Editorial: Thank you for five years of support

I started MorinvilleNews.com five years ago when a local newspaper I was then freelancing for decided to suspend publication. Faced with the prospect of living in a community with only one regional news source and no paper with a true Morinville focus, I decided to offer one. Starting with the slogan “Get the news while it’s still news,” MorinvilleNews.com launched as a digital daily with a commitment to living up to the slogan I had chosen.

June 11 marks the fifth anniversary of MorinvilleNews.com, the website that began our community news venture.

Over the past five years, the business has changed rapidly. When we launched our website, Facebook was celebrating its sixth anniversary of operation. Five year’s later, Facebook is the dominant player in the social media game, and according to a recent communications survey, many of you get your community information from our Facebook page – Facebook.com/MorinvilleNews.

Following that trend of quick and to the point, over the past five years news stories have gotten shorter. Gone are the days of long-form journalism with stories of 1200 to 1400 words. These days stories range between 400 and 600 words to get you the information you need quickly.

We’ve also started showing you the news more and more, something relatively unique for a community under 10000. Thus far response to our video news pieces and photo galleries has been positive.

Later this summer we hope to unveil our MorinvilleNews App to to keep you connected to your community even more.
Though we’ve experienced some technological changes over the past five years, one thing has not changed – our commitment to the community.

We have organized, promoted or sponsored everything from music concerts, comedy shows and festivals to wrestling matches and bringing medieval knights and superheroes to this year’s MPS Children’s Carnival.

We got behind People for the Steeple, and we jumped into Hockeyville in a major way.

We’ve enjoyed every minute of being involved in the community. It’s been a great ride thus far, and we are excited about the continued growth and continued community involvement in our sixth year of operation.

None of this would have been possible without our readers joining us for the ride these past five years. Nor would it be possible without those local businesses, organizations and institutions who have seen value in what we were doing.

This publication has survived in a dying industry because our readers and advertisers have supported us well. You have kept us informed about all the things we need to cover.

We thank you for your trust and your support.

Stephen Dafoe,
Publisher – The Morinville News

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4 Comments

  1. Stephen – and what a five years it has been. Congratulations on your 5 years and looking forward to many more in whatever format they come. Cliff and I have always looked to your paper and on-line news first for what is happening. Thank you for your commitment to the community and your excellent skills at reporting the news.

  2. There is NO doubt in MY mind, nor I am confident in saying – the minds of a great many citizens of this community, that you have not only met your objectives, but surpassed them all.

    A hearty ‘WELL DONE’ from those of us who are not members of the Facebook community. Your voice has provided us all with plenty of food for thought on a diverse number of topics.

    Please keep up the good work!

  3. Well done! Congratulations on the past five years , and continue on for many more years.

  4. Stephen great job! Wishing you many more years of success! Isabell Shoff

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