Last week a number of people were curious about the Rutland Herald’s coverage of Brattleboro and southern Vermont. We’ve got some good news for anyone who’d like to give the 218-year-old, family-owned paper a try.
The Rutland Herald is offering iBrattleboro readers a free 21-day trial of both its website, www.rutlandherald.com, and e-Edition - an exact electronic replica of the printed daily newspaper. To sign up, people can call the Herald toll-free at 1 (800) 498-4296 and ask subscriber services for the "free Windham County e-Edition trial."
Why? People at the paper were paying attention to stories and comments here and could see that our readers are eager for good news and good daily newspapers. They spotted an opportunity, and asked if we thought iBrattleboro users might appreciate a free trial of the Rutland Herald.
If it were any other paper, we’d probably tell them to buy an ad. But the Rutland Herald has been very respectful of iBrattleboro and our contributors since we started this site.
The paper has, for example, paid an iBrattleboro photographer for rights to run a great photo on their front page. Rutland Herald reporters have linked to and credited stories on the site, giving our authors greater exposure for their work. They have been excellent about asking for permissions and respecting identities.
They also participate on the site as part of the community. Former reporter Dan Barlow began by using the comments to add additional context to stories. More recently, we worked with reporter Kevin O’Connor to get the paper a username so they could get local news out during Irene. That continued after the flood and the Rutland Herald continues to contributes real news, complimenting our Brattleboro news with items from around the state.
When the paper was starting to create blogs, we provided some advice on getting Vermont View started. The Rutland Herald wasn’t afraid to link to other blogs and give credit where credit was due. They saw that this brought traffic to them.
No other paper has been consistently respectful and collegial the way they have.
On top of that, we like the paper. The reporters have experience with the subjects they cover. Kevin O’Connor grew up here. Susan Smallheer has been covering Vermont Yankee longer than any other local reporter I know. They catch important details that others sometimes miss, and have a sense of context that others cannot provide.
And, from my own perspective, the Rutland Herald still looks and feels like a newspaper should. It has substance to it, and I like the design and layout. It isn’t part of a national chain. They haven’t lost their way. (Though, I still don’t like the paywall on the website).
So, take advantage of the free trial offer if you want. There’s no obligation, and you can see for yourself if they are able to provide the news you need. Put them to the test. This is as much a challenge to the paper to live up to promises and expectations as it is an offer for a free trial.
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(The Monteverde Disclosure: no money is being exchanged here. I’m not getting paid to say any of this.)
PS. I've asked Kevin O'Connor to respond to the other questions folks had, too.