THE HISTORIC ROLE OF THE MAIN STREET, BUSINESS SECTION, NEWSPAPER OFFICE IN MUSKOKA

Saint Mary’s Anglican Church – Beatrice -  A peaceful setting at the Saint Mary’s Anglican Church in Beatrice, Ontario north of Bracebridge on an early fall morning.   The church is adorned with a number of beautiful stained glass windows placed in Memorial of Loved Ones who resided in the area. (Photo By Fred Schulz)

A NEWSPAPER WAS "BY, AND FOR," THE COMMUNITY IT REPRESENTED

WHAT HISTORY SHOULD HAVE TAUGHT US ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNICATING COMMUNITY NEWS


     CIRCA 1867
     THE TITLE OF A SMALL SECTION, IN BERT SHEA'S, "HISTORY OF THE SHEAS; BIRTH OF A TOWNSHIP," IS HEADED, "NEWSPAPERS AND CONFEDERATION." HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED WHAT THE MUSKOKA HOMESTEADERS WERE READING BACK IN THE 1860'S, IF AND WHEN THEY ACTUALLY COULD OBTAIN A CITY OR ANY NEWSPAPER? WELL, HERE IS A SHORT EXPLANATION, OFFERED BY MR. SHEA.
     "THE SHEAS WERE ALWAYS GIVEN TO READING, ESPECIALLY GRANDADDY, AND AT THE EARLIEST DATE, THE MONTREAL WEEKLY WITNESS, THAT HAD COME TO HIS HOME IN STOREMONT, (EASTERN ONTARIO) CAME ALSO TO HIS HOME IN WATT, FOLLOWING HIS MIGRATION OF 1863, AND WAS AMONG THE FIRST PAPERS TO BE DELIVERED TO THE POST OFFICE AT SOUTH FALLS (MUSKOKA FALLS), BY THE BOY, WILLIAM HARNNA, WHO DELIVERED THE MAIL FROM FARTHER SOUTH, TO THE SOUTH FALLS OFFICE ON FOOT."

     REMEMBER THE GOOD OLD DAYS, WHEN WE USED TO HAVE NEWSPAPER OFFICES ON THE MAIN STREETS, (OR ONE BLOCK REMOVED) OF OUR MUSKOKA TOWNS? NO MATTER HOW MEDIA ENTERPRISES TODAY, BY EXECUTIVE PRIVILEGE, DISMISS THE OLD WAY OF DOING THINGS, AS BEING INEFFICIENT AND COSTLY, IT WON'T CHANGE THE FACT, THAT MANY HOMETOWNERS MISS HAVING THEIR LOCAL NEWSPAPER OFFICE, FRONT AND CENTRE......BECAUSE THAT'S HOW IMPORTANT THE COMMUNITY PRESS WAS IN OUR TOWNS, FROM AS FAR BACK AS THE 1870'S;  HERALDED BY THE LAUNCH OF THE NORTHERN ADVOCATE, BY NEW PUBLISHER, THOMAS MCMURRAY. THESE MEDIA OPERATIONS LIKE TO GIVE THE ILLUSION (I CALL IT DELUSION), THAT THEY CAN DO IT ALL, WITHOUT HAVING A MAIN STREET "MEETING PLACE," OFFICE, BUT WE MUSKOKANS AREN'T FOOLED BY SUCH CITY-SLICK MANIPULATIONS. THE NEWSPAPERS WERE INLAID PARTS OF OUR COMMUNITY CHARACTER. THE CITIZENS FELT PART OF THE NEWSPAPER INDUSTRY, AS THE SUBSCRIBERS.; THE PRICE THEY PAID, MAKING THEM FEEL LIKE MINOR SHAREHOLDERS. THEY HAD PRIDE IN THEIR PAPER, AND WHEN THERE WERE TWO, OR EVEN THREE, WELL SIR, IT WAS TIME TO PICK FAVORITES. I KNOW FOR FACT, DURING MY OWN TENURE, IN THE 1980'S, THAT MANY CITIZENS IN BRACEBRIDGE AND AREA, SUBSCRIBED TO BOTH PUBLICATIONS; THE HERALD-GAZETTE AND THE EXAMINER. THE NEED FOR THOSE OLD TIME NEWSPAPERS AND MAIN BUSINESS SECTION NEWS OFFICES, IS STILL AS STRONG AS EVER. BUT NO ONE IN THE MEDIA THINKS IT'S A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH.....JUST A BUNCH OF SENTIMENTALISTS WISHING FOR HISTORY TO REPEAT. YOU KNOW, ONE DAY IT MIGHT JUST DO THAT, AND BRING BACK SOME CORE VALUES US OLDTIMERS ESPECIALLY, WANT RETURNED TO THE MEDIA CULTURE. WE'D BE QUITE WILLING TO PAY OUR WAY, TO HAVE AN OLD-TIME PUBLICATION, THAT RAN STORIES WE WERE ACTUALLY INTERESTED IN.......


