Celebrating our sixth birthday and Local News Day
Watershed Voice officially launched six years ago on this day in 2020, providing a combined 3,400 stories, columns, podcasts, poems and the like to residents of St. Joseph, Kalamazoo, and Cass Counties over the last 2,191 days.
Help us celebrate our birthday with a donation, and sign up for our free newsletter in observance of Local News Day on April 9.
Watershed Voice officially launched six years ago on this day in 2020, providing a combined 3,400 stories, columns, podcasts, poems and the like to residents of St. Joseph, Kalamazoo, and Cass Counties over the last 2,191 days.
In my first column on this site, I described the importance of a trusted local news source, what we envisioned Watershed would become, and how it would serve this community:
A daily news source that strives to ensure transparency from local municipalities and the officials that operate them is paramount to maintaining an informed electorate, and subsequently strong democratic governance. Since the United States was founded almost 244 years ago, the press has served as a check to power, holding those in positions of authority accountable for what they say and do, while giving a voice to the most vulnerable and underserved members of our society.
“From the editor: A watershed moment,” April 8, 2020
It is also how we tell the story of our community, a record of our triumphs and follies, our beginnings, our endings, and everything in between. Without that daily record much is lost, and while it may not move the needle for most, it matters a great deal to us, the ones who “do most of the working and paying and living and dying in this community.”
The news industry — like the stories it covers — is changing rapidly, and what it will look like 10, 20 or 50 years from now is unclear. However, strong, accurate reporting will always be in vogue, as will people’s desire for reliable information in a timely manner from sources they trust.
While we no longer publish daily, the mission remains the same — to hold those in power accountable and provide a record of the community we serve, while giving a voice to the most vulnerable and underserved among us.
That aim is no easier to accomplish today than it was six years ago, as we grapple with how to achieve financial sustainability in an era where disinformation is as prevalent as ever, and AI is being used to “scrape” originally reported content from news sites before redistributing it to the masses, with the user never needing to click through to the original source of the content.
While difficult, we believe we are doing what we set out to do way back in 2020, and the service we provide to our community each week is important and valuable. If you agree with that assessment, please consider giving Watershed Voice a birthday gift in the form of a one-time or monthly donation, and sign up for our free newsletter in observance of Local News Day on April 9.
We thank you for your continued support, and look forward to another year of producing quality local journalism for our readers.
Alek Haak-Frost is the executive editor, publisher, and founder of Watershed Voice.
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