This week, as I sit down to write, I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes. It is a quote that actually hangs in my office and is embedded in my mind on a daily basis when I think of my career choice, a choice many may argue was a risky one to take as print is often said to be on its way out and digital is the world we live in.

“Save a journalist, buy a newspaper!”

It’s a quote that spawns a series of thoughts, as many will argue that newspapers are a dying medium, a relic from the past, something that most likely your parents or grandparents used to read and in this day and age something that will never last.

But this is a challenge to the few of us left that will accept it.

In my opinion, in order for you to save a journalist by buying a newspaper, the journalist first needs to make you want to read it.

Now, I am not about to get all Trump-like on the community and start spouting out the issues pertaining to “fake media” or “fake news,” but I will ask those of you who pick up and read our publication to take a little extra time to connect with us once again.

Tell us what you want to see. Let us know what you like. A community newspaper exists to serve the community, bringing forth both “good” and “bad” news, in order to keep its residents informed and connected.

Through the time I have spent in my profession I have found the heart of the issue for a struggling newspaper is generally disconnect. Either the ones in charge in the office disconnected, or the citizens have due to a variety of unfortunate circumstances.

The only way to get back to our roots and the heart of why the newspaper is here, and what the community needs, is to open up and reconnect with what the newspaper should be doing in the first place — taking the news you bring to us and making it available for the rest of Jessamine County.

When a journalist mentions this the typical response becomes the very real argument of social media. Undoubtedly a thorn in some newspapers’ sides. However, not all posts online are available for everyone to see.

I could go on and on about Facebook’s algorithm and news feed statistics, but there is only so much space here and honestly, I don’t want to bore you. (If you’re really interested though and never heard of it before, Google it. It will open your eyes to many unanswered questions).

So my question to the community becomes why not bring your thoughts, events, ideas, special occasions and pictures to us for the whole community to see online and in print?

Often referred to as the fourth branch of government, a watchdog for the people, we exist to serve you!

Tell us what you want, what you like, what you don’t like.

Bring us your pictures, your ideas, events and special occasions. Let us know about issues and hardships within the community.

Together, we can save a journalist by making sure we produce a newspaper the community wants to not only buy but read!

Brittany Fuller is the community editor of The Jessamine Journal and Jessamine Life magazine. She can be reached at brittany.fuller@jessaminejournal.com.