The Oglethorpe Echo
Hello, Oglethorpe County.
If you aren’t a regular reader of The Oglethorpe Echo, you might be wondering why this edition appeared in your mailbox. We mailed this special OCHS graduation edition to every customer of the post offices in Lexington, Crawford, Arnoldsville, Maxeys, Stephens and Rayle.
Why?
The answer is simple: We want you to become a subscriber. We believe you’ll enjoy the increased news coverage of your community newspaper. We’ve been around for 151 years, but there have been significant changes since November 2021.
And if you’re a longtime subscriber, well, we are about to preach to the choir. Your loyalty to this newspaper is greatly appreciated. Your support has played a major role in the success of the new era.
For those who might not know, The Oglethorpe Echo was set to close on Oct. 1, 2021. But just before the announcement was made, a unique partnership was formed with UGA’s Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.
The family of the late Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Maxwell Sr., who owned the newspaper, elected to donate the publishing assets to a newly chartered nonprofit company, The Oglethorpe Echo Legacy, Inc.
The Maxwells took a leap of faith and trust to keep the newspaper alive.
Charles Davis, Grady College’s dean, embraced the concept that has provided real-life journalism experiences for his students. Davis assigned two professors, Andy Johnston and Amanda Bright, to launch the initiative.
Both