Thank – and support – your local newspaper

By U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds
R-South Dakota

I still look forward to getting my local news through a trusted news source, including my local newspaper, whether it’s a real piece of paper or electronically delivered.

Running a newspaper today looks a lot different than it did when I was a kid. Digital photos have replaced the dark room and electronic media now plays a major role in how many of us receive our news. And as artificial intelligence capabilities continue to advance, newspapers are looking at the impact that could have on them, as well.

What hasn’t changed, however, is the importance of the reporter, the editor and the entire newspaper team. 

We still rely on reporters to be objective. We rely on editors to have integrity in determining which stories go on the front page, and which stories go on the editorial page. And we rely on the entire newspaper team to make sure we get our news in a timely fashion.

While newspapers in South Dakota strive to meet these criteria, the U.S. Postal Service doesn’t always help with the cause. Since 2021, while delivery rates for periodicals have increased cumulatively by 40 percent, nationwide on-time delivery has either declined or remained stagnant.

Since the Postal Service’s on-time delivery performances have not improved, it leaves local journalists to pick up the slack by handling their own delivery in order to make certain their readers receive their papers on time.

That’s why I have introduced a bipartisan bill, called the Deliver for Democracy Act, which would address these persistent postal delays and surging rate increases that are negatively impacting local news outlets across the country. This legislation would require the USPS to improve its delivery of newspapers before it is allowed to raise its rate.

Local journalists work hard every day to deliver news on a timely basis. The U.S. Postal Service should have to do the same.

Earlier this year, I was honored to receive the "Support Journalism Champion Award" from the NewsMedia Alliance, which represents more than 2,200 news outlets, including newspapers, magazines and online news organizations from across the country. 

While I am honored to have received this award, the real champions are the local journalists who work tirelessly every day to produce and publish a document at the center of their communities.