Thank you, Petaluma

Everyone's heard about the economic challenges facing newspapers which, like radio, television, music and book publishing, are confronting highly disruptive technological innovations that are radically changing how people consume media of all kinds.

We heard from a reader the other day who asked, "Aren't newspapers dead?" It's a fair question, and one deserving of a straight answer: Newspapers will be around so long as people want to read news in print and businesses want to use that medium to reach newspaper audiences with their advertising messages.

Community newspapers like the 158-year-old Petaluma Argus-Courier succeed or fail based upon how well we serve the local news and information needs of our readers, and how well we serve local business owners to effectively market their enterprises.

It's that simple.

Increasingly, services to readers and advertisers must be rendered without regard to the platform (newsprint vs. tablet, for example.) In other words, we're providing news and information to the community on a 24-7 basis digitally, while continuing to produce a high-quality weekly local news roundup, which tends to offer more perspective and depth in a single package that you can hold in your hands.

Because most local businesses now require a multi-media approach to reaching local consumers, we are evolving our advertising initiatives to better serve their needs with results-based programs encompassing newspaper ads, online and mobile banner ads, and a growing suite of digital services that includes building websites and mobile websites while consulting on how to effectively utilize social media and email marketing.

Delivering results for local businesses is vitally important, since without the advertisements you see on these pages, which underwrite the costs of researching and reporting local news, the Argus-Courier would not exist. Advertising messages by local businesses subsidize this enterprise, and our readers' response to those advertisements helps support these businesses whose financial success guarantees a strong local economy.

Like other newspapers, the Argus-Courier thrives because of the shared commitment of its staff and the active and involved residents and businesses that we serve. Our primary responsibility is delivering fair, accurate and comprehensive reporting on local news. Through our reporting, we endeavor to spotlight community problems and the solutions proposed to fix them. And we bring attention to and recognize the many contributions of people and organizations that make Petaluma a truly terrific community in which to live and work.

The dedication of our staff would mean nothing were it not for you, the many thousands of Argus-Courier readers who are passionate about keeping well-informed about your community. It is our readers, after all, who give us direction on what news to cover. Readers also join with us to celebrate community achievements, whether by spotlighting students who are making a difference in local schools or by thanking the volunteers who helped pull off a fabulously successful fundraiser for a favorite Petaluma nonprofit group. We strongly encourage and welcome reader input, both on what you think we do well and what you want to see improved.

This Thanksgiving, we want to publicly thank all our employees for their hard work and dedication to excellence, our advertisers for utilizing the newspaper to grow their businesses and our readers for maintaining a strong interest in making their community the best it can be.

You are, after all, the reason we're here.

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