Closing in on a dream |
| November 13, 2013 |
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By Mike Weland Publisher It’s taken nearly three years, but newsbf.com is finally beginning to close in on what I dreamed it should be; a small town “paper” in a new and exciting media that combines the best of all that’s come before. Back in the day, and not so long ago, Boundary County residents had to rely on word of mouth until Thursday morning, when the Bonners Ferry Herald came out, to get the “real” scoop on what was going on around town; who was getting married, who had welcomed a new child. How the Badgers did at the last game, how the vote went on election day. Of course, those who needed and wanted to know did, and well before the paper came out, but it didn’t seem assured until you could clip the picture and hang it by a magnet on the Frigidaire. You could also cut out ads and coupons to make your next trip to trade more efficient. Then, in the late 1970s, Boundary County got its own radio station, AM 1450, KBFI. For the first time, folks could tune in and hear news as it was happening. You could hear, when the DJ was informed, of fires and floods, car wrecks and road closures, just by tuning in. When nothing of import was happening, you could expect entertainment, music and banter … whatever it took to keep listeners tuned in and hearing the ads. Over time, though, the cost of paper, ink and air became more expensive, the cost of advertising started going up. As small businesses were priced out, it became more effective for the media that survived to look for corporate advertisers, and to keep an audience, to provide regional instead of local news. Instead of “Swap Shop,” KBFI listeners were treated to Rush. Local reporters, an expense in any media, found themselves seeking other lines of work as newswires and talking heads proved more efficient and took their place. The newspapers and stations that adjusted and put their emphasis on attracting advertisers, though still struggling, are still hanging in; those who tried to maintain local journalistic integrity fell, and the upstarts that tried to revive the tradition in traditional media didn’t, couldn’t, compete. Newsbf isn’t getting rich … but it doesn’t have to. I don’t buy ink or air, my media is measured in pixels. News is why I publish, advertising helps me present news and information without charge to those who want and need it. And thanks to the internet, with global reach, it is unrestricted by time or deadlines. I mentioned that I’m beginning to close in on my dream to restore local news. I started noticing it when I started running articles on lost pets. I didn’t get more advertisers, but I began getting more people sending me news to share …and comments that my reports were helping, which to me is the best indication that people are reading. Sunday morning, I had no idea what the day would bring to keep me busy. I had nothing. I didn’t twiddle my thumb long. I got word of Care-N-Share, a Veteran’s Day post from our Congressman. I learned of an amazing young man who enjoyed an awesome experience, of the golden anniversary of a couple dear to this community, of a local effort to help a Troy mom in need. I received the most valuable commodity I believe any news media can aspire to; news from people in the community willing to let me share and who have the trust that the telling will be fair. You can’t take a pair of scissors to what you read here, but you can hit “print” and stick it to the refrigerator with a magnet. You can right click and save the pictures and stories to email friends or post to Facebook. You can enjoy reading again, even though not all news is good. Jaeger Schnuerle thanked me for the story I wrote, as did his mother. I don’t seem able to convince them that it is I who is grateful to them for letting me tell their story. That is what news is. |