     I AM STILL A BIG FAN OF NEWSPAPERS, DESPITE THE MODERN ERA DECLINE, IN IMPORTANCE, OF THE PRINT MEDIA, IN THIS INTRUSIVE HIGH TECH, CYBERSPACE PERIOD, IN WORLD HISTORY. I CRAVE THE AROMA OF FRESH INK ON NEWSPRINT, AND THE BLACK SMUDGE IT LEAVES ON MY FINGER TIPS, AFTER A THOROUGH READING. I ALWAYS THOUGHT THIS IS WHAT IT MEANT TO GET "PRINTER'S INK" IN YOUR VEINS. WELL, TURNS OUT, IT WAS MORE PHILOSOPHICAL THAN I FIRST THOUGHT. IT MEANT BEING HOOKED ON READING, WRITING AND PUBLICATION, DUE TO INTIMATE CONTACT WITH THE PRINT INDUSTRY. IT DIDN'T MEAN I COULD WRITE WITH MY FINGER-TIPS, BECAUSE I WAS FULL OF INK.
    I USED TO LOVE ANY OPPORTUNITY TO VISIT MUSKOKA WEB, IN BRACEBRIDGE, BACK IN MY NEWSPAPER DAYS, TO WATCH OUR WEEKLY ISSUE BEING PRINTED. AH, THE SMELL OF PRINTER'S INK. I GOT TURNED ONTO THE WHOLE WORLD OF PRINT TECHNOLOGY, WHEN I VISITED THE TORONTO STAR, AS A HIGH SCHOOL JOURNALISM STUDENT, AND SAW THEIR MASSIVE PRINTING PRESSES IN OPERATION. I STOOD IN THEIR NEWSROOM, AND WATCHED A MYRIAD OF TYPEWRITERS, BEING ENGAGED BY REPORTERS, RACING TO MEET THE DAILY DEADLINE FOR COPY. ON OUR HONEYMOON, I NARROWLY AVOIDED A QUICKIE DIVORCE, THE RESULT OF MY HOPELESS, THOUGH LOGICAL, ENFATUATION WITH "PRINTING STUFF." WHEN I WOULDN'T LEAVE THE 1700'S VINTAGE, RESTORED PRINT SHOP, IN THE VILLAGE OF COLONIAL WILLIAMSBURG, IN OLD VIRGIANIA, SUZANNE ACTUALLY HAD TO PULL ME OUT. I KEPT BREAKING AWAY FROM HER ARM-LOCK, BEGGING JUST FIVE MORE MINUTES. THREE TIMES I DID THIS. WITHOUT QUESTION, THIS WASN'T THE BEST START TO A MARRIAGE ONE COULD ENGAGE, AND EXPECT A LONG AND HAPPY LIFE TOGETHER. BUT STRANGELY ENOUGH, THAT PRINTER'S INK GOT INTO OUR BLOOD. NOW WE ARE BOTH INVOLVED IN OLD AND ANTIQUARIAN BOOKS, AS A PROFESSION, INCLUDING VINTAGE COOKERY TEXTS, SO WE CAN AT THE VERY LEAST, DRAW ON OUR EXPERIENCE AND EXPOSURE TO THE HISTORY OF PRINTING AND BOOK BINDING.
     WHEN I WORKED AT THE HERALD-GAZETTE, FORMERLY LOCATED AT 27 DOMINION STREET, I'D STAND AT THE BACK OF THE SHOP, WATCHING THE PRESSMEN WORKING ON OUR MODEST COLLECTION OF PRESSES, USED MOSTLY THEN, FOR SMALL BOOKS, AND ADVERTISING MATERIALS AND POSTERS. I'M PRETTY SURE WE DID WORK LIKE BUSINESS CARDS, AND BROCHURES AS WELL. THE GRAPHIC ARTISTS HAD THEIR OWN OFFICE, ADJACENT TO THE PRESSES, COMPOSING THE PRINTING JOB FOR CLIENTS. I LOVED TO TAKE MY COFFEE BREAKS, WATCHING THE PRESSES IN ACTION, WITH MY OLD FRIENDS IN THE PRINT DEPARTMENT, JIM WRIGHT AND HARRY RANGER, WHO WERE ALSO KEY PLAYERS ON THE HERALD-GAZETTE RINK RAT HOCKEY CLUB. I EVEN HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO WATCH TWO OF MY OWN BOOKS, BEING RUN OFF ON THOSE VINTAGE PRESSES, OF THE 1970'S AND 80'S, WHICH WERE WONDERFULLY NOISEY AND QUITE A DANCE TO WATCH, AS THE MACHINE-WORK SPUN, DIPPED AND PRESSED, WITH ALL KINDS OF PARTS INTERACTING SO SMOOTHLY WITH A MINIMUM OF RACKET. IT WAS NOISEY TO SOME ON STAFF, BUT NOT ME. IT WAS MUSIC. A SYMPHONY OF ART AND SOUND.
