Judi Swogger and Joe Pinchot
It’s amazing to us to think that we’ve completed four years of publishing NEWS On the Green. We started with virtually nothing, just an idea of creating a news service for Brookfield, Masury and Yankee Lake, and whatever credibility and know-how we had from our years of being community journalism writers and editors.
What we did not have was a defined product, any data on whether what we wanted to do might fly, or a business organization. We gave ourselves a month to publish our first print edition, and we’ve published every month ever since.
Many things have gotten easier. We no longer have to spend all-nighters designing each edition, and we know there is an audience. All 2,500 copies that we print are snatched up in about two weeks from our distribution points.
Yet, there also have been things that have gotten harder. We’ve lost supporters, as some subscribers and advertisers have passed away, and businesses have closed. The COVID-19 pandemic shrank already-skimpy advertising budgets, and there are many significant advertisers who are not interested in advertising with us because they do not see any benefit to newspaper advertising, have moved to other advertising avenues, or have put their faith in social media.
We know there have been people who have not been happy with certain stories that we have published, and others who have accused us of taking sides, although our aim is not to do that. We also know there are people who are dedicated to our future – readers who subscribe or donate, and advertisers who re-up their commitments regularly (some of whom see little benefit in return for their advertising investment and just want to support a local business).
We still get positive comments from readers who feel much more connected to their community because of what we write. One reader recently called our paper “a blessing,” which is not a word we could ever have imagined being attached to our product.
We started NEWS On the Green amid the shrinking of the newspaper business, a trend that continues today. People more and more want their news for free online. Others perceive biases in news reporting, and simply don’t read anymore. Shrinking circulation and corporate ownership have gutted newspaper staffs. Some prominent dailies have reduced the number of days of circulation, or have gone totally online.
NEWS On the Green is the product of two people who live in Masury, raise their children here and have invested in the future of Brookfield Township. We are your neighbors.
We love gathering the news, which means meeting many people in and about Brookfield Township, and trying to present it in an informative and interesting way. We remain committed to doing that.
If we provide to you a valuable service, please consider a financial contribution. If you live in Brookfield, Masury or Yankee Lake, we will deliver each month’s edition to your door for $25 a year. We also provide electronic editions that we email to subscribers, also for $25, and will mail copies in or out of town for $30.
We accept donations and have been blown away by the generosity of people who send us donations by mail or with credit cards through our website, or stop us when we are out and about and pass to us a contribution. We print a subscription/donation coupon in each edition.
And, if you have a business or are a member of an organization, an advertisement in NEWS On the Green will help you reach a Brookfield/Masury/Yankee Lake audience. Our advertising rate card is on page 15.
As we move into our fifth year, we need your story ideas, and we need your financial support. Please help us make NEWS On the Green viable into the future.
Thanks for reading.
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The November 2021 edition of NEWS On the Green is available at all of our distribution points. Find you copy at:
OHIO
BROOKFIELD
Brookfield Sparkle Market, 7229 Warren Sharon Road
Mr. D’s, 7156 Warren Sharon Road
Scotty’s Brookfield Express Mart, 7045 Warren Sharon Road
Brookfield post office, 6875 Warren Sharon Road
Belly Buster Sub Shop, 6949 Warren Sharon Road
Brookfield Branch Library, 7032 Grove St.
MASURY
Masury post office, 7835 Elm St.
Standard Market, 8171 Warren Sharon Road
Stateline Super Market, 8271 Superior St.
YANKEE LAKE
Yankee Lake Party Store, Route 7
VIENNA
Vienna Laundromat, Youngstown Kingsville Road SE and Warren Sharon Road
HUBBARD
717 Credit Union, 627 W. Liberty St.
PENNSYLVANIA
SHARON
Warehouse Sales, 200 W. Silver St.
Sharon Hot Dog Shop, 134 W. State St.
