To our readers —
As we close in on the end of another year, we’d like to take a moment to thank you for your support of our publication and let you know that we will continue to strive for the quality and integrity you expect from us.
To that end:
— We will continue to live up to our high ethical standards.
— We will continue to provide you with facts and not conjecture.
— We will continue to put our writers’ names on our stories so you know we stand behind our reporting.
— We will continue to bring you a well-rounded variety of stories, including town meeting coverage, investigative reports and human interest features so you have the full picture of what’s happening in town.
— We will continue to seek out fairness and accuracy in our reporting, and not publish one-sided, biased, unverified stories.
— We will continue to live up to our name — Independent — and report on worthwhile news no matter the subject or topic.
— We will continue to carry ourselves with professionalism and class.
It’s an interesting time for journalism in this country, with many major and local media outlets struggling. We’re fortunate that we live in a community that appreciates quality journalism, which has played a big role in allowing us to succeed. We are proud of our small but dedicated staff, which consists of award-winning writers who studied journalism and have decades of experience in the field. Every town deserves a reputable newspaper, and we’re honored to be that source for Hopkinton.
Best wishes for the holiday season, and for a healthy and enjoyable 2024.
— The staff at the Hopkinton Independent
This is so touching. Is that violins I hear playing in the background? Okay. Only kidding. In all seriousness, the Hopkinton Independent is a great newspaper. Jerry Spar and crew deserve a lot of credit for their hard work and dedication. But please, Jerry, please try to step it up and take on more of the serious issues in this town, without fear of whose toes you step on. The stunning amount of employee turnover in this town is a serious problem. So is the lack of financial oversight, which was recently on full display when those evil creatures at HopNews actually had the gall to prove that nobody is minding the store when it comes to checking invoices and paying bills. The list goes on. It is easy to be the nice guy and only print “feel good” stuff. No feelings are hurt and everybody can smile while the ship is sinking. Holding people accountable for their jobs is basic business management 101. The taxpayers deserve no less. And they deserve their local newspapers to tell them the hard truth when serious problems emerge, and not sweep them under the rug. Happy Holidays! 🙂
Mr. Dawson works for HopNews (an online blog, not a newspaper) which reflects his very tainted commenting. Journalism 101 is also reporting facts and not exploiting what could be a one off human error mistake. Objective reporting is meant to portray issues and events in a neutral and unbiased manner, regardless of the writer’s opinion or personal beliefs. Mr. Dawson fails Journalism 101 with his persistent defensive commentary and biased views.
Huh. I’ve never replied to a fish before, but I guess it must be true because it claims to be a realistic fish. If “working for HopNews” means helping out as an unpaid volunteer, then that is true as I already told Jerry Spar. No secret there. Regarding my “tainted” commentary, I am really sorry, but my compliments to Jerry Spar and his crew at the Indy are sincere. They are not tainted. As for the rest of the “fishy” comments about teaching me “Journalism 101”, they are not worth my time. I have better things to do. Like continuing to help HopNews expose some of the serious problems in this town, and bring them to the light of day so that our community knows the truth.
Like entrapping the two town employees left in Town Hall? What a great way to attract talent to town. Hopnews, the foxnews of hopkinton.
Some people can’t resist shooting the messenger. Wake up, Dan. Hopnews is not the Town. It is not their job to recruit or retain employees. Only by bringing things to light will they change. You may be content to town hall waste your money but I’m not. I worked in accounting for my career and this is basic stuff!
Thank you to the staff of the Hopkinton Independent for another successful year. We appreciate your hard work.
I like to see human interest stories about the good people in our town and articles that give me hope that are based on truth and are well written. The Hopkinton Independent does all this and much more so well. I don’t like any kind of mudslinging no matter how gently it is framed or how brashly it is said. I am concerned about the new negative vibes that are going on between both papers. How about supporting each other, focusing on what each of you are good at and love, and even joining forces at times? We have way too much negative energy going on in this town as it is and in the world (!) and to be honest both papers are starting to wear me down and turn me off. Call a truce. Take the high road. Have a heart to heart. Support each other. Both of you fill a need. We need to know the undercurrent and facts of what is going on in Hopkinton like Peter and Hopnews does so well and we need the style, warmth, and content of the Hopkinton Independent too like Jerry and his staff do so well.