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Rich Wallace began his talk with a short history of newspapers in America. The first newspaper published in the British colonies was Public Accuracy in 1690. It was shut down by the authorities after the first edition! In 1783 there were 35 newspapers being published in the new nation; by 1833, there were 12,000. The Civil War demonstrated how important newspapers had become as people turned to them for news of the war and for listings of the wounded and killed throughout the conflict. The history of journalism took a new turn in 1890 as Pulitzer and Hearst battled it out for dominance in the market and yellow journalism flourished. The Spanish-American War can be said to have been instigated by this battle for circulation. For much of the twentieth century there were newspapers in almost every home in America. That dominance began to change with TV in the 1950s, and of course the Internet has since fragmented the industry. People have come to rely on short bursts of news content.Walter Paine, who was editor and publisher of The Valley News for 24 years, coined the term “Upper Valley” in the 1950s to define the newspaper’s circulation area, reaching into both New Hampshire and Vermont. Since the mid-80s, several of the affiliated newspapers being published with The Valley News have closed; presently affiliated publications include newspapers in North Hampton, Athol, Monadnock, and Concord. Newspapers continue to function as sources of information and entertainment and other services for the community. Advertising revenue pays for the journalists, but advertising revenue has declined as local small businesses have declined and the big box stores such as those on Route 12a have grown. Corporate managers don’t support local advertising the way local businesses would. And now even the big box stores are struggling; newspaper advertising from Sears, for example, disappeared in just one day.

 

On the other hand, The Valley News can be said to have more people accessing its services than ever—250,000 unique readers when you include its Web presence. One of the challenges besides print circulation includes the tight job market. Openings remain, for example, for home delivery drivers, who start on the road between 1:00 a.m. and 2:00 a.m. Recently The Valley News opened up new press facilities in Penacook, a village of Concord, at a cost of $4 million. All other aspects of putting out the daily newspaper, such as advertising, circulation, and news reporting, remain in Lebanon. Page plates are sent to the presses digitally via the Internet, and the newspapers themselves are brought by truck on I89 early each morning. This printing consolidation has now led to 12 daily newspapers being produced out of Concord and has expanded the range of available services. The digital printing operation expands revenue options to supplement advertising revenue, which dropped 35% over the past several years. Advertising had been producing 75% of the newspaper’s revenues. Even with this production centralization, the publisher still supports local events such as athlete-of-the year ceremonies in most area high schools.

 

The Valley News focuses on local news now more than ever. The paper realizes that people are turning to their smart phones for the NHL box scores, which sometimes won’t be in the paper because of printing deadlines. The paper relies strongly on local coaches for sports reporting, as well as on the community for news leads. The paper’s editors have always maintained membership in Lebanon Rotary in partnership with the community, and the paper continues operating as a community resource—donating to nonprofits and working with the schools. A recent letter to the editor argued that shopping on line saves on gas, so people don’t need to shop at local stores, except perhaps Kmart, etc. But the big box stores are all under corporate control and don’t advertise with The Valley News. Local businesses do advertise in the paper. The newspaper itself is a local business and needs the help of the local community. The recent changes in format with smaller page width will lead to more concise, detailed coverage of local news.

 

Rich ended his presentation with a brief biography. He was born and raise in Lebanon and attended Lebanon High School with Jim Damren and Bruce Bergeron. He remembers being taken to a Rotary meeting as a high school student in 1983 and being very impressed. He graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 1987 with a business degree, when Terri Dudley hired him for The Valley News. Rich has worked on almost every job on the advertising side of the newspaper business. He’s very proud to be a Rotarian.

• Bruce Pacht will be sending everyone details about the Great American Pie Buffet.  Our fund raiser for the eradication of Polio.  It will be held at Lebanon High School, Saturday, 6 April 2019.  We will be partnering with the Interact Club at Lebanon High School. By partnering with our Interact Club, many fees we may have been charged by the High School will be waived! We will all need to bake sweet and savory pies (at least 3 per person), or have them donated. We all need to sell 5 tickets.  Adults $10; LHS students $8; and kids under 5 year old $5. Bruce stress that this is a great opportunity for us to come together to have fun and fellowship.  Bruce will send out information on how you can help advertise this event.
• Bruce Bergeron announced that Golf Tournament (The Bedell Classic) Planning Meeting will be next Wednesday, 13 February 2019 at 4 PM at Whitman Building, 10 Water Street.  The tournament will be May 23, 2019.  Time to start asking golfer to play, consider where you might be able to ask for sponsorships, raffle prizes are needed too.
• Suellen Griffin talks about the planning that is underway for Brew Fest that will be on August 17, 2019.  A doodle poll will be going out to determine the date for the next meeting.