Local Journalism: A Vital Job that Needs to be Done

By Renée Morin

Dear Sanford Springvale News Readers,

We are currently seeking volunteers to help us cover Sanford City Council meetings.

I began covering council meetings during my senior year of high school, as part of a school project. When I graduated high school this June, I opted to stick with the paper. I’ve continued to cover the meetings for multiple reasons, including my amazing fellow volunteers and the valuable real world experience this opportunity has given me. The key reason though, is because just like everyone else at the paper, I believe local journalism is incredibly important.

In my view, the wellbeing of any community depends on an informed and invested citizenry. Local journalism plays an important part in that. The 21^st century has seen the consolidation and closure of newspapers all over the country, including the Journal Tribune and the Sanford News. In the face of this drought of local news and reporting, it falls on the good people of Sanford-Springvale to take matters into our own hands.

Coverage of our City Council meetings is a key part of our work. It gives the people of Sanford-Springvale an insight into the governance of their community, and the actions and work of the people they’ve chosen to represent them.

At the end of August, I will be starting community college. As a result, I have decided to step aside from my role at the paper, at least until I’ve settled into my classes and assessed whether I have the time to cover the meetings on top of my classwork and job.

My fellow volunteers will be covering council meetings temporarily, but we need one or two new people to take on the job for the future.

I have written this message to readers to find volunteers to take over the coverage once I’m gone. The assignment involves viewing council meetings every other week (either in person, via Zoom, or by watching the recording), writing a short article about a noteworthy topic from the meeting for the week’s issue, then summarizing the rest of the meeting in an article for the following week’s issue. You would also need to participate in the newspaper staff meeting via Zoom every other week. You do not need to have prior experience in writing articles.

If anyone is interested in volunteering, email ssnews@sanfordspringvalenews.com.

Thank you for reading.