SANDPOINT — The Bonner County Daily Bee will be participating in the nationwide celebration of community reporting next week of the inaugural Local News Day.

Local News Day, set this year for April 9, is meant to highlight the impact that local newspapers have on communities and take action to strengthen the trust between residents and their newspaper.  

The Daily Bee is inviting the community to its office on Church Street for a tour of the newsroom and “Coffee with the Editor” from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Wednesday, April 8. 

"In today’s world, local news is more important than ever,” Caroline Lobsinger, managing editor of the Bonner County Daily Bee, said. “It connects us to each other, to the news we need to know and to our friends and neighbors.” 

Newspapers play a key role in connecting a community’s residents with local schools, businesses and events, said Clint Schroeder, president and executive publisher of Hagadone Newspaper and Media Groups. 

At its core, local journalism serves several essential roles: it informs through fact-based reporting that tells all sides of a story; it holds local governments accountable; and serves as the first draft of a community’s history. 

“Long after today’s headlines fade, the record remains. Families look back on it. Communities depend on it. Historians study it. It becomes the recorded story of who we were, how we lived, and how we evolved,” Schroeder said. 

Organizers said the event is being put together this year to bolster local newspapers, many of which have battled through immense struggles in recent years. According to the Local News Initiative, a project by Northwestern University, around 3,5000 newspapers have closed since 2005. 

“Entire communities have lost their main source of local information and historical records. When that occurs, the effects are immediate and long-lasting,” Schroeder said. “Civic engagement drops, misinformation rises, communities become less connected. We believe that the outcome is not inevitable.” 

First started by Ernest Gale “Pete” and Adell Thompson as The Beehive, the Bonner County Daily Bee has served the region since 1965. The Daily Bee remains one of 10 daily newspapers left in the state of Idaho.  

Residents are welcome to visit the Bee’s offices at 310 Church Street in downtown Sandpoint on Wednesday, April 8. For more information on Local News Day can be found at localnewsday.org. 

“If you read our work, rely on it, or find value in staying informed and connected, then you are part of this effort,” Schroeder said. “This is your newsroom as much as it is ours.”