The Covington News was first published in 1865, and is the oldest continuous business in Newton County. Our company is committed to this community and has been privileged to be the steward and owner of this critical community advocate for the last 28 years.

As the local news business has changed, we have developed the largest audiences in our history, utilizing our print and digital efforts. For the last couple of years, we at the Covington Newspaper Company have significantly increased our investment in Newton County media operations. We have maintained a physical presence in the market and continuously funded the largest local news gathering operation.

Suburban journalism is a challenging environment and Newton County continues to slowly recover from the 2007 economic downturn and local construction and housing bust. We know we are not alone in our hardship in the community, and sympathize with the plight of our fellow citizens and businesses.

Challenging times lead to the critical crossroads of innovation or failure. Thus we are choosing to change the way we are going to publish in order to facilitate a financially sustainable business model for the coming years.
Starting Oct. 5, we are going to combine our newspaper editions into a Sunday only print edition. We are going to focus all of our printed newspaper efforts on this Sunday edition and are going to provide our customers and the market with an enhanced weekend read.

At the same time, we will put a renewed focus on our online and digital products, posting stories to the web and mobile platforms as they happen.

In coming editions we will outline our plans, and inform you of our vision for future community journalism.

We are by far the largest originator of local news coverage in this county, and this effort will continue with our new model. We are hopeful that you will agree that content is more robust today than in years past.

The survival of community journalism is crucial to our democratic way of life, as evidenced by the tomfoolery perpetrated on communities around the country by leaders poisoned by positions of power.

We know that our longstanding print readers, advertisers and supporters will be affected by our decision. Our staff of 19 dedicated local professionals is here to assist you and answer any questions you may have about this transition and our pathway forward.