Dear Reader,
The answer to the above question is, in a nutshell – yes.

Well, the answer is yes if you are in Bloomfield, Jasonville, Newberry, Scotland, Owensburg, Worthington, Calvertville, or any number of burgs in the county. The answer is yes apparently unless you are Nick Schneider, Chris Pruett, Timberly Feree, Heidi Puckett, Paul Wilcoxin or any other number of employees of Greene County’s ‘third newspaper.’

A BIT OF HISTORY

Greene County has had more than one newspaper as long as anyone who is currently alive can remember.

Currently, we have three – plus the Bloomington Herald-Times which also has a large circulation base here.

Up until a few years ago when Rust Communications came on the scene in Greene County, there were independent papers and/or shopper publications in Bloomfield, Linton, Jasonville and sometimes Worthington.

That was, until a conglomerate came along, hell-bent on either owning or controlling everything.

The Linton paper was purchased, then the Jasonville Leader was bought, then the Shopper (which was originally based in Jasonville). Then the Bloomfield papers were purchased (with most of its employees being unceremoniously fired, the local office being closed down and the Bloomfield News being killed).

The Jasonville and Bloomfield papers were quickly closed and most recently, since the Worthington paper wasn’t worth buying as a business, the company hired its editor, and that paper is now also gone.

Up until Dorman Clark started the Jasonville Independent and I started the Bloomfield Free Press, the conglomerate – based in Missouri (which is where all of your subscription and advertising money ends up) – had a stranglehold on the newspaper business in Greene County.

And, quite frankly, they screwed it up through incompetence, arrogance and just plain greed.

THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS

When Mr. Clark started the Jasonville Independent, he immediately gained circulation for his community-based weekly.
It has continued to grow and thrive, despite the best efforts of the newspaper in Linton.

On April 5, 2006, the Bloomfield Free Press came on the scene, and was an immediate hit with readers, subscribers and advertisers – also despite the best efforts of the folks who work on Linton’s South Main Street.

When we came out with the trademarked slogan ‘Your Independent Hometown Newspaper,’ a short time later, the folks in Linton began running full-page ads calling themselves ‘truly your hometown newspaper.’

Coincidence? Yeah, right. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

So, before we get into the real reason for this posting, let the rest of us in Greene County answer the question for that small, insignificant staff of nattering nabobs of negativism in Linton. The answer is yes, Greene County is big enough for more than one newspaper – if the alleged staff of the 'other newspaper' will quit being juvenile, greedy and just plain mean.

Now that you are up to speed ...

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