October 8^th honours the dedicated individuals who have delivered our news, rain or shine. The unfortunate decline of traditional physical newspapers correlates to the significant rise in viewership of online publications. In turn, this has seen a decline in locally sited professional journalists and the availability of newspaper deliveries to both urban and rural communities. This impacts those without technology (yes there are people without computers laptops, and cellular phones!) and those living in rural areas, where historically papers were delivered to receptacle boxes near community mailboxes.

With major news corporations ‘absorbing’ local newspapers and centralizing ‘news articles’ in a dominant metropolitan-based mandate, the lack of true local news leaves communities less informed about their locality, including events, notices, and news. For the few remaining local newspapers this centralization harms their existence and jobs.

For many journalists, reporters, camera personnel and administration the workforce has been cut to barely sustainable numbers, therefore making their reporting even more stressful and difficult when trying to maintain coverage of their locality.

It may be that individuals will now have to be a fundamental source of local news to aid these community newspapers to continue publishing. As writers we all know the struggle of the written word, sourcing ideas and creating thought provoking, and interesting content. If you have a local newspaper try to contribute to it and keep the doors from closing.

For example, I sent a write up about my latest novel and its background to my local newspaper and they publoshed it. Content is, after all, content.

Have you written newspaper articles, or submitted news to one?