by Angela Sanford
Many of us have grown up simultaneously with the development of technology – now more rapid than ever before. We recall our younger selves when news and information were not immediately at our fingertips. What was happening beyond our borders might have been days getting to our homes, rather than seconds.
For these generations of information consumers, we learned about upcoming events often by word of mouth, posters, and mailed invitations costing less than a quarter a piece to send in the eighties. Outside of a phone call to a landline, announcements by print were the only existence known. The news came through oral story telling, when it was local, and entered our homes daily on newsprint where the ink would transfer to your hands when it was handled. Such newsprint found its way into most homes in Nova Scotia, especially those homes in rural geographies, and was relied upon, despite potentially being biased in nature, for life’s milestones also – birth announcements to obituaries, news events to want ads. Platforms like Facebook Marketplace, Tinder, and X are evolutions of these historical writings and documents, though they bare little resemblance to their predecessors.
The evolution of media continues in online platforms and the devolution of print media escalates. Today, print media is not readily accessible across rural Nova Scotia, leaving those who are not technologically savvy or who chose to avoid social media perhaps in the dust. This doesn’t address the lack of infrastructure to support available data so that those in rural communities can effectively engage in online platforms to stay apprised of news and events.
In the past year, META imposed regulations that limited the sharing of Canadian news content on its platform, yet another hit to information sharing and keeping community members informed and able to evaluate current events for themselves. Further to this, Saltwire recently announced their petition for creditor protection.
This piece is not to debate the advances of digital media, nor its advantages or disadvantages, but more to offer one (of many) reasons why I jumped at the opportunity to share with you High Tides Bulletin. When Shelli Singer first started “Shelli’s Web”, it served a solid purpose of connecting communities and people. Through the years it became an established business and a staple to the greater Hants North area.
Despite the rising costs of production and distribution, and the crash of print media, there is value in tradition and in supporting our community when it can sometimes feel like we are being overlooked and/or left behind by big business decisions. Audience is the foundation of all writing – by storytellers, poets, advertisers, and marketers – and you are the audience of High Tides Bulletin, with its goal being to serve you and your needs while balancing tradition and progress.
Comments