How to Make a Newspaper, Part III (or is it IV?)

I don't know how to run a newspaper, Mr. Thatcher; I just try everything I can think of.

~Charles Foster Kane, from the movie "Citizen Kane"

W hen Blue Mountain News stum- bled out of the gate in 2007, I noted in the first column I wrote there that my main qualification for the job of newspaper publisher was that I had been an avid reader of newspapers for a long time. (That, and I learned how to type in the ninth grade - on a typewriter.)

Over the past seven years, I've thought of lots of ways to run a newspaper and tried many of them. And, for the most part, it's worked out.

While operating that earlier newspaper, I received many compliments about it, along with the occasional complaint. My favorite comment of all was when a reader bragged that they read it "cover to cover."

I know most readers didn't go to that trouble back then, and I don't expect them to now with The Times, either. Even with me in charge as the new owner and pub- lisher. But just for fun I'm going to make it my goal to convince you, dear reader, to read this paper cover to cover.

Readers, like newspapers, come in all shapes and sizes, of course. Our readers reside various places throughout the Touchet Valleyhellip;and beyond. And they have many different interests.

Even though The Times was founded in Waitsburg (136 years ago!), and is still produced here, our readership is now fairly well distributed. Today we have similar numbers of subscribers in Waitsburg, Day- ton and Walla Walla. A smaller but still significant number live farther away.

I also know, from spending a year as editor of The Times, that we have a nicely diverse set of readers, age-wise and interest wise. Some are retired; some are young mothers and fathers; many have kids or grandkids in our local schools and participating in athletics and other activities.

The Times will continue to be the num- ber one source of information for Waitsburg and northern Walla Walla County. Our Waitsburg reporter, Dena Wood, has lived here many years and has done an outstand- ing job the past year bringing readers a wide variety of local stories.

The Times will also continue our com- mitment to be the best news source for Dayton and Columbia County. Dian Ver Valen and I will share the load, bringing you stories of local government, schools, businesses and people in the community.

We will try to keep stories of each region grouped on pages in the paper, so readers with a special interest in one or the other can find them easily.

Finally, a big thank you goes out for all the warm wishes I've received from readers and advertisers since the news broke that I was taking over at The Times. I'll do ev- erything I can think of to make this a great paperhellip;from "cover to cover."