COLUMN: We’re making history by launching this printed newspaper

History is being made, here, today in this very newspaper in your hands. It’s making history here in Owen County, but also in our state as our board is fairly certain that we’re the first local nonprofit newspaper in Indiana.

And, if we’re wrong, and another one exists, they certainly are not the first local nonprofit newspaper in rural Indiana. We’re creating a model that currently doesn’t exist.

But more than that, today marks the return of local news to our community, which should be celebrated, regardless of whether or not we’re the first anything.

This very newspaper is the culmination of nearly two years of hard work toward the goal of ensuring that our community has sustainable, responsible, ethical, unbiased local news that is just that – local. 

The long road to getting here started with a mere conversation sparking the idea and planting the seeds. It meant that the right folks were connected, the vision was formed and our board of folks who love this county embarked on learning as much as we could about both the existing nonprofit news models out there and what our community missed most in the changing local news landscape. It was important that we build something that ultimately, because of the nonprofit model, is owned by the community, and supported by the community for as long as The Owen News exists. 

We have been fortunate enough to have incredible community support to make this historical moment possible. We’ve had support from individuals willing to donate both money and time. We’ve been able to take the time to build a solid foundation because of the Owen County Community Foundation’s Large Impact Grant in the fall of 2022, which gave us as a newly established nonprofit a planning grant to figure out how to bridge the news loss. And, without the Owen County Chamber of Commerce sparking the initial idea and the support leading to rapid progress through their Business Buildout program, we wouldn’t be where we are today.    

But this is just the beginning. The goal to provide trusted news for a thriving community is an ongoing one, and our success is directly tied to support from our community. We believe that we’re stronger together and that providing vital information creates an informed and engaged community, empowers readers and ultimately builds a stronger community. 

Our goal and current model is to keep our content free and accessible to our community for both print and online at theowennews.org. But to do this, we need your continued support – through engaging with our content, volunteering, making a donation or purchasing an advertisement. There’s something for everyone, not just those interested in helping create content. 

We look forward to showing you what The Owen News, with the help of our community, is capable of when we work together, and we’re constantly looking for new ways to partner with community stakeholders. But most of all, we’re excited to become your trusted local news source. 

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