There is a Light
There’s a light at the end of the tunnel, and its not an oncoming train. That phrase has kept the our local publications going since Oct. 1 when the News-Press, Syracuse Journal-Democrat and Hamburg Reporter were purchased by CherryRoad Media. Our papers have a new look today and a new feel. We have hope. But to fully understand where we are, you must first understand where we have been. The News-Press, Journal-Democrat and Hamburg Reporter had been owned by GateHouse Media. GateHouse then acquired and took the name of Gannett, the company known for its association to the USA Today. And in the summer of 2021, our papers were sent out to be designed elsewhere. You might have noticed the papers change, mainly due to some of the national and international stories in the publications. But also with smaller photos and a design that felt wrong for a small town. Under the watch of GateHouse, our papers went through a lot, and not much of it was good. Our staff had been reduced. Our print plant in Syracuse was closed. And we were discouraged. When GateHouse became Gannett, however, things got much worse. Here in Nebraska City, we lost our general manager and we lost two dedicated graphic artists. We lost our front office presence. We lost our human resources person as well. A staff that had once numbered in the low teens here in Nebraska City had been reduced to an editor, two general assignment reporters and two sales people. While missing all those people, we struggled to swim in ever turbulent waters with employees taking on tasks and doing their best in situations for which they had been trained very little or not at all. We struggled with legals, both getting them printed in the paper and getting documentation out to those who had purchased the legals. Our phones were down. Our doors were locked. We were cut off from our readers. It seemed that for a big portion of 2021, our local publications here were near a tipping point toward disaster. We survived. Thanks to a team effort, we clawed and we scratched. We were determined not to let these vibrant papers dissolve. But the future was uncertain. Enter CherryRoad, a company whose focus is on the local journalism our readers love. On Oct. 1, the sale of our papers to CherryRoad became finalized. We knew a positive change was coming. It would be the support we needed. It would be a more local focus that we wanted. But we also knew it would be a process. We still had an agreement for services with Gannett for a period of three months while CherryRoad worked feverishly for a new direction. A chance would not be immediate, but we had hope that there was a light at the end of the tunnel. Our change from what we had been under GateHouse/Gannett is not over with the new look of the paper today. This is a first step. We are looking forward to more steps in the right direction. We are looking for new ideas to celebrate our papers, their rich history and their connection to the community. Challenges still exist. We are working to come up with regular office hours while still not having a dedicated front office person here in Nebraska City. We welcome folks to knock on the door. Sometimes it is locked inadvertently. Sometimes we are really busy doing the work of the paper. But we welcome people to knock on our door. We’ll do our best to help you. And we want you to know that your business matters to us. Today is a day to celebrate moving in the right direction. We welcome you to join us as we get ready for a new chapter in 2022 and beyond. The paper is here to serve you, to print your news and to help local businesses develop a successful advertising plan. The main thing is that we are still here. We did it. And we want all of that hard work to pay off for the readers who have been and continue to be so loyal to us. Thank You for reading! And Merry Christmas!
