I’m asked quite a bit about what it is like running a community newspaper.

So this being National Newspaper Week I thought it would be a good time to tell you about my profession.

The theme of this year’s celebration is “Your Community, Your Newspaper, Your Life.”

The first issue of this weekly newspaper was dated June 27, 1974. Over the past 40 years I have strived to put the community first when making decisions about what is printed in our pages.

And I think the success of this publication has been based on that emphasis. Everything local. Everything about community.

I strongly believe if the major daily newspapers that have fallen on hard times, or even ceased publication, would have placed more emphasis on local news, more of them would still be around today. They couldn’t compete with TV news and the Internet on breaking news.

America’s thousands of community papers are as healthy as their communities. The National Newspaper Association’s research in partnership with the University of Missouri R.J. Reynolds Institute reports 83 percent of the people in towns with community newspapers say they rely on those newspapers as their principal source of news and information.

NNA President Robert Williams has called for the death of the “newspapers are dead” rumor.

He continued, “The fact is the Internet is no enemy of a good community newspaper. The enemy of a good newspaper is indifference. A community that doesn’t care about honesty and clean government, effective schools, invigorating community service or the connections that bind us into a functioning society is a community that doesn’t need a newspaper. That community won’t be around long.”

Readers know exactly what they want. They want their local newspaper to be -- community first. That’s why we send reporters to the town council, various commissions and school board meetings to report on what action these public bodies are discussing and voting on that may affect your quality of life and taxes.

Newspapers are about us and what goes on in our communities.

We keep you informed by giving you the information you need to vote on a bond issue or how much damage was done in town during the last monsoon storm. You can read The Times to find out the extent of any injuries in the accident you saw driving to work the day before. We tell you the name of the new business opening in that empty building down the street. You can read all about the Friday night football game.

And by reading The Times, you can find out where all the garage sales are on the weekend or when the big sale begins at Fountain Fashions.

As for the internet, The Times recently upgraded its web site to make it more interesting and easier to use.

We have always been very generous with our letters to the editor policy. That is one of the best read features in the paper.

Yes. I may own the newspaper, but I want you to consider it yours, too. (except you don’t have to pay the bills.)

It’s your community newspaper.