Local news remains more important than ever.
It was a year ago that the PQB News announced major content changes to our website. In addition to local content, we would include news from our sister newspapers across Vancouver Island and B.C., as well as national and international news.
With the ongoing wildfires, both across the province and in our backyard, Black Press reporters have been working around the clock, all hours of the day, to keep the public apprised of exactly what is happening.
When disaster moves close to home, we jump to action. We become more than just a newspaper, but part of a larger public support system, the largest news-gathering body in the province.
We are only able to do this because we know the community. We live here. In times like these, local news shines.
Large, national organizations, such as the CBC or The Globe and Mail sit in offices far from the small communities they report on, and for all their talented journalists, they will never be able to do everything that a local paper can in a time of crisis.
In the past 12 months our readers have read more than 1.6 million pages of content, and responded favourably to our new Impress Video offerings, such as Health and Wellness and Real Estate “TV.” Print copies of the PQB News are up almost 10 per cent in the past six years.
We thank our readers for their support and trust.
While we are on the topic of websites and content, a recent Insights West poll says about 20 per cent of Canadians have admitted to being addicted to their smartphones.
Some say we no longer connect with people, that too many of us have our eyes glued to our smartphones rather than the world around us.
The same report cited a statistic that weekly smartphone use has increased by 20 per cent since 2014, which is surprisingly low. It’s natural that we use them more than four years ago. It’s more surprising that usage hasn’t increased even more.
Smartphones are more about expanding our horizons, not shrinking them. It’s all about how we use them.
While smartphones can serve as a distraction from appreciating the beautiful views in Canada (the Parksville Qualicum Beach area in particular), they can also be used to keep in touch with friends and family across the country and even across the world. We can take them along with us in our pockets.
It’s the same with news. Information about your community is never far away, and when you need to know what’s going on, you can find out what’s happening faster than ever.
— Parksville Qualicum Beach News