     AS A WRITER, FOR THE MOST PART OF MY CAREER, USING MANUAL TYPEWRITERS, BIG AND BEAUTIFUL, IT WAS QUITE AN EXPERIENCE, TAKING THE FINISHED COPY DOWN TO IDA, OUR CHIEF TYPESETTER, AND WATCHING HER ENTER IT ON TO THE HUGE "MOTHER-OF-ALL" PRINT MACHINES..... THAT PRODUCED A SORT OF YELLOW TICKER-TAPE WITH HOLES PUNCHED INTO THE PAPER, THAT WOULD BE "READ" BY ANOTHER MACHINE; THAT WOULD THEN SPIT-OUT A CAMERA-READY STRIP OF PHOTOGRAPHIC-TYPE PAPER, WHICH WOULD THEN BE PROOFREAD BY NORMAN TANNER, WHO WAS AN EXPERT IN EDITING; A FINE ENGLISH CHAP WHO POSSESSED A HIGH DEGREE OF SKILL, AND LITERARY EXPERTISE, KNOWING WHEN THE REPORTERS HAD USED TOO MANY WORDS TO SAY TOO LITTLE....AND TOO MUCH PUNCTUATION FOR ANYONE'S COMMON GOOD. HE TAUGHT ME A LOT ABOUT EDITING, IN THE MOST GENTLE AND LOGICAL WAY. BEING HEAD-STRONG, AND FEELING THAT BEING EDITOR OF THE HERALD-GAZETTE, WAS AKIN TO THE TOP POST OF THE NEW YORK TIMES, I DIDN'T TAKE CRITICISM LIGHTLY. I LEARNED THAT WITH NORMAN, I WAS NOT ONLY GETTING A HIGHLY SKILLED PROOF-READER, BUT A PARTNER IN MAKING OUR WORK READ BETTER, AND OFFEND LESS SUBSCRIBERS WITH OUR POORLY PLACED PUNCTUATION, AND MISUSED WORDS. TO BE CRITQUED BY NORMAN, AS WE CAME TO UNDERSTAND, IN YEARS TO COME, WAS A GREAT HONOR, BECAUSE HE ALWAYS MADE OUR STORIES ROLL BETTER, AND SEEM TECHNICALLY SUPERIOR TO WHAT WE HAD TURNED OVER INITIALLY. I NEVER REMEMBER ANY OF US BEING ADVERSE TO BEING CORRECTED. ALTHOUGH EACH OF US GOT A LITTLE UPTIGHT AT FIRST, UNTIL WE RECOGNIZED THAT HE WAS DOING US A HUGE FAVOR, BY NOT ALLOWING US TO BE EMBARRASSED, WHEN THE PAPER HIT THE NEWS-STANDS, FILLED WITH TYPOS AND FUNDAMENTAL ERRORS IN LANGUAGE USE. NORM BECAME A CLOSE FRIEND AND HE MADE OUR NEWSPAPER YEARS MUGH LIKE A UNIVERSITY TUTORIAL, BUT A LOT MORE FUN.
