Industry news

Newton County News closes

NEWTON – The Newton County News has ceased publication.

Publishers Jay and Shawn Wilkerson cited personal health reasons and a declining local business economy as factors in the decision they announced in the final edition March 1. They also noted efforts to sell the publication were unsuccessful.

In addition to the closing announcement, the final edition featured a photo of retiring office manager Karyn Lobb.

In a joint announcement with Amanda Rodriguez, subscribers were told they would receive the East Texas Banner for the remainder of their subscriptions. Legal and public notice customers were also directed to the Banner.

“We thank you for your love and support over the years,” Shawn Wilkerson wrote. “We love Newton. This is our home. We pray God’s richest blessings on you all.”

Rodriguez says she is honored by the opportunity to have added coverage and circulation throughout Newton County and to be entrusted with the task of upholding the integrity the Newton County News has been known for since 1884.

“As a long-time public librarian, I see the value in print material despite an increasingly technological society,” Rodriguez said. “Although we are working to find innovative and creative ways to transcend between the print and digital worlds, rural newspapers provide a sense of community” lacking in the digital world, she added.

Bay City Tribune moves to mail delivery

BAY CITY – The twice-weekly Bay City Tribune has converted to postal delivery.

“It has become more difficult in recent years to find enough newspaper delivery carriers to ensure the level of service we aim to provide to our customers,” said Yvonne Mintz, a vice president of Southern Newspapers Inc., parent company of the Tribune. “Many small newspapers have moved to what the postal service calls exceptional dispatch for delivery.”

She noted that two other small newspapers owned by SNI successfully made the move to mail delivery last year. Contract carriers continue to stock newspaper racks and store shelves.

Jimplecute adapts to new page size

JEFFERSON – Following a press closure, the Jefferson Jimplecute has debuted a new, narrower newspaper size.

Co-publishers Hugh Lewis and Austin Lewter noted that they agreed with readers who weren’t happy about the new size. However, they noted that as the costs of equipment, staffing and paper continue to increase, newspapers are making a lot of necessary changes.

“Neither Austin nor I really like the narrower paper,” said co-publisher Hugh Lewis. “But, we’ve held on as long as we can. The press closure forced us to have to decide either to significantly increase advertising and circulation rates, or to go to narrower paper.”

According to Lewis, the Jimplecute was looking at almost doubling its costs to keep the wider paper.

“The number of pages we print each week may increase due to the change, and the type of paper now being used is heavier, so, the Jimplecute feels more like a paper we grew up with,” Lewter said.