I think it will be READING… newspapers and books… the handheld paper versions of both. More on books later, they deserve a whole column. Is this a dying art? With everything going digital? I am not a reporter or a journalist, only a columnist. They say “write what you know,” and I am trying to do just that,.. if…at my advanced age I can remember it?, lol.
Did you know that The Covington News has been printed since 1865? That’s 160 years, aaannnddd still going strong! Quite a history!
Their tag line is “the story of our lives,” right here, our local paper. Did you know that The Covington News is the legal organ of Newton County? That does not mean that they are organ donors, lol, but it means that this publication is the designated official source for public notices, legal advertisements, government communications, foreclosures, tax sales, zoning hearings, and other legal announcements, etc. required by law to be in a specific paper, so, it’s the “real deal” if it’s in The News.
The late great Southern humorist, Lewis Grizzard (died 1994) said “Writing a daily newspaper column is like being married to a nymphomaniac. The first 2 weeks is fun!” However, he was a very successful writer until his untimely death at age 47! For some unknown reason, I only started writing at age 77, even though it was something that I ALWAYS wanted to do, and now at age 78 I have had 12 columns published in The Covington News, and I am so gratified, and the feedback is wonderful. I am thrilled to bits to be published in this paper. I am encouraged by the life story of Grandma Moses, who started painting at age 78, lived to be 101, and her paintings were known around the world, even selling for millions.
I have been a subscriber of The Covington News my entire life, and getting that rolled up paper in the paper box on my street is a treat that I look forward to twice a week (especially if one of MY stories is in it). In my youth, the paper came out only one day a week, on Thursday, no color photos, and of course no digital. Thursday was my Father’s day off from his medical practice, and he always read the paper that day, then passed it down to us. There is nothing like snapping it open to hold all 22 x 22 inches up to decide where to start. It IS possible to read our paper online, but I want the pulpy newspaper feel in my hands. I know, I know, trees have to be cut down to make them…but I recycle every paper to good use; animal rescue, crafts, composting, cleaning glass (works really well!) and mirrors, packing material, gift wrap, book covers, fire starter, etc. BTW, a lot of electronic and digital devices run on electricity, which is a cost in itself.
A newspaper is not a book, yet many famous writers started their career by writing for their local paper. Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, Ernest Hemingway, Joan Didion, Maya Angelou, H.G. Wells, and our own Margaret Mitchell to name a few.
I just read story about a schoolteacher who resigned, out of frustration, because kids can’t read anymore. They are on their devices, constantly, and cannot think for themselves, or focus, and are jumpy. Reading stimulates the brain, creates neural pathways, strengthens memory. The first printed newspaper was in Germany in 1605, which relaced handwritten news handouts. Benjamin Franklin bought a struggling newspaper in 1729, the Pennsylvania Gazette, and made it very successful. By 1753 he owned or controlled most newspapers in the colonies. GO BEN! (you might have seen him on the $100 bill?)
America has 340 million people, and 6,700 newspapers nationwide. In Greece, where I lived for 15 years, EVERYONE read the newspaper, even reading several papers a day. There the newspapers often specialize in one topic, a paper with nothing but news, or politics, or sports, or culture, or economics, etc. My ex-husband told me “I read 3-4-5 papers a day, to study ALL viewpoints, so I can have an informed opinion of what’s going on”. Greece has about 10 million people, yet they have over 600 newspapers in that small country. But, with costs, resources, many papers are going digital now, worldwide.
What are the advantages of reading a newspaper you ask? (as you are now reading THIS!)…improved general knowledge, news of current events, enhanced critical thinking skills (as differing opinions are offered), improved vocabulary. Your knowledge base is broadened, improving concentration skills, learning navigation in the digital age, as many papers, including The Covington News offer print and digital versions.
The American playwright Arthur Miller (also known for having been married to Marilyn Monroe) stated “The newspaper is a greater treasure to the people than uncounted millions of gold”.
Freedom of the press might be his point? And Mark Twain (who wrote for newspapers for 22 years!) said “If you don’t read the newspaper, you’re uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you’re mis-informed”, using his typical dry wit. If you don’t read the paper, you don’t know what’s going on, especially locally. So... think about supporting OUR paper????
Carol Veliotis is a local columnist for The Covington News. She can be reached at carol.veliotis@gmail.com.
