Editor:

Why is it important for any community to have access to local news through printed media?

Not only is it necessary for a number of reasons, but it is also important that it be supported by the local residents paying for it by subscribing to it.

The main reason why I am pointing this out is because many local newspapers across the nation are disappearing.

We as a community must fully understand that newspapers in general, as pointed out in our nation’s constitution, having a free press serves as a check on the government.

For us here, we need to be informed on not only city government, but county government, state government and our local school district.

Perhaps the most important reason for any local newspaper to exist is the citizens are being informed.

We must be informed with correct news on issues that are important to our community.

Just some of the beneficial items of a local newspaper being reported on are school education, city operations and politics, health news, entertainment, advertising, viewpoints, classifieds, police reports, sports, religious news, business news and much more.

In my research, it has been reported that since 2004, some 1,800 newspapers or more have closed. It is quite possible the basic reasons for these closures are that people use the internet, social media and cable for news.

The cost of operating a newspaper, lack of ongoing advertising, being considered by some as wasteful and other considerations are why these newspapers can no longer compete and exist.

We the citizens of Rio Rancho and citizens of the surrounding communities should realize the importance and benefit of having local news through a local newspaper.

I encourage any citizen in our community to please support our local newspaper by subscribing to it.

Not only is it important to have effective and community support for our police department, fire and safety department, school district, parks and recreation facilities and senior-citizen activities, but we also need an effective supportive local newspaper.

For our community to thrive and grow, we must be supportive of all these important parts of our city.

I consider that this discussion on local newspapers is important and necessary.

As we go forward to the New Year 2022, let us residents of Rio Rancho understand our civic duty to be supportive of our city.

Considering that we are still dealing with this COVID-19/Omicron variant pandemic, we must be determined to protect ourselves and others.

I believe we can rely on effective and correct community information from many sources, including our local newspaper, in this case, the Rio Rancho Observer.
So please be a supportive subscriber to it.

Thomas E. Carter
Rio Rancho