Update on newspaper delivery efforts

Last week I let you know we would be looking into ways to improve newspaper delivery to our local areas after the newspapers were delayed by the changes in mail truck pickup frequency. This past week and going forward we will be dropping off the newspapers directly to most of our local post offices to avoid them having to go to Green Bay, Milwaukee, or Minnesota for sorting. This should improve the time you receive your paper. We have sales, editorial, and the pressroom staff taking tubs of newspapers to post offices on Wednesdays and Thursdays to make sure we get you your local news. For our subscribers out of county and out of state we know your papers are going to take longer to get to you. In the most rural areas, you’re going to wait more days for all your mail as trucks are not bringing mail every day. They will concentrate on daily Amazon package delivery. We are still working with the Athens post office to find a couple of rural routes papers from Jan 10. Green Bay doesn’t seem to know what they did with them.

We are doing what we can on our end to try and get as many of our subscribers their papers in a timely manner. Subscriptions and advertising have fallen off over the years as social media — which does not provide local government, school, or community news has made huge profits. Please help support your local community and newspaper by subscribing in print or online and advertising.

As a consumer remember to shop local to keep our small-town businesses in business. Amazon is hurting them too. Please continue to reach out to your US representatives and congress members to ask for better rural mail service.

— Kris O’Leary, Owner / Publisher