The discontinuation of The Carrboro Citizen left a void in local news coverage for the Carrboro community. The newspaper’s return would fill this hole and continue to show why local journalism is important.
After five and a half years of publication, the free newspaper called it quits in October 2012. Many town residents were disappointed because much of the news that was included in the Citizen could only be found in that paper.
During its run, the newspaper received several prestigious journalism awards and accolades through the North Carolina Press Association for its coverage of the Rogers Road community and the Eve Carson candlelight vigil, among other areas.
Friends of the Citizen, the group aspiring to bring the paper back to newsstands, has already been in contact with the newspaper’s former publisher to obtain the rights to call the reincarnated paper “The Carrboro Citizen” and re-launch it as a nonprofit.
When its former publisher Robert Dickson first launched the newspaper in 2007, he wanted to give it a hometown feel. He saw the paper as a way to fill the gaps in local coverage.
A return of the Citizen would once again give Carrboro residents the ability to get their news from their own community.
Local journalism continues to be relevant because at the end of the day, local news often affects people more than national news.
Without local publications like The Carrboro Citizen or college publications like The Daily Tar Heel, it would be hard for people to read about issues that are pertinent to their own communities.
The Carrboro Citizen was the first traditional weekly newspaper in Carrboro. A relaunch would bring relevant local coverage back to the town and restore a much needed voice.
