Online newspapers are just as good: subscribe today!

For the past week, I’ve been looking at the calendar in disbelief.

Over the last three years, our social fabric has been practically ripped apart. Yes, we’ve seen division and bitterness. More than anything, though, we’ve all seen the sickness and loss that has gripped our nation.

Change is constant, and perhaps we are living in the “new normal.” But some things never change, and one of them is the mission of this newspaper. Nearly three years into the pandemic, your hometown weekly is still plugging along and printing away.

The Blackwell Journal-Tribune has been telling the truth in Kay County for more than 100 years, and I believe the next 100 will be just as bright thanks to your support, Readers.

Over the past two years, you’ve followed us as we chronicled the onset of the pandemic, the spread of the virus, the economic fallout and so many other shockwaves that rippled through our community and country. We’ve made mistakes, and we’re grateful that you’ve forgiven us for them. We’re human, too. But in all of our work, we’ve never stopped reporting the truth as best we know it, nor have we wavered in our moral and ethical duty to be not only accurate, but truthful and helpful. I believe I speak for all of us when I say I’m humbled to have your support, Folks.

We literally couldn’t do this work without you.

Of course, this newspaper has been affected like virtually every other business in the country. We’ve seen our costs rise and our revenues slip. But at the same time, we’re reaching more people with our content online than ever before. Through our social media channels and website, the news we report is being shared widely and wildly. It’s news you can trust, and it’s news you can use. We take great pride in that.

Like many of you, I want to hold the paper in my hands, get some ink on my fingers and smell fresh paper in the morning as I eat breakfast. But I must say, this whole digital concept isn’t so bad, either.

In the last few months, I’ve started reading more newspapers online by subscribing and using the E-edition, which is the digital replica of the printed newspaper. It looks just like the printed version, but the photos are even clearer and sharper. Best of all, I can zoom in for an easier time reading. It’s cheaper, too, and I don’t have to worry about accumulating a pile of newsprint around the house. Even my great uncle Stan Peterson, a lifelong newspaper lover like yours truly, has admitted to me that the digital news “bug” bit him. Now, I hope to read printed newspapers for the rest of my life, as many of you do. I’ll be reading them online, too.

Those digital versions look great on computer screens, and they’re handy to have on my cellphone when I’m away from home. I can stay up-todate no matter where I’m at thanks to this technological innovation.

The Journal-Tribune, like almost every other paper in the country, has a good website and an easy-to-use E-edition. You can access all of our content, including archives, by purchasing a digital subscription, which offers a discounted rate compared to a standard print subscription. If you already have a print subscription to our paper, you can simply request access to the E-edition through our website by clicking the “Subscribe” button at the top of the home page and following the subsequent prompts.

You can also purchase a digital-only subscription if you’ve not subscribed before. If you want a temporary free trial with full digital access, you can have that, too. And if you want help with any of this, you can always come by our office and get it. We’d love to see you and answer your questions, just like we aim to do with all of our stories. And, of course, you can always start a classic print subscription and get the same good news delivered to your home or business.

However you want to read us, we’ll be glad to serve you. The Journal-Tribune is going to be here for a long time, and I’m excited to see what the future holds. Maybe the future involves you holding your phone, tablet or computer and reading this newspaper digitally.