     AS FOR THE LOCAL PRINT MEDIA TODAY, IN OUR REGION, THEY ARE SHADOWS OF WHAT WE HAVE KNOWN, IN THE PAST, OF COMMUNITY NEWS...AND THE OUTREACH OUR NEWSPAPERS USED TO HAVE AND EMPLOY WEEKLY, BRINGING THE REGION TOGETHER, AS NEWS COMMUNICATION DOES INHERENTLY. THIS NO DOUBT READS AS A SOUR GRAPES RETRIBUTION, BECAUSE I HAVEN'T BEEN INVITED BACK INTO THE MEDIA FOLD, AFTER MANY YEARS ABSENT. I'M A DISAGREEABLE SON-OF-A-BITCH BY MY OWN ADMISSION, SO HAVING ME ON STAFF, WOULD BE AKIN TO POKING ONESELF IN THE EYE, EVERY FIFTEEN MINUTES, FOR THE SHEER PAIN OF IT. I WALKED OUT THE DOOR OF THE BRACEBRIDGE EXAMINER, IN THE SUMMER OF 1990, MY LAST PAID POSITION WITH THE LOCAL PRESS, AND IMMEDIATELY INSISTED ON GIVING MYSELF A ONE YEAR HIATUS FROM WRITING GENERALLY. I WAS TIRED OF WRITING. NOW I WANTED TO BE A SELLER OF OLD PRINT MATERIALS AND PAPER, WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT GOT ME INVOLVED IN ANTIQUARIAN BOOKS, VIA BIRCH HOLLOW ANTIQUES. IT'S WHERE I MET ONE OF CANADA'S WELL KNOWN BOOK COLLECTORS, DAVE BROWN, AND MANY OTHER BOOK HOUNDS HE INTRODUCED ME TO, DURING OUR YEARS WORKING TOGETHER. IT'S WHAT LED TO THE BIOGRAPHY I WROTE ABOUT DAVE BROWN, IN 2000, SHORTLY AFTER HIS DEATH. I NEEDED A BREAK FROM BEING AN EDITOR, AND HAVING TO DEAL WITH MANAGEMENT ISSUES AT THE PAPER. I JUST WANTED TO EXPLOIT THE PART OF THE PRINT INDUSTRY I ENJOYED MOST, AND THAT WAS WRITING. NOW I'M WRITING MORE THAN EVER, WITHOUT A SINGLE TREE HAVING TO GIVE UP A SINGLE LIMB, TO PROVIDE ME WITH A PIECE OF NEWS PRINT.   I TOOK UP ANTIQUES IN A RETAIL ENVIRONMENT, TO FILL THE VOID. I DIDN'T EVEN LAST THE FULL YEAR, BECAUSE I WAS EXPERIMENTING REGULARLY WITH WRITING PROJECTS, EVEN BY THE EARLY SPRING OF 1991. SO MUCH FOR MY SELF IMPOSED EXILE. IT WASN'T LONG BEFORE I WAS BACK SUBMITTING COLUMNS AND FEATURE ARTICLES TO MUSKOKA PUBLICATIONS, WHICH I CONTINUED FOR THE REST OF THAT DECADE, TO THE NEW CENTURY. I DIDN'T AGREE WITH THE EDITORS, AT THAT TIME, AND DECIDED TO TRY SOME OTHER PUBLICATIONS IN ONTARIO. I'VE BEEN HAPPY HAVING A LARGER AUDIENCE IN SOUTHERN AND NORTHERN ONTARIO, ALTHOUGH, ARGUABLY I DO MISS THE MUSKOKA MARKET. THAT'S WHY I'VE BEEN HAPPY TO DEVELOP THIS BLOG-SITE, TO RE-CONNECT WITH MY OLD MEDIA DAYS....AND SOME OF THAT OLD GANG OF MINE, WHO ACTUALLY LOOKED FORWARD TO GETTING THE HERALD-GAZETTE HOT OFF THE PRESS. I REALLY MISS THE SCENT OF FRESH INK ON NEWS PRINT, WHIPPING AROUND THE CHROME CYLINDERS. BUT SLOWLY I'M LEARNING TO REINVENT MYSELF AS A CYBER-SPACE WRITER, WHO AT LEAST, CAUSES FEWER TREES TO BE CUT DOWN.
