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HOT PURSUIT

Add the Times as one of the blessings in your life
By
Rick Bussler, Publisher
Add the Times as one of the blessings in your life

As Thanksgiving approaches, it once again gives me a chance to reflect on the generosity filling my life. And I have an abundance of blessings, many of which I have shared throughout the year.

Not surprisingly, many of my blessings have to do with this newspaper. And while they may fill my own personal generosity barometer, I also want to share how they are also blessings for you.

Let’s take a closer look at what this newspaper provides and why it’s something you should be thankful for this Thanksgiving.

Strong readership: The circulation of the Times hit more than 2,900 in October. It’s now the most read newspaper in Steele County, surpassing the Owatonna daily. We have new subscribers coming on board every week. That has been the trend for the past two years.

Local ownership: The Times is independently owned and operated. There are no corporate interests. Decisions are made on a local level, which in turn leads to a stronger newspaper. As we often see around the country, corporations have dismantled what once were vibrant newspapers. There are no winners in a situation like that, except for maybe the greedy corporate honchos, and the communities represented by those newspapers are the real losers.

Faithful advertisers: Advertising is a major source of revenue for newspapers. This allows us to provide a quality newspaper and to cover the events and news happenings that people want us to be at. We are invested in Steele County, which is why we have two offices in Blooming Prairie and Owatonna. It also excites us to see other businesses grow and prosper.

Experienced journalists: Over the past couple years we have built a strong staff of journalists who knows how community journalism works and strives to provide top-notch reporting and writing. We currently have a news staff with combined experience of 210 years.

Award-winning newspaper: This year we were honored with 17 state and national awards, including first place general excellence on both levels. Recognition like this builds trust with the community that we are a legitimate news operation with the community’s best interests at heart.

Digital options: We continue to broaden the scope of what we do while remaining true to the print newspaper that has been published for 130 years. This year we added a news app, changed to a new website format and developed a new digital network shown on screens throughout the county.

Each of the things I’ve outlined should make you feel proud about what we’re doing in an effort to keep you informed. While the success we’ve achieved is certainly gratifying for us on a personal level, it should be even more rewarding for you as a reader.

We are committed to providing a rock-solid newspaper, and each of you—

whether you’re a reader or an advertiser— are helping us do just that as evidenced by what has happened over the past 13 years that I’ve owned the Times.

As you sit down to enjoy your Thanksgiving feast, please go in hot pursuit of making the Times one of the blessings in your life. We couldn’t do it week after week without your support. You’re a part of this as much as we are a part of you.

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