Editorial: The path forward: It’s up to you

The first four issues of The Recorder have now been published. We’re thrilled to share with you the tangible results of a vision we had just six months ago to fill the void in local news by launching a weekly print newspaper and website connecting residents, businesses and civic organizations in the towns of Bedford, Lewisboro and Pound Ridge.

We celebrate this milestone, made possible by our volunteers, donors, subscribers, advertisers and editorial contributors. It’s a tremendous step. We are grateful for the enthusiastic response and financial support we have received to date. Most importantly, we hope you like what you’ve been reading during the four-issue free trial, and subscribe. Because at the end of the day, community support is key to this venture’s success.

The Recorder is dependent on three principal sources of revenue to cover the costs of producing quality, independent journalism. The first is subscriptions. Already, we’ve processed over 1,000 subscription orders and we know more are on the way. Paid advertisement is the second component of our nonprofit business model. You can see the diverse variety of businesses and organizations that already are participating, counting on The Recorder to connect each of them with our readers. The third source is donations. Over 100 people have already stepped forward to contribute additional financial support, a clear sign that many in our community share our belief in the essential role of independent local journalism. 

As we’ve mentioned before, in recent years over 2,600 newspapers across the country have closed due to the harsh economics of the news business. In January, our community suffered the same loss with the abrupt closing of our longtime weekly newspaper. 

If you value quality local news, you can help ensure The Recorder’s continued publication by subscribing today at therecorder.org/subscribe. 

When you make a purchase from a local store or business that advertises with us, please mention you saw their ad in The Recorder (and if they’re not advertising yet, we’d appreciate your suggesting they do).

Additional donations are always welcome, too; please visit therecorder.org/make-a-donation.

We’re committed to earning your trust as a reliable, timely source of local news and information. With these four free issues, we hope we’ve started to do just that. We’re always happy to hear your feedback or answer any questions. Feel free to email us at info@therecorder.org.

Thanks for helping launch The Recorder and for giving our fledgling local news enterprise a shot at a bright future. 

Ed Baum, Karen Sabath and Lloyd Trufelman Board members and co-founders The Recorder News Inc.