Wow! A new publisher comes in and decides to put her mark on a newspaper, and — voila! — an institution for one of our bordering counties and a former place of employment for me changes its personality.
Yes, the Benton Courier announced last week that it is now the Saline Courier.
I worked there for more than four years and I love the newspaper, the city of Benton and Saline County.
Publisher Terri Leifeste announced the change Aug. 9, saying the name would better reflect the newspaper’s coverage area, which she said was all of Saline County. She noted that the Courier had been known as the Saline Courier for a few years in the late 1800s.
That’s true, but it’s been the Benton Courier for 104 years. It will take a while to become accustomed to the new moniker. The old name has a sense of history and permanence, while the new one does give a feeling of expansion and potential for growth. But it is a sense of change and —for now at least — it’s an uncomfortable feeling.
I’m sure the reasoning is that the owners feel it will help sell the paper and its advertising in places other than Benton, but how will the change affect Benton residents? Some may not be happy.
Journalists in the area will be watching because we love newspapers. As for those of us who have worked there, and there are quite a few even here at our office, most of us love the Courier especially. We hope the change works.
Horizon Publishing, based in Marion, Ill., owns the newspaper.
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My oldest child, Patrick, turned 27 today.
His landmark doesn’t particularly make me feel any older — we all become a day older every day. it’s just that the fact that some of us may be closer to the short end of the candle wick bothers some people more than others.
It does seem remarkable that 27 years have passed in Patrick’s life. In thinking back to the day he was born, it does seem like 27 years ago.
I would have to say that he has used his early adult years wisely, as far as exploring what he should be when he grows up. He has:
- Built, or “digitally designed,” newspaper pages in Fort Worth;
- Worked for Kinko’s in Arlington, Texas, and Boston;
- Photographed amateur sports events in the Dallas-Fort Worth area;
- Taught classes at Apple Computer stores; and
- Served as a Mac computer technician for a recording studio that produces a nationally syndicated radio show from Weatherford, Texas.
The fun part of his being 27 is that we are still close, at least chatting online or e-mailing everyday and talking 2-3 times a week by phone.
Have a great day, Patrick.
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It seems that a Colorado Rockies fan in the right-field stands who happens to have a blog has broken the story with his own photographic evidence that shows Cliff Barmes did not catch the apparent pop fly that he turned into a double play to end Sunday’s game with the St. Louis Cardinals.
The blogger’s photos show the baseball falling from Barmes’ grasp onto the outfield grass. If it had been ruled a base hit, the Cardinals would have scored one run to tie the game and have runners on first and third with one out.
Apparently, the blogger’s evidence has since been backed up by a photo taken by a Denver Post photographer, but the Post didn’t publish its photo until after the blogger broke the story. Journalistically speaking, one has to wonder if the Post had the photo and held it until the “drop” came to light anyway. If so, would that have happened if the recently closed crosstown rival newspaper, the Rocky Mountain News, were still publishing? I don’t know the answer
I read one quote that had a Rockies player quoted as saying, “Who cares? We won.”
To a certain extent, that’s true, especially for St. Louis, which clinched the Central Division with its win over the Rockies on Saturday night. But I’ll bet the Atlanta Braves, who are only two games behind Colorado for the National League wild-card spot in the playoffs, care a great deal that the proper call was not made.
It was not an obvious missed call like several were in the St. Louis-Colorado series, but it could wind up making a difference in who makes the playoffs between the Rockies and the Braves. But, like life, baseball isn’t always fair.
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