The Fassifern Guardian website and online edition was officially launched by Federal Member for Wright, Scott Buchholz, on Wednesday.
“This weekly newspaper has been published continuously for more than 118 years and I’m honoured to be given the opportunity to launch the website,” Mr Buchholz said.
“The Guardian team won an Australian Government grant of more than $189,000 to fund the development of the website to complement the print edition and help build sustainability in the evolving media market.
“I congratulate them on their achievement and on remaining true to the principals of providing public interest journalism relevant to their communities.”
The website was funded through the Regional and Small Publishers Innovation Fund and administered by the Australian Communications and Media Authority.
It was built by AAP Publish and Guardian Editor, Drew Creighton, oversaw the development.
“It may seem a costly exercise to sink all of the $189,000 into the framework of a website but we believe the end result has been worth it,” Mr Creighton said.
“And we thank the Federal Government for its faith in the Fassifern Guardian and its willingness to support our community.”
He added that just like the paper, the news will not be free.
“We ask readers to pay a monthly or yearly fee to help us keep bringing them the news.
“The news website will complement the newspaper by bringing readers breaking news on top of the weekly stories that feature in print.
“We received the grant to kickstart the business model but that does not provide a revenue stream.”
Mr Creighton described the news website as … “a great asset for the community just as the newspaper has and will continue to be.”
However, bushfire coverage and other emergency situations will remain free to all readers.
“We are a family run small business just like many in our region and we ask that you support us, so we can continue to keep the community informed,” he said.
If you wish to support us and subscribe, head to: www.fassifernguardian.com/subscriptions