The Covington News prides itself in being a weekly print publication with a daily online presence. We are constantly working to make sure our website it updated with new content and there is always something for you to read.

It is quite the honor to be allowed in your home each and every week and be part of your Sunday tradition. Do you read us as you’re sitting down with a cup of Joe? Do your children scan through the comics as you read sports? Whatever you do, we’re happy to be a part of it.

Print subscriptions and online-only subscriptions seem to have a different interpretation, however. Where do you draw the line? When do you have to stop paying for our product?

The News is just that, a product. Just like you can’t walk into McDonald’s and get a free hamburger, you can’t get a newspaper or its content for free either.

Larger news agencies, such as the Atlanta Journal Constitution, CNN or The New York Times have a much larger advertising base and are able to offer things free of charge. We, however, have you. You pay for our production. You pay for our employees. Without you we wouldn’t be here to tell your story.

Are there other ways to bring in revenue in print or online? Probably. Trust us, we’re looking into it. However, it isn’t as easy as it sounds.

According to a March report by techcrunch.com, online subscriptions are on a rise because – to say it frank – people hate ads.

“More than 80 million Americans will use ad blockers this year, costing digital media companies around $10 million in revenue,” according to the report.

See, it’s not as easy as it sounds. Advertising online is not the money-maker it is made out to be. Again, we are constantly looking for new options and new ideas, but currently we’re stuck on one solution.

$2.99 a month is what it costs to be an online-only subscriber to The News. Cut back on one trip to Dunkin Donuts this month, and you’re set.

Where does that $2.99 go? It goes to pay for our online platform. It goes to pay for our writers and editors. It goes to pay for our domain name and our webmaster.

$52, or $1 a week is what is costs to be a print subscriber to The News for one year. And, believe it or not, we’ll even throw in two free Marco’s pizzas with that. If that’s not a deal, I’m not sure what is.

So, where does the $1 a week go? It goes to pay for the paper, ink and newspaper carriers we use to print this weekly publication for you.

So, where would you suggest we draw the line? What stories do you think should be free of charge? What makes those stories different than the stories we charge for? These are questions we are constantly faced with and constantly working to find the answer to.