“Every time a newspaper dies, even a bad one, the country moves a little closer to authoritarianism.” ~ Richard Kluger
One hundred and thirty-six weekly newspapers closed their doors in 2025 in the U.S.
The HT was not one of them, thanks entirely to all of you — supporters, subscribers, and advertisers. Thanks to all of you, again, we celebrated 140 years of continuous operation in August.
This is our annual “state of the paper” update, which I promised to bring you. It has been two years since our near-demise, when our tiny community rallied an outpouring of support that still brings tears to my eyes. We continue to persevere.
Last year we participated in a matching grant fundraiser in November and December, with the goal of raising $5,000 to get Jared Henderson on the payroll as a staff reporter. You accomplished that goal, plus some, and Jared has been hard at work ever since. His reporting in the last year on sports, feature stories, and meetings, has been stellar and we anticipate awards coming his way.
Given what our community has been through this year, we have decided to forego an end-of-year fundraising campaign. We can do that because of your ongoing support. Thanks to you, we’re holding steady. We’ve been able to keep costs within budget while consistently providing your local news and sports coverage week after week.
In July, Caitlin (daughter and co-owner) and I pooled our personal savings and invested in the inventory of Wrangled Relics, the thrift store that had been renting space in our building. Now we’re running a newspaper and a thrift store at the same time (because apparently multiple jobs, kids, boards, and going back to college isn’t enough to keep us busy… idle hands and all that, as they say.)
The store’s proceeds are covering some of the building overhead that was coming out of the newspaper’s budget, enabling us to give Jared a well-deserved (though still too small considering the hours he’s putting in) raise.
It’s not at all unusual in history for a newspaper to have a side hustle… which probably says something about the difficulty of keeping a newspaper alive. The Meeker Herald once sold office furniture and office supplies. And there’s a newspaper in Nebraska that recently decided to open a liquor store in the empty space where their press used to be. You do what you’ve gotta do.
The newspaper industry continues to struggle, as evidenced by those 136 closed weeklies. Some were swallowed up by corporations, like the Vernal Express. Some have shuttered because the owners are retiring and they have no one to pass the baton to. Some have lost access to a printing press — a real risk for all of us. Some can’t continue operations because the advertising dollars have dried up and there’s no other way to pay the bills. We’re dealing with an outdated business model, a new world of technology, and competition in the form of social media that’s a Goliath to our David.
And yet, we persist. Why? Because at the end of the day we still believe in the value of hometown journalism over corporate media. We believe the decisions made at the level of local government matter at least as much (and maybe more) than big government. We believe telling the stories of our friends and neighbors, sharing our accomplishments, celebrating our victories, and weeping over our struggles together, matters. We think our kids and grandkids deserve to have their academic and athletic journeys documented in print.
We want our community’s “first rough draft of history” to be filled with your stories — birth notices, wedding announcements, and graduations — and for our loved ones to be memorialized in their obituaries when the time comes, without charging you an arm and leg for the service. (Obituaries are free if there’s a local county connection, as are birth announcements.)
We think you should be able to find out when and where events are happening without having to get on a phone or a computer screen. It doesn’t matter how fancy technology gets, there’s something irreplaceable about sitting down with the newspaper and a cup of coffee.
Here’s to another year. We’re so grateful to all of you for holding up our arms with your words of encouragement, your kindness, and your financial support. Without community, there is no community newspaper.
How can you help if you’re just jumping in here? If you’ve signed up for the free newsletter, please consider subscribing online, if not in print. The newsletter is free, newsgathering is not. If you have something to advertise, consider print. It’s one of the most trusted forms of advertising around. We can also do gift subscriptions, a gift that keeps giving all year long for that long-distance relative or neighbor down the street. And if you have a few dollars to donate to The Lyttle Project, ensuring long-term continuity of coverage, know that your generosity is appreciated.