Good morning.
You likely have noticed some changes in your Keizertimes.
The news business is undergoing a profound change across the country, and we’re adapting as well here in Keizer.
Allow me a few moments to share where we’re headed.
Across Oregon and the U.S., news organizations are disappearing. The people in Brownsville, down near Albany, watched their local paper close. The folks in St. Helens and Scappoose watched their newspapers merge – and then disappear.
No question, these are challenging times but your team is up to the task.
Our top priority is to deliver news about Keizer – period. No one else has the depth of knowledge and the connections to the community that we do. Heck, I grew up on Maine Avenue in Keizer, was editor of the McNary Piper, and later served as publisher of Keizertimes.
We are doubling our efforts to deliver Keizer news.
That means you will find news faster on our website, www.keizertimes.com.
That means we have dropped some features, such as puzzles and book reviews, to free up space for news that matters – news about Keizer.
Having been in this profession for more than 50 years here in Oregon, I know change in a news organization is vital – and sometimes unsettling for readers.
We’re going to do more reporting on public officials and government agencies. We’re going to spotlight people who make Keizer go, who volunteer in meaningful ways, who help the community move forward.
We remain a family-owned business. We don’t have deep corporate pockets. But we also don’t have a hedge fund plucking profits from the community for its own benefit.
Sustaining this work means sustaining community support. What we do is for you, the readers and the people of Keizer.
To strengthen our future, we are adjusting our subscription rates to more closely reflect our costs. We know price changes aren’t popular, but I trust you will understand the need. Some subscription prices have been unchanged for years while costs of printing, employees and even electricity have jumped and jumped.
I earnestly hope the changes you’re seeing and those to come warrant your continued support.
With regards,
Les Zaitz, editor
Keizertimes
(email: [email protected])