Langley gets its latest community newspaper on Friday

On Friday, Langley will become the latest Lower Mainland community to see two of its community newspapers become one.
The Langley Advance Times will begin publication that day, with the amalgamation of The Advance  (which began in 1931) and The Times (which started 50 years later, in 1981). Both have been owned by Black Press Media since 2015.
There is still another community newspaper in Langley - the Aldergrove Star, also published by Black Press Media. It is based in Aldergrove, and serves the eastern portion of Langley and western portion of Abbotsford.
The move to amalgamate makes sense, and will actually provide better news coverage. The news staff at the two newspapers have laboured heroically since each went to once-a-week publication, but there is no doubt they have been stretched on many occasions.
I have the highest regard for Roxanne Hooper, editor of the new publication. We worked together many years ago at the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows News, and she is not only a hard worker and talented designer of news pages, she is a ferocious news junkie who is never satisfied unless her media outlet has done the best job possible. She has been editing both newspapers for the past four months, and The Advance since 2015. She is doing an excellent job. Roxanne is also a Langley native - her father Dick is a well-known volunteer with many causes.
I also have the greatest respect for reporters Dan Ferguson. Matthew Claxton, Heather Colpitts and Miranda Fatur. They will do a great job in covering Langley “like the dew” (a wonderful slogan used by a newspaper in Charlottetown, P.E.I.
Publisher Lisa Farquharson, whom I worked with at The Times, is also a longtime Langley resident and a wonderful community advocate.
I have been associated with The Times for a great part of my professional life, from 1993 until the present. My 16 years as editor were a thoroughly enjoyable experience. I worked with great staff members and many incredible people in the community. We did a lot of journalism that mattered.
I am happy Langley readers are still able to read my columns in print once a month, and that will continue in The Advance Times. (They can read my thoughts more often on this blog, if they wish to).
Langley is a terrific community, with many great people, a lot of very strong community infrastructure and a great heart.
The Advance Times will ensure that a great community will continue to be served well by a robust community newspaper, both in print and online.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Bad day at Black Press

Burnaby Beacon makes it to second anniversary, then cuts staff loose

The Arbutus Corridor - an historic route with a bright future