Harvest Homecoming explains: "The Tribune sold the ad to the Democratic party. This is was completely out of our control."

The newspaper profits from City Hall advertisements, and City Hall profits from a free ride in editorial terms.

Insert graphic of vigorous mutual backscratching. Too bad that Harvest Homecoming gets stuck in the middle of crassness coming from both sides.

Just another day in paradise -- so why wouldn't the Democratic Party join in the fun? It's probably the mayor's campaign finance money, anyway.

To whom it may concern,

As current president of Harvest Homecoming, it is important for me to address the advertisement on the front of our annual HHC tabloid. The News and Tribune has full control over selling the advertisements and the front of the tabloid always has an advertisement. The ads make the circulation to the community possible. For many years that space has been purchased by a local car sales company. This year, they opted to not purchase the ad. With the space up for grabs, The Tribune sold the ad to the Democratic party. This is was completely out of our control and I was not aware of the advertisement until it was published.

For 50 years, HHC has been a non-partisan organization supporting all facets of our community. It is important that we continue this tradition of celebrating our great festival and the wonderful diversity of the New Albany-Floyd County community. I ask that we put politics aside, join together as a HHC family, and show this community an outstanding festival.

Regards,

Art Niemeier
President – Harvest Homecoming

News and Tribune eliminates Sunday, adds Monday, calls it "robust." I call it very bad writing.

I guess that's what happens when advertising salespeople pretend to be journalists in a society where too few people can tell the difference, which makes me feel for the genuine, trained journalists who must listen to people like me pontificate, when their publishers evidently don't read the paper, anyway, or else they would not foist tripe like this on us in the guise of news.

Seriously, real journalists don't write ad copy like this unless derringers wrapped in pink slips are pointed at their heads -- do they?

The News and Tribune will launch a Weekend edition Saturday and also begin publication of a Monday edition starting Monday, publisher Bill Hanson announced Wednesday.

The Weekend edition will feature the combined content of the current Saturday and Sunday publications and will be delivered by mail on Saturdays. It will be available at area retail outlets and newspaper racks starting Saturday morning and into Sunday.

“We are combining two already strong newspapers into one even more robust product — as well as adding a Monday newspaper many subscribers have been asking for,” Hanson said.

Then comes the inevitable, albeit it delayed, punch line:

The Monday paper — like the rest of the week — will be delivered the same day by the U.S. Postal Service. The News and Tribune will not publish a paper on federal holidays because there is no mail delivery.

Reckon that's the real dollars and cents reason for all the smoke, mirrors and bull feces, right?

Another bottom line decision from the Retirement Systems of Alabama, just like the one that has deprived New Albany of its local newspaper for the first time since before the Civil War.

Well, I can speak only for myself and the missus.

I've persisted as a subscriber solely because of the Sunday edition, being an old fart and actually enjoying the feel and smell of newsprint with coffee on a lazy morning off. Hanson's "robust" explanation quite simply is a contrived insult to the intelligence of any thinking human, especially New Albany's newspaper readers, who already are the major losers in the pension fund-driven "combining" of newspaper operations.

Lest the point be raised: Editor Shea Van Hoy has explained to me in detail the reason for my column no longer appearing, and although it's disappointing, I respect both him and the reasoning behind the decision. This is not about that, because I had no intention of dropping my subscription until Wednesday's announcement.

Now, there's no choice. Anyone want to start a newspaper?