Local Journalism Is Changing. We’re Choosing a Different Path.

by Blaine Howerton | NorthFortyNews.com

There’s a quiet moment most mornings before Northern Colorado fully wakes up.

The coffee is brewing. The sky is still dark over the Front Range. Overnight emails are waiting. Weather alerts are checked one more time. Stories are reviewed again before they go out into the world.

That’s usually when I take one last look at the Daily Update before I hit send.

Over the years, I’ve watched local journalism change dramatically. Many newspapers and media companies now rely on aggressive subscription funnels, ultra-cheap introductory offers, hard paywalls, automated upsells, and endless systems designed to keep readers moving through a marketing pipeline.

In many cases, that’s become the business model.

And honestly, I understand why.

Local journalism is expensive to produce. Advertising has changed. Social media changed reader habits. Large companies are under pressure to squeeze revenue out of shrinking audiences whenever they can.

But here at North Forty News, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what kind of local news organization we actually want to become.

The answer keeps bringing me back to the same place.

Something calmer.

Something more human.

Something rooted here.

North Forty News is intentionally trying to build a different kind of relationship with readers — one that feels less like a corporate funnel and more like a trusted local habit.

The Daily Update was never meant to be “just another email.”

It’s meant to feel like a steady start to the day. A quick moment of local clarity before the noise begins. A calmer way to stay connected to Northern Colorado without feeling overwhelmed by headlines, outrage, or endless scrolling.

That matters to me personally because I know what modern media often feels like now: loud, exhausting, and increasingly disconnected from the communities it claims to serve.

North Forty News is different because it is built here.

Not in a distant corporate office.

Not by an algorithm deciding what drives the most clicks.

But each morning, right here in Northern Colorado.

The stories are local. The weather matters locally. The events are happening in our towns. The conversations come from readers who live here. Even the rhythm of the Daily Update itself is shaped around how mornings actually feel in this community.

And while many publications are moving toward heavier ad loads and increasingly automated systems, we’ve intentionally kept the Daily Update relatively light on advertising.

That decision comes with tradeoffs.

It means reader support matters more.

But I also believe that creates something valuable: journalism that feels accountable first to the community reading it.

Not just to advertisers.

Not just to investors.

Not just to growth targets.

Reader-supported local journalism is not really about “buying access to content.” There’s endless content online already.

What readers are really supporting is the continued existence of independent local journalism in Northern Colorado — journalism created by people who actually live here, pay attention here, and care what happens here.

That support helps keep local reporting alive.

It helps keep local events visible.

It helps keep small-town stories from disappearing entirely.

It helps preserve something increasingly rare: a truly local news voice.

I think about that often in the early mornings while preparing the Daily Update.

Not as a product.

But as a small daily act of connection between a local newsroom and the people it serves.

And every time someone chooses to support North Forty News, it feels less like a transaction and more like participation in keeping that local connection alive.

That means more than I can probably explain in a single Publisher’s Letter.

So if you’ve been reading the Daily Update, sharing stories, replying to emails, sending tips, supporting the publication financially, or simply making North Forty News part of your morning routine — thank you.

You are helping preserve independent, reader-supported local journalism for Northern Colorado.

And that matters.

See you out there,

Blaine Howerton, Publisher
North Forty News

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