Seven Years Of Challenging Newspaper Business Climate
3 min readSome seven years ago, the first edition of TNN hit the newsstands. There was excitement everywhere. Before then, adequate sensitization had been made to announce the debut of the newspaper.
From day one, we did not pretend to be a newspaper for the entire nation. So, we clearly defined it to be a regional newspaper, basically for the Niger Delta. What we set out to achieve was to make it a voice for the down trodden people of the region, paying attention to happenings in the region. We defined our coverage areas to include Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states.
We were also very mindful of ethical issues in our journalism practice. So, week after week, as we hit the newsstands, our copies reflected our mission statement and the vision. This was and remains our vision: To set a standard in journalism practice and give the Niger Delta and its people a voice.
And then the mission: To produce an economically and professionally sound newspaper that seeks to promote journalism ethos and business for uncommon development.
In the last seven years, we have tried to uphold these tenets. We have also tried to maintain the quality of our news contents as well as the quality of our print, even though the cover price is not reflecting all of this. Despite the challenging business climate, we have continued to hold our heads high, while still swimming in the turbulent waters of the harsh economy, which has really affected our operations in some ways. But we have refused to give up.
During the period, we have won awards for our consistency and resilience. We have had staff come in and leave us. We have had our days in court against people who feel aggrieved as a result of our reports. We won all the cases all the same.
There have been moments when we felt like ending the journey. But then, when we consider the kind words of encouragement from readers, we are invigorated to keep pushing. The COVID-19 era was one of such times. We pulled through, just as we did in 2016, a few months after Muhammadu Buhari took over power, making life miserable for businesses, including TNN.[frontpage_news widget=”2912″ name=”Also Read”]
In all of this though, we are still not under the blanket. We have a very strong will to keep on keeping on. We believe that things will get better each day. And, we thank our readers, the vendors, the distributors and agents and all those who have been by and beside us. We are really grateful to all the staff who have remained unshaken, even in the face of oddities. Together, we have grown and will continue to grow.
As we move into the next phase of our life, we can only ask that you continue to support us through patronage. We won’t go anywhere the moment we lose your patronage and support. We also ask that you continue to watch our back for us. The journey ahead is still far but it will only get better.
May the good God bless you for the role you have played and will continue to play in taking TNN to the Promised Land.