Why?

Quite possibly the most glaring, obvious question one would ask when told that some guy would like to create a brand-new paper-based newspaper in a town of 1200 is why? Why when we have the Internet; why when there’s so many other newspapers folding up shop or going digital only; why did you interrupt me while I was on my phone, sir?

Why on Earth, indeed! And I really can’t respond with objective facts based on quantifiable numbers. Rather, it’s a feeling, and one that I have but I do believe others might as well.

I’d like to share what some of those feelings are and open the floor to you- notice the name is Small Town, but it is also Town Square- and I feel that a paper can renew that dwindling chance to engage in dialogue in that metaphorical town square.

So, yes, we have the Internet, and we are bombarded with every bit of fact and information that we could possibly need or want. It’s probably too much. But what I find interesting is that we all have these quivers of information, get to talking about the news of the day and find the next person knows exactly what you’re talking about- but has come to a completely different conclusion as you. If we’re talking in person, then that would probably lead to questions as to why we differ and attempt to understand our points of view. If we’re on the Internet, we’re likely yelling or being insulted for whatever conclusion we foolishly came to. Good times!

Guess which scenario most likely lead to thoughtful answers to the questions we might have asked? If the Internet took away newspapers as a trusted source of information, then it’s equally at fault that you we are not having thoughtful dialogues in person as much as we used to. So, it’s not just the newspaper that is my goal, but that I believe the medium is a conduit for thoughtful dialogue and that’s what I hope, as much as I’m able, to create.

There’s also the desire for local coverage- the reporting of town councils, sport events, concerts, meetings, town hall and speakers; there’s always plenty of things happening in the smallest of communities. What decisions are being made on our behalf? Which child got recognised as doing exceptionally well last month? There’s some awesome concert happening and now that I know, I’m going to try and go. A small-town newspaper is uniquely positioned to be a go-to source of all of that and more.

A small-town weekly is a great source of little, charming bits of what happened. Any visit to my grandma would get a sentence back in the day! What was so lovely was that there were paragraphs of these little moments happening not just in Bassano but in other towns as well. These small moments, collected in aggregate over time tells a town’s collective story- I truly believe this. My goal is for my newspaper to share this generation’s tales to continue Bassano’s story.

A newspaper is well-suited to engage in the marketplace of ideas. If you believe like I do, then every idea or opinion has the freedom to be expressed. If they are haphazard, riddled with invective and/or not well thought-out, they don’t exist long in the marketplace; if they are well reasoned and thoughtful then they add to a healthy discourse. The hope is that any poor idea gets replaced with a much better one and we all benefit, learning all the while.

A great conduit to getting your thinking cap on and getting to work putting together a cohesive argument is a letter to the editor, and there will always be space in the paper to publishing these. What conversations could be started with a simple letter that is read by neighbours? I don’t know of course, but I’m excited to think anyone is truly empowered to see effort translate into positive change.

I’ll finish off this manifesto of sorts by just mentioning that I have a few fundamental principals that I base all of this on, and I hope that you find these important enough to help me in this endeavour of creating a newspaper. I believe in freedom of the press, speech, association and expression. This belief is, to my eye, the starting point of all other freedoms we enjoy in Canada). I believe that literacy is one of the most effective solutions to personal growth, social and economic mobility and civic health. But it requires work and a life-long commitment to it.

And that returning home to do my darndest and contributing my best is a lovely use of effort. Bassano is my home, and it is the best place to do so.

Please feel free to get in touch about this endeavour, by emailing me at mike@smalltownsquare.com as I said, I want this to start dialogues, begin hearty debates and learn from each other.

Thanks very much!!