By GEORGE CUSTER/Editor — After having a trial period of two months, excessive costs and labor burden have made publishing The Herald on paper as well as sustaining the online version prohibitive. The Herald will continue to serve our readers online. The paper version will cease production until factors that affect the viability of its printing can be overcome.
As I’ve mentioned before, our attempt to provide a printed form of our online news and information platform has been an experiment. We had hoped to buck the trend that has swept the nation: disappearing printed newspapers. I’d like to blame Amazon or the social media trends that have made advertisers want to reach their audience more cheaply, but I won’t. It comes down to a changing economic landscape that is sweeping the country.
Printing is just plain cost prohibitive
We tried to accommodate our readers who say they miss holding their “paper”. I’m sorry folks, but it just hasn’t panned out. I liked our paper. I, and all who were involved in it’s trial period were also proud of it. A lot of volunteer hours went into the production and distribution of it. The cost to publish the print was eating far too fast into already humble checkbook.
We’re still needing support from you, our readers, in the form of donations. Even this online version costs us to produce. Between office staff, a web master, application costs, a few paid freelance journalists (most do our stories for free to keep us going, thank goodness) and other miscellaneous costs and fees, we have to keep asking for donations, of any size, to keep us going.
We’re not unique in our effort to keep our readers educated and informed
I read, almost daily, about large newspapers shuttering their doors. This is due, primarily, to their inability to curb costs and convince businesses to support local and advertise local. Help maintain journalism that answers the needs of our local communities by donating to The Herald.
However, The Herald, as an online source of news and information for our communities, will be here to stay with your continued support. Please donate what you can. As a federal nonprofit, your donations are tax deductible. Thank you.
George Custer lives in Oakridge with his wife Sayre. George is a former smokejumper from his hometown of Cave Junction, a former captain in the U.S. Marine Corps. and ran a construction company in Southern California. George assumed the volunteer duties as the Editor of the Highway 58 Herald in 2022. He loves riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycle, building all things wood, and playing drums on the weekends in his office.
