I woke up this morning to the sad news on Facebook that the weekly newspaper on which I grew up has ceased publication effective May 26. It’s hard to digest but certainly understandable.

With scarce revenue

With scarce revenue and demand for the print product drying up, the newspaper business isn’t good for anyone right now, especially those in smaller cities.

1800 newspapers have closed, most of them weeklies

Since 2004, about 1,800 newspapers have closed in the United States, Penny Abernathy reported in her research. Some 1,700 are weeklies. The pace of closures, up till now, has been about 100 a year, said Abernathy, a professor at the University of North Carolina’s Hussman School of Journalism and Media.

No ads, no newspaper

As much as we enjoy devouring the news, without advertising, the rest of the paper cannot exist.

But I grew up at the North Missourian

My parents purchased the newspaper in Gallatin when I was 5, and I grew up amid its clanking linotypes and later offset press equipment. I started writing School News when I was 10. And in high school, I started a school newspaper using some colorful newsprint my dad had on hand.

Dreamed of a career in journalism

It was at the Missourian that I dreamed of a career in journalism, usually while sitting at my dad’s big roll-top desk. It is the one where “Uncle Wes” Robertson was shot and killed in 1919 by a disgruntled reader. I’ve written about that before. I, by the way, still have that old desk. With no buyer in sight, it will be donated back to the people of Gallatin to later be used in a museum. Seems fitting.

I did have that career

I had that career in journalism. I spent 13 years in the daily newspaper business as a reporter and editor. Then, I spent 30 years advising and managing college media. All of it was most enjoyable. And I owe that to Dad and the Missourian.

Then, my parents retired

When my parents retired, they left the newspaper and its central printing plant in the very capable hands of Liz and Darryl Wilkerson. I know this move was heartbreaking for them as well. My dad wrote a weekly column for the newspaper for many years. Toward the end the columns were written by my mother and just proofread by Dad.

If your town or city has a newspaper….

If your town or city has a newspaper, please support it. The loss of the Missourian and the 1,800 other newspapers will be felt. The newspaper really reflects the soul of the community, especially on the opinions pages.

Dad always said the most carried item in a fallen soldier’s possession in World War II, besides a treasured photo, was a newspaper clipping, perhaps announcing his birth or high school graduation. Who will provide that now? It’s a sad day.

P.S. If you want to read more about the good ole days of newspapers and life in smalltown USA, you might want to take a look at my father’s book, County Seat Paper, available as an Amazon paperback, a well-done audiobook and a Kindle ebook. The author is Joe Snyder.