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As we have progressed deeper into the digital age of journalism, our newspapers face the challenges of getting as many stories published with the resources we have available to us.

Gone are the days of robust newsrooms with staff members dedicated to specific roles. Reporters must be able to pitch in across the board in order to accomplish the mission of delivering an interesting and robust product to readers and our community each week.

Many times when there are multiple events on the same day, it’s hard for us to be present at each, thus we encourage our readers to be engaged and involved with the process of getting information of interest into the newspaper.

One way a reader can submit content for publication is by submitting a photo with relevant information to be used as a “stand-alone photo,” which means just that – the photo and the information provided that identifies the people and the event is enough to tell the tale.

Photos must meet the following guidelines in order for us to consider publishing in The Lowndes Signal: The subject of the photo must be in focus, the photo must meet a minimum resolution of 200, and the photo must feature a relevant local tie-in to make it newsworthy to those who read our newspaper locally.

Readers may also engage The Lowndes Signal by submitting a “Letter to the Editor,” but in order to be published, the person submitting the letter must put their name on the letter, and the information contained in the letter must be factual and not libelous in nature. Please limit Letters to the Editor to no more than 200 words, and note The Lowndes Signal reserves the right to edit the letter in order to meet journalistic styles and standards.

Another way for some of our community members in significant leadership roles to contribute is by writing a personal column, which is essentially a letter to the community about an event or topic that is local and of interest to those in our community. If the community member is a key figure among a particular faith, a faith-based column can be submitted for publication on our weekly Faith page. Ideally, these columns should not exceed 400 words and should generally feature something positive going on in our communities.

An example of a personal column could be the local superintendent writing about new initiatives occurring within the school system, or to highlight a noteworthy achievement of a student or faculty member that may have gone unnoticed. Elected officials can also write about how their city, county, or district, as examples, are doing and how they are serving the community that elected them. People like to regularly hear from their elected officials, and what better way to get that out than through their community newspaper?

We look forward to more opportunities to engage with our readers and ensure we’re pursuing as many opportunities to highlight our community as possible.

To submit information for publication in The Lowndes Signal, please email shane.dunaway@greenvilleadvocate.com or contact our office at (334) 382-3111.