As media professional, I assume that you, the reader, know what you get as a subscriber to your local newspaper.

But we’ve all heard what assume can mean, so I’m going to explain why it’s important you pay for an annual subscription and what you get with that investment.

This is a great time to start a paid subscription if you haven’t done so. Summer’s ending and Fall is just around the corner. You’ve missed a lot of what has been happening in your community, but you can get caught up by making the newspaper your latest investment.

More than likely you are already reading the paper even if you don’t get a printed copy delivered to your home.

You may be reading it on our website, e-edition, or via our social media and maybe you don’t realize that the local newspaper is behind the scenes, bringing you the information.

The printed product is the basis for everything you see digitally. Without the printed product, the starting point if you will, the rest doesn’t exist.

The local newspaper gives you a platform. A way to engage with other citizens, via freedom of speech, to discuss and share opinions about what is going on in your community. That’s extremely important for your ability to connect to your community and gain an understanding of what’s happening around you.

Without the local newspaper, the information you get about your community, your city, your school… is not balanced, unbiased and even worse, may be untrue. Fake. Fake news. Fake reports. Fake statements. Fake baloney!

Your local newspaper is the backbone of the community. We cover the community for a living and for the long haul. We have paid professionals who’ve dedicated their careers to reporting the events and news in the community. That’s becoming a scarce commodity in many cities and towns that no longer have a local newspaper. The local newspaper is a voice for the people, not a point of view from one perspective.

In addition to all of the above you also get city news, school news, county news, community events, sports, student news and achievements, public notices, crime updates, editorial content, opportunities to save money by using local retailers, as well as much, much more. You get all this for under $40 a year.

I contend that while a price is set for the information you subscribe to, the true value you receive cannot be measured. It is, in fact, priceless.

Wouldn’t it be awesome if everyone in the community supported their local newspaper in a way that strengthened its ability to provide even more to its readers? This, in turn, would give readers an even stronger voice in their communities.

I challenge you to build a stronger community by making your newspaper stronger.

Get started today. Call us at 972-442-5515 ext. 21 or email [email protected].

For more stories like this see the Aug. 8 issue or subscribe online.

By Chad Engbrock • [email protected]