This may be our last print edition of the Meridian Source, but we’re not going anywhere.
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As one of our owners, Reid Keebaugh, explained on Page 1 of this week’s edition, the Meridian Source is one of countless newspapers feeling the pinch of rising operational costs and lower ad revenue.
I’ve been a working journalist in Lloydminster since 2014. Since starting in the Border City, I’ve witnessed many newspaper closures, layoffs and downscaling. My parents met while working at the Windsor Star. I grew up in newsrooms, feeling and hearing the excitement of deadlines as reporters furiously worked to get stories out on time.
on the final print edition of the Meridian Source
I was hooked. It seemed like the coolest job in the world. However, back in those days, it’s safe to say it was a more respected profession. The internet and AI somewhat spoiled it all because, with the amount of information being put out every day, it’s hard to know what’s fact and what’s fiction. Similar to how everyone’s a photographer if they own a smartphone, everyone’s a journalist if they know how to type questions into ChatGPT.
As awesome as AI can be, it doesn’t make the mistakes humans do, which takes humanity out of journalism. It shows in the writing. It doesn’t have the same feeling or emotion … it’s just robotic.
They may not be spelling or grammar mistakes, but AI does make mistakes. I’ve seen countless examples of this from outlets since many newsrooms and online news platforms adopted the technology. Since the Source announced the decision to go digital-only last Thursday, the comments on social media may not all be sunshine and rainbows, but to the countless people who reached out to me and members of my team, we thank you.
Whether it was a text, a phone call or a conversation on the street last weekend while I was all over town covering assignments, your support means more than you know. As of Wednesday morning, that announcement video has more than 26,000 views. More people continue to follow us on social media and John, Christian and I keep getting positive in-person feedback.
This tells me a couple of things. One, people have grown to trust the three of us as reliable voices in the community. They trust us to tell factual stories and keep coming back to our pages to read more. That won’t change. We’re going to keep bringing our community stories that matter, with information that is accurate.
I’ve said it countless times: we don’t do this job for the money; we do this job because we love it and we’re passionate about the craft. Journalists are a rare breed. While in Lloydminster, I’ve worked with journalists who haven’t given up on the dream. They moved to the Border City from major networks to continue pursuing the dream … because they love what they do.
Factual, unbiased stories from writers you can trust. That’s the name of the game, and we take great pride in that at the Meridian Source.
I want to give special thanks to all of our valued readers and customers for the years of support, especially to our longest-standing client, Brad Gilbert and Coldwell Banker, who started a relationship with print media back when Meridian Booster founder Byron Keebaugh ran the local newspaper.
It’s clients like Coldwell Banker and many other long time supporters of local media that make this all possible. We know digital-only news is a big change, but we’re doing everything we can to make the transition as easy as possible for everyone. As Reid previously stated, Byron started the Booster with a belief that strong local journalism matters. Under the ownership of Reid and Clark Wright, that belief remains the same to this day.
Our local, mighty team includes three writers, one sales rep and one full-time graphic designer. Our roles have changed over the years, and even more so in the last couple of weeks, but we remain dedicated to bringing Lloydminster the best product we can.
Members of our team will be hosting a class at the Legacy Centre on April 9 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. to ensure anyone interested is educated on how to use our website and e-edition.
You’ll be seeing some exciting changes being made in the e-paper, including videos built right into the pages, interactive clickable ads that direct readers right to our clients’ websites, and much more.
We’re looking forward to maintaining our role as the community’s storyteller, while bringing some new-age technology to the table.
Lastly, stay in the know by subscribing to our newsletter, it’s free! Also, by subscribing, our e-edition will automatically be sent to you every week. No fluff. No clickbait. Just reporting you can trust.
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