If there is anything that is constant in the world of newspaper publishing, it is change. This week marks a big milestone in the Source Weekly's history, so indulge me with a little ramble down memory lane.
Over the course of the past 27 years of publishing the Source Weekly, there have been several key moments that have influenced the way we interact with our readers — some big, some small. When production graduated from paste-up to digital, it made it possible for a small startup newspaper to compete with the big dailies of the time by allowing a small staff to produce large newspapers. Our small size and efficiency made us nimble. The advent of websites helped us further by increasing access to our award-winning journalism on a scale none of us could have anticipated. Our readership was no longer confined to how much newsprint we could afford, and because our brand of journalism is free, it increased our audience exponentially without damaging our revenue.
Social media probably had the most technological impact on publishing, allowing readers to receive direct communication from writers and newsmakers. We could devote our entire newspaper to talking about the negative impact social media has had on society, as it's no secret I am not a fan. The misguided notion that somehow social media is a utility and therefore not accountable for content on a monetized platform is laughable. Unfortunately, there is more legal scrutiny regarding our Letters page than on the whole of Meta's platform.
Little did we imagine in 2020 when COVID shut down our town, that in 2024, Central Oregon would rise economically like the phoenix roundabout on Galveston. Who knew that people would fall back in love with print and that digital offerings would continue to enhance, rather than replace, the prevailing mediums.
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Perhaps finally, in this abridged media history, was the pandemic. The panic that ensued in the weeks after the initial lockdown greatly increased the amount of information the public was consuming, and, because we were all confined to our homes, digital was paramount. The transformation from a print to digital format greatly accelerated the demise of newspapers across the country. However, it also nudged many publications to either shift their operations from profit to nonprofit enterprises or to incorporate a nonprofit offshoot to expand their commitment to remaining a fourth arm of government. The Source Weekly was no exception.
In the wake of a post-pandemic Central Oregon, in 2021, we began our own nonprofit, the Lay It Out Foundation, to further work with existing nonprofits in the community and to bolster our ability to provide local news. The response to our efforts, from readers like yourself, has been overwhelming — so much so that, due to several large donations over the past year, we have been able to hire a full-time investigative reporter who begins her work with us this week.
Little did we imagine in 2020 when COVID shut down our town, that in 2024, Central Oregon would rise economically like the phoenix roundabout on Galveston. Who knew that people would fall back in love with print and that digital offerings would continue to enhance, rather than replace, the prevailing mediums. Financially, the support we receive, and our circulation have returned to 2019 levels and our nonprofit-supported reporter joins the largest staff in the history of our company.
As we embark on this next chapter, as your locally owned newspaper, I want to reiterate how important being a free publication is to our mission in this community. From the beginning, we have eschewed the nickel and diming that is the hallmark of paywall and subscription newspapers. The paper remains accessible to all to experience the real happiness of picking up a newspaper, regardless of means. This is the great challenge and joy of democracy.
To this end, we encourage you, as readers, to become part of our membership program that supports expanding community journalism. We encourage you to give what you can, as even a small contribution is meaningful. I trust that the next 27 years of publishing will be no less eventful than the past, and I am confident that together we will continue to build a stronger community through our combined efforts.
—Aaron Switzer, Founder and Publisher
