Fielder’s Choice - Barry Burleson


Thursday, October 12, 2006
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Fielder’s Choice
By Barry Burleson

Newspapers impact lives

Sometimes I spend my Wednesdays, when I have time, greeting people who come in the office to purchase newspapers.

It’s a regular, dedicated crowd.

We start getting calls early.

“Is the paper back yet?” is the most popular question of the morning.

There’s also a steady stream to the rack attached to the front of our building.

It’s always a joy, seeing those who can’t wait to get their newspaper.

Last week I was actually in my office and overheard a lady say, “I love this little paper,” as she put 50 cents in the “honesty” container up front on the counter.

The rack out front only takes quarters.

Some of the regulars come into the office with pennies, nickels, dimes and bills. And most make their own change.

Wednesdays and Thursdays are extremely uplifting. That is until someone calls and spots an error or sees that we left something out of the paper they thought for sure would be in.

But truth is those calls are OK, too. Those mean you’re reading your newspaper. Plus we’re not perfect, and we do make mistakes even though we try extremely hard to get it right the first time around.

We do still proofread, even with computers and spell check and so on and so forth. I can’t imagine putting out a newspaper and depending solely on technology to get it right.

The positive comments we receive mean a lot.

Last week I stopped at a local business and the owner asked to speak to me.

I first thought – “OK, what did we do wrong?”

But instead he thanked me for a recent decision about a letter to the editor. Needless to say, it added a good feeling to a hectic day.

Another Holly Springs resident came into my office recently, sat across from the desk and told me how well respected and well liked The South Reporter is in the Marshall and Benton County areas.

We’ve also heard from a lot of advertisers recently, telling us what tremendous response they receive from placing ads in either The South Reporter or our other product, The Pigeon Roost News, or in both.

A few weeks ago a person paying for a classifed ad at the front counter said he got 10 or 11 calls the day the paper came out. Needless to say, he sold the item.

Those calls, too, make what we do worthwhile.

We appreciate our readers, who either buy it at our office or from vendors or have it delivered to their homes, and our advertisers. This is your newspaper.

Last week was National Newspaper Week. It is a week-long celebration showcasing the impact of newspapers on the everyday lives of citizens.

Community newspaper readers are looking for news that’s important to them - births, deaths, school and sporting events, local government and classifieds - and that’s what they find in the pages of their local newspaper.

Local newspapers are committed to the community and to the people who live in them.

The following quotes are related to the importance of newspapers.

“America is a country of inventors, and the greatest of inventors are the newspaper men.”: – Alexander Graham Bell

“Were it left to me to decide whether we should have government without newspapers, or newspapers without government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”: – Thomas Jefferson

“Well, all I know is what I read in the papers.”: – Will Rogers

Thanks so much for reading your South Reporter.

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