National Newspaper Week is Oct. 5-11. The Newspaper Association Managers has sponsored the celebration in the United States and Canada since 1940, marking this year as its 85th anniversary.
“National Newspaper Week is a time to reflect on and reinforce the vital role newspapers play in informing, empowering, and uniting our communities,” the organization stated on its website.
The Eastern Echo is joining in the celebration to honor our role in serving the Eastern Michigan University and Ypsilanti communities since 1881 as an independent student newspaper. The Echo distributes weekly printed editions on campus and throughout Ypsilanti during the fall and winter academic semesters, and publishes year-round online. It is our mission to highlight newsworthy content in a fair, accurate, and timely manner.
Members of the Ypsilanti and EMU communities have the right to be informed about the issues that affect them. This is what The Eastern Echo has sought to achieve for more than 140 years — giving voice to the stories of EMU and Ypsilanti.
As an independent news publication, The Eastern Echo adheres to the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics. Acting independently, minimizing harm, seeking truth and reporting it, and being accountable and transparent are all critical parts of The Echo’s reporting practices.
In the United States, more than 200 counties do not have a local newspaper, and half of all counties have only one, according to a report from the Hussman School of Journalism and Media at the University of North Carolina. Washtenaw County hosts only one newspaper, The Ann Arbor Observer, according to the UNC’s report. Thus, the city of Ypsilanti meets the definition of a news desert, meaning the community lacks a dedicated professional newspaper covering local news.
In service to the public, The Echo functions to keep its population informed and up-to-date on college and community events and uphold democratic principles.
Those who cannot afford or access either technology or news subscriptions are always welcome to pick up a free copy of our publication at one of the numerous stands around the city to stay informed.
At The Echo, we invite dialogue and accept letters from our readership community, the university, and the Ypsilanti area. Readers can participate in public discourse by submitting a letter to the editor to let us know what issues are on their minds. Letters should be 300 words or fewer and must be signed by the writer, including their hometown, email address, and phone number. The phone number is used to verify the letter and will not be published. Letters should be sent to editor@easternecho.com.
A print newspaper not only tells the news of today — it lives on as a physical footprint in history, highlighting the importance of independent student journalism and the freedom of the press. If journalism is the first rough draft of history, a phrase attributed to Philip Graham, former publisher of the Washington Post, then a print newspaper also serves an archival purpose.
As we celebrate National Newspaper Week, we would like to thank our audience for supporting independent student journalism by reading The Eastern Echo.