     THE PROBLEM TODAY, BY THE VASTNESS AND COMPLEXITY OF ECONOMICS, SHARED OWNERSHIP AND SURVIVAL, IS THAT THE MEDIA IS A MUCH BIGGER, MORE COMPLICATED, INTER-CONNECTED BUSINESS. HUGE CORPORATE BUSINESS. THE MOM AND POP NEWSPAPER DAYS, IN OUR REGION, ARE GONE, AND NOT LIKELY TO RETURN. THE PUBLICATIONS, IN MY OPINI0N, ARE FAR MORE RESPONSIVE TO THE NEEDS OF UPPER MANAGEMENT, AND SHAREHOLDERS, THAN TO THE COMMUNICATION WANTS OF THE DIVERSE POPULATION, OF THE CONTEMPORARY READERSHIP; WHICH IS LARGELY OF THE SAME GENERAL ILK AS WHEN I WAS EDITOR. RURAL FOLKS ESPECIALLY, WHO USED TO DEPEND ON THE COUNTRY CORRESPONDENTS, TO GET THEIR NEWS UPDATES FOR THE WEEK, IN EACH ISSUE, ARE AMONGST THOSE WHO NOW FEEL UNDER-SERVED BY THOSE WHO CLAIM TO BE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE COMMUNITY. THERE IS A MISUNDERSTANDING, TODAY....., A GIANT DISCONNECT, ABOUT WHAT THE PUBLIC WANTS, AND WHAT UPPER MANAGEMENT IS PREPARED TO OFFER READERS. BLAME IT ON A TIGHT BUDGET OF SPACE. I LEARNED ABOUT THIS "TIGHT BUDGET OF SPACE THING," WHEN I WAS OFFERED COLUMN SPACE SEVERAL YEARS AGO, AND MY FIRST SUBMISSION WAS FILLETED OF ITS MOST IMPORTANT PARTS, BECAUSE THE EDITOR DECIDED IT WAS TOO LONG. SO I QUIT. IT WAS MY SHORTEST STINT BACK IN THE WEEKLY PRESS SINCE 2000, WHEN I FIRST OPTED TO SEEK PUBLISHING SPACE ELSEWHERE. I PRESENTLY WRITE FOR "CURIOUS; THE TOURIST GUIDE," AND "THE GREAT NORTH ARROW," TWO EASY-TO-WORK-WITH EDITOR/ PUBLISHERS, WHO ENCOURAGE ME TO LET-LOOSE WITH CREATIVITY. THAT'S THE WAY I BEGAN AS A MEDIA REPORTER / COLUMNIST, IN WHAT I BELIEVE WAS THE HALCYON DAYS OF LOCAL PUBLISHING.
     I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW.....AS WE KNEW BACK IN MY NEWSPAPER DAYS, JUST HOW LONG A MODERN-DAY PUBLICATION STAYS IN A READER'S HAND, AND NOT JUST TO SWAT SOMETHING OR OTHER. WE WANTED TO KNOW EXACTLY HOW LONG OUR COLLECTIVE OF STORIES, NEWS, FEATURES, COMMUNITY REPORTS, EDITORIALS AND CLASSIFIED SECTION, KEPT THE ATTENTION OF OUR SUBSCRIBERS, AND NEWS-STAND PURCHASERS. IT WAS IMPORTANT TO US BECAUSE IT WAS A KEEN CONCERN OF OUR ADVERTISERS....WHO BENEFITTED FROM A NEWSPAPER THAT STAYED IN THE READER'S HAND AS LONG AS POSSIBLE....AND ONE THAT WAS READ BY MULTIPLE MEMBERS OF THE HOUSEHOLD, OVER AS MANY DAYS OF THE WEEK AS POSSIBLE. WE DID SURVEYS ON THIS KIND OF THING. AND IT WAS ALWAYS KIND OF HUMBLING, TO FIND OUT, THAT THE CLASSIFIED SECTION HELD THE BALANCE OF POWER. NEXT TO THAT, WERE THE OBITUARIES, WHICH WAS OKAY, BECAUSE BOB BOYER USED TO WRITE THEM....AND HE WAS BY FAR, THE BEST LIKED WRITER ON STAFF. IF HE WROTE THE OBITUARY, THE FAMILY WAS HONORED THAT A MAN OF SUCH DISTINCTION IN THE COMMUNITY, WOULD SPARE THE TIME IN A BUSY NEWS WEEK, TO GIVE SPECIAL ATTENTION TO THEIR KIN FOLK. WE ALL LIKED TO THINK WE CONTRIBUTED TO THAT "TIME-IN-HAND-AND-HOUSE" FACTOR, BACK THEN, WITH OUR CONTRIBUTION OF EDITORIAL MATERIAL....BUT IT WAS CRITICAL TO OUR SUBSCRIPTION NUMBERS, WHICH ADVERTISING SHOVED IN OUR FACES ON A REGULAR BASIS. THE FIRST RULE WAS NOT TO LOSE READERS. IF POSSIBLE, IT WAS A MISSION TO SECURE READERS, AND IN SO DOING, WE COULD OFFER THESE GAINS, AS PROOF, TO ADVERTISERS, THAT WE WERE A WORTHY VEHICLE TO SPREAD THE MESSAGE. WE NEVER PUT OUT A SINGLE ISSUE, THAT WE DIDN'T HOPE THAT IT WOULD BE GOOD ENOUGH TO CLOBBER THE COMPETITION, AND GAIN US MORE NEWS-STAND SALES.
