Kari Borgen: Publisher's Notebook: A commitment to news literacy
Nov. 27—If you believe, as Thomas Jefferson did, that an informed public is the foundation of democracy, you'll be heartened by the news that all students and staff at Astoria High School now have a digital subscription to The Astorian.
The Newspapers In Education program provides newspapers for students to use in classroom learning. Curriculum guides — found at www.eomediagroup.com/nie/ — provide activities to teach using the news for civics, math, writing and history lessons. The program is made possible by funding from Clatsop County businesses who back their commitment to news literacy for students with sponsorship.
This year, The Astorian is able to offer the program in a new format — digital news.
Students and staff using Wi-Fi in the Astoria High School building have full access to the e-edition and digital news from dailyastorian.com. They're able to access local news from their phones, just as 54% of our website users do.
Astoria High School users can sign up for news alerts, use the breaking news app and enjoy the audio, video and puzzle features just as subscribers do. Hopefully, those students will learn about their community, governance and gain a news-reading habit that will inform their decisions now and wherever their future travels take them.
The new group digital subscription is part of The Astorian's community outreach to provide more residents access to local, credible and fact-checked news and information that can keep our community informed. Organizations with 30 employees or more can choose to offer the digital subscription to their employees, as identified through work location Wi-Fi or company email.
Connecting to locally reported stories about issues, events and the history of Astoria weaves residents into a common fabric that creates our community strength and identity. Digital subscriptions provide access to The Astorian's searchable archives for the last 10 years, providing access to background information, fact-checking and historical context to current events. Or just the chance to find that razor clam recipe from 2015.
Community news literacy is the reason that our organization still exists, distributing news via newspaper, website, app and social media. It's the reason that The Astorian began publishing in 1873. A group of business leaders determined that to grow Astoria into a great town they needed a newspaper — and so recruited DeWitt Clinton Ireland to start one.
Welcome, Astoria High School, to the daily news of your community. Generations of citizens have read the newspaper to inform their decisions and make this a unique place. We trust you'll keep up their good work.
Have a suggestion or idea to share? Contact me at kborgen@dailyastorian.com
—Note: If you are a print subscriber who hasn't created an online account, the online dailyastorian.com news and e-newspaper is included in your subscription price. Our customer service center is full of nice people who can help you with your online registration — call them at 800-781-3214.
Kari Borgen is publisher of The Astorian.
