Craigslist founder funds study showing that newspapers are most trusted news source

Isn't it ironic: Craigslist founder Craig Newmark funded a study to determine the news sources Americans trust most and newspapers ranked number one. Craigslist - more than any other single site on the Internet - has upturned the financial fortunes of newspapers in the digital age through its cannibalization of local classifieds ... putting at peril the future of these trusted news sources.

See a synopsis of the report at Poynter Institute of Media Studies' Web site.

Welcome

Welcome to Southern Illinois Community Newspapers in the Digital Age. I wrote a blog for two years while a newspaper group publisher in upstate New York and I enjoyed it so much I decided to repeat the experience in my new role as a regional publisher for GateHouse Media in Southern Illinois.

My goals:

• To share my reflections on the transformation of what was traditionally known as the "newspaper industry" but is so much more in the digital age.
• Introduce new developments at our many publications.
• Signal out our employees for their hard work and unique contributions.
• Demystify the newspaper business. For instance, despite "common knowledge" indicating otherwise ... newspaper audiences are reaching all-time highs across print, Web and mobile platforms. More on this in future blogs.
• And occasionally report on observations of life in our local communities.

Please bookmark this site and to paraphrase Illinois' own Al Capone, return to this blog early and often.