     IN MY OPINION, AND KEEP IN MIND THAT I AM AS BIASED, AS I AM KNOWLEDGABLE ABOUT THE PRINT MEDIA...., THE PRESS TODAY CARRIES A MUCH LARGER VOLUME OF SOCIAL / WELFARE, AND HEALTH RELATED EDITORIAL COPY, BIG ON PROMOTING SPECIALTY GROUPS, FUNDRAISING INITIATIVES FOR CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS, INFORMATION FOR SENIOR CITIZENS, AND SEEM TO FOLLOW A SOCIAL SERVICES PROTOCOL OF RESPONSIBILITY THAT I'VE NEVER SEEN DOMINATE NEWS PRINT TO THIS DEGREE BEFORE.... EVER! WHILE IT IS APPROPRIATE TO GIVE THESE FOLKS INK, AND LOTS OF IT, BASED ON THEIR IMPORTANCE TO THE COMMUNITY GENERALLY, THERE IS A SEVERE LACK OF INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING OUT THERE.....AND NEWS RELATED FEATURE STORIES. EVERYTHING I LEARNED AS A COMMUNITY NEWS EDITOR, OVER AN ACTION-PACKED PERIOD IN THE 1980'S, SEEMS TOTALLY ANTIQUATED TODAY, WHEN I READ THESE PUBLICATIONS THAT WIND-UP IN MY MAILBOX AND DRIVEWAY, WITHOUT ME FIRST HAVING HAD TO PAY A SUBSCRIPTION PRICE. I AM ALWAYS CONCERNED ABOUT A BULK CIRCULATION, BECAUSE IN MY DAY, WE HAD AN INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP WITH ALL OUR SUBSCRIBERS, WHO LET US KNOW IF THEY PLANNED TO RENEW OR CANCEL THE PAPER. THEY WERE OUR BOSSES. TODAY I WOULD NEVER THINK OF CALLING THE RESPECTIVE PUBLISHERS TO COMPLAIN ABOUT CONTENT, BECAUSE FOR GOSH SAKES, I GOT THEM FOR FREE. WHAT I DO KNOW, IS THAT MY HANDLING OF A NEWSPAPER THESE DAYS, IS UNDER FIVE MINUTES, BECAUSE THEY DON'T CONTAIN WHAT I WANT TO READ.....AND I AM A VORACIOUS READER, AS YOU CAN PROBABLY IMAGINE. I WILL READ SOME ADS IN THIS PERIOD OF TIME, BUT NOT THE WAY I SHOULD.....LINGERING ON A PAGE TO CONSUME THE EDITORIAL CONTENT. THE FACT THAT THEY EACH HAVE A LARGE CIRCULATION, IS OBVIOUSLY THE ATTRACTION TO ADVERTISERS, BECAUSE, ONCE AGAIN, AND IT'S ONLY MY OPINION, EDITORIAL CONTENT IS A LESSER CONSIDERATION THESE DAYS, THAN IT WAS A FEW DECADES AGO.....WHEN WRITING STAFFERS WANTED TO EARN THEIR STRIPES, AND MOVE ON TO THE DAILIES; AND THE REALLY BIG FRONT PAGE REPORTING, WHEN THE BYLINE BENEATH THE HEADLINE, WOULD GLOW GOLDEN ON THE BROADSHEET PAGE. I DON'T SEE THIS RAGE OF AMBITION IN THE WRITERS TODAY, AND IT ALWAYS LOOKS TO ME LIKE THE REPORTERS PUT THE PIECES TOGETHER ON A TIGHT TIME BUDGET, WITH A LIMIT OF AVAILABLE MANPOWER. PLUS THE FOLKS COMING UP WITH THE STORY IDEAS DON'T SEEM TO HAVE THE SAME ZEAL AS ONCE. JUST MY OPINION, BUT I HAVE SOME HISTORY TO BACK ME UP!
      THE OTHER DAY, I MUST CONFESS, TO BECOMING SUDDENLY, AND QUITE ACCIDENTALLY RESTORED, OF MY FORMER NEWS-DAY EXPERIENCES, WHEN I QUITE LITERALLY TRIPPED OVER THE BOX OF IRON LETTERS STORED IN MY SHED, THAT USED TO BE SCREWED ONTO THE OUTSIDE STUCCO WALL OF 27 DOMINION STREET....WHERE THE HOLES ARE STILL VISIBLE AFTER ALL THESE YEARS. I WAS AT THE LOCAL RE-STORE, ONE MORNING, WHEN I FOUND THE BOX OF HAND-CRAFTED LETTERS, THAT SPELLED-OUT "THE HERALD-GAZETTE," WHICH I SAW, FIRST THING EACH MORNING, FOR ALL THE YEARS I WORKED IN THE BUILDING. WHEN I CAME ACROSS THE CARDBOARD BOX, CONTAINING THE HISTORIC LETTERS, I WAS STUNNED TO SILENCE, UNTIL SUZANNE SHOOK MY ARM TO TELL ME SHE WAS DONE SHOPPING. "WHAT HAVE YOU GOT THERE," SHE SAID. ON THE BOX FLAP, ALL IT SAID WAS "FROM BUILDING AT 27 DOMINION STREET BRACEBRIDGE." "I DON'T BELIEVE THIS.....THESE ARE THE LETTERS I SAW EVERY DAY GOING TO WORK, FOR TEN YEARS," I MUMBLED. SHE STARTED SORTING SOME OF THE LETTERS IN THE BOX, AND SHE AGREED WITH ME, THAT I WAS CARRYING A REALLY IMPORTANT SOUVENIR OF MY NEWSPAPER YEARS, IN BRACEBRIDGE. WHILE SOMEONE ELSE OWNS THE NAME HERALD-GAZETTE, I ACTUALLY OWN THE METAL LETTERS THAT USED TO GREET ME EACH MORNING AT 27 DOMINION STREET. I HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING WITH THEM YET, BECAUSE I HAVEN'T FOUND THE RIGHT BACKGROUND, AND THEY'RE PRETTY HEAVY JUST TO HANG OFF DRYWALL. I KNOW SUZANNE WON'T WANT ME HANGING THEM IN OUR LIVING ROOM, SO I'M GOING TO FIND A SEPARATE BACKING....MAYBE EVEN WITH A STUCCO SURFACE, TO RECONNECT THE LETTERS, OF WHAT WAS ONCE, A HUGELY IMPORTANT PUBLICATION IN OUR REGION.
     EVEN AFTER ALL THE YEARS THAT HAVE PASSED, SINCE I SAT IN THE EDITOR'S CHAIR, I STILL VIEW MY REGION, FROM THE SAME ENQUIRING PERSPECTIVE.....AS ANY NEWSHOUND, SNIFFING-OUT A GOOD STORY. I FREQUENTLY REMIND LOCAL COUNCILLORS HOW LUCKY THEY ARE, TO BE ELECTED OFFICIALS IN THIS NEW MEDIA ERA, AS COMPARED TO THE OLD DAYS, WHEN TWO, AND EVEN THREE NEWSPAPERS WERE HUSTLING FOR THE BIG HEADLINES, EACH WEEK, TO WHACK THE OTHER, WITH "WE SCOOPED YOU," BRAGGING RIGHTS. I DON'T REALLY EXPECT THEM TO UNDERSTAND. DOESN'T MATTER, BECAUSE I KNOW, AND POSSIBLY YOU RECALL AS WELL, WHEN COMPETITION FOR TOP SPOT WAS HUGE, AND PASSION LED TO INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING LIKE NEVER SEEN BEFORE ON A LOCAL LEVEL IN MUSKOKA. TODAY IN THIS PREOCCUPATION FOR MORE ACCESSIBLE SOFT NEWS, COUNCILLORS CAN GET AWAY WITH A LOT OF STUFF, IN TERMS OF PERCEIVED ACCOUNTABILITY, BECAUSE THE SCRUTINY OF ONCE, IS NO LONGER. THIS IS A DISSERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY, IN MY OPINION, AND AS MUCH, LIMITS THE DEMANDS FOR TRANSPARENCY. WE DON'T KNOW, JUST HOW MUCH WE'RE MISSING BECAUSE OF THIS LACK OF KEEN INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING, THAT USED TO MAKE THOSE BOLD DOUBLE-BANKED HEADLINES, SO ATTENTION-GRABBING ON THE FRONT PAGE. CONSIDER, AS WELL, THAT MANY NEWS STORIES TODAY, ARE HUGELY ONE-SIDED, VIRTUALLY WITHOUT COUNTER-POINT. WE USED TO EMPLOY OUR REPORTERS TO BASH ALL SIDES OF THE STORY, PRO AND CON, IN ONE ARTICLE (OR WITH AN ATTACHED SIDE-BAR) SUCH THAT WE SHOWED THE READERSHIP JUST HOW CONTENTIOUS THE ISSSUE WAS, AND HOW MANY COUNCILLORS WERE WILLING TO WEIGH-IN ON THE WORTHINESS OF A PARTICULAR BYLAW OR MOTION. THE ONE THING YOU WON'T READ ABOUT, IN THIS MODERN ERA, IS A COUNCILLOR'S OPINION IF IT'S NOT STATED IN AN ACTUAL PRESS-COVERED MEETING OF COUNCIL. IT'S EITHER BECAUSE THE PRESS DOESN'T SEEK ANY COUNTER OPINION FROM COUNCILLORS OUTSIDE TOWN HALL, OR COUNCILLORS HAVE BEEN MUZZLED BY COUNCIL PROTOCOL. I DON'T BELIEVE DEMOCRACY IS BEING SERVED EITHER BY COUNCILLORS NOT OFFERING COMMENTS, OR ON THE OTHER HAND, THE PRESS NOT INSISTING ON ASKING THEM QUESTIONS BEYOND THE BUSINESS OF COUNCIL MEETINGS. IF I RAN INTO A SITUATION WHERE COUNCILLORS WOULDN'T TALK TO US, ON A NEWS MATTER, WE MADE SURE THIS WAS HIGHLIGHTED IN A NEWS STORY THAT WEEK. THIS WAS NORMAL. "COUNCILLOR REFUSES TO COMMENT ON HUGE BUDGET SHORTFALL!"
     IN MY NEWSPAPER DAYS, WE WERE REFLECTIVE OF COMMUNITY VALUES. WE WERE A CONSERVATIVE PAPER POLITICALLY, BUT I WAS NEVER ONCE ASKED TO PEN AN EDITORIAL IN FAVOR OF THE TORIES. BUT AT THAT TIME, BEING A CONSERVATIVE RIDING, WAS ACUTELY REFLECTIVE OF COMMUNITY VALUES. THOSE WERE THE DAYS OF FRANK MILLER AND STAN DARLING, TWO ICONS OF MUSKOKA'S POLITICAL HISTORY. I WORKED WITH ROBERT BOYER, A FORMER TORY MPP, AND COMMISSIONER OF ONTARIO HYDRO. BUT ABOVE THE POLITICS, WITH WHAT WE PUBLISHED WEEKLY, EVEN WITH OUR COUNTRY CORRESPONDENTS, AS I'VE WRITTEN ABOUT PREVIOUSLY, WE WERE A HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER THROUGH AND THROUGH. IT WAS OUR JOB TO MAKE IT THIS WAY EVERY WEEK, AND THAT WAS OKAY, BECAUSE WE WERE MOSTLY HOMEGROWN ANY WAY, EXCEPT A FEW STAFF MEMBERS, FROM OUT OF TOWN, WHO JOINED US IN LATER YEARS. BUT THERE WERE ENOUGH LOCALS EMPLOYED BY THE H.G. THAT COMMUNITY VALUES WERE NEVER WEAKENED YEAR AFTER YEAR, DESPITE EVEN THE MOST PROFOUND CHANGES AT THE TOP. IT'S WHAT I ADORED ABOUT THE PAPER, AND WHAT I CARRIED AWAY FROM THE EXPERIENCE.
     BEGINNING TOMORROW, I'D LIKE TO PROFILE THE EARLIEST PAPERS IN BRACEBRIDGE AND REGION, BEGINNING WITH THE "NORTHERN ADVOCATE," LAUNCHED BY THE EDITOR OF THE MUSKOKA SETTLER'S GUIDE, THOMAS MCMURRAY, OF BRACEBRIDGE. THERE IS A REFERENCE TO HIS PUBLISHING WORK, IN THE 1870'S BOOK, "MUSKOKA AND PARRY SOUND," THAT WILL DEMONSTRATE JUST HOW BADLY WE NEEDED THE MAINSTREET PRINT MEDIA. EVEN IN THE FIRST DECADE OF MUSKOKA HISTORY.....AND HOW THE MEDIA CONTRIBUTED TO THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF OUR REGION.  WE HAVE AN INTERESTING MEDIA HISTORY IN MUSKOKA.....AND MAYBE I SHOULD WRITE A BOOK ABOUT IT. FIRST, WE'LL COVER THE BASICS VIA THIS BLOG.
     THANKS AGAIN FOR DROPPING BY FOR A VISIT. WHAT A RAINY MONDAY IT WAS! AS LONG AS IT DOESN'T SNOW. SEE YOU AGAIN TOMORROW, FOR MORE ON THE MEDIA ROOTS IN MUSKOKA.....AND ITS PERCEIVED ROLE IN THE FUTURE.