Surely, you read. I mean, you’re reading this paper right now, presumably on a college campus. Fingers crossed, you can read.

 What I mean to say is, do you read locally? We all know the rave of Mark Twain, Dr. Suess and college textbooks, but what about the shutdown of your local adoption center or the opening of a new restaurant just down the street from your place? 

Local newspapers provide a central stream of information for places, purchases and events at your fingertips. When we went to the TCCJA Convention, I had the chance to sit in at a session about community journalism and its importance to interconnecting cities.  

News desert communities that have limited access to credible and comprehensive information — are common in rural communities. Tarleton Adviser Austin Lewter honed in on the importance of centralized information being told by the people, for the people. 

The people in question? You! I often think of the statement, “What you can touch, you can change.” You are fingertips away from an ever-changing world that gives you relentless information.

 But how much of it reflects you? Not everyone writes, nor is it everyone’s cup of tea. But reading or communicating is an everyday occurrence. 

This, in essence, explains what community journalism is.