable. You can feel the pages between your fingers, you can hear the crackle as those pages turn, you can even smell the newsprint (just stop by our office on a Wednesday afternoon and you’ll get your fill).
A newspaper provides a passive “tour,” where readers meander through the pages at their leisure, stopping by a tidbit of interest, browsing through the “news nuggets” to see what meets their tastes.
That experience is in stark contrast to the jarring, active experience of digital consumption, where ads pop up and block the view, where scrolling is required and where “Big Tech” tells you what you “want” to read next.
In fact, print also wins in more specific ways. Readers tend to remember more — and better yet, learn more. A reader may see an article that isn’t necessarily of interest at first glance, but they may read the first paragraph or two, and next thing you know, they’ve read the whole thing, learning about something they otherwise would not have.
At this year’s fair, we were on hand once again to preach that message, and we always relish the opportunity to meet folks out in the community face to face.
Along the way, we signed up a bunch of new subscribers and renewed others. As the fair marks our unofficial anniversary, more than a few folks now associate the fair with their renewal as one of our “early bird” subscribers from back in 2023.
To each and every one of you reading this column, I offer a heartfelt word of gratitude. This dream-turned-reality is only possible because of you. And with every edition, we are driven by one thing and one thing only — the Morgan County community.
To our longtime subscribers, I can’t thank you enough for your ongoing support. To our new subscribers, I offer a hearty welcome and hope you enjoy the news “from every corner of Morgan County.”
We are here because of you and for you. We stake no claim on this newspaper. It is your newspaper. We just put it together each week.
So we hope you enjoy another edition of The Correspondent, and remember, print is not dead!
Long live local news.
Editor Stephen Crane is a husband, father of four and Morgan County native. Contact him at 765-201-0010 or at scrane@morgancountycorrespondent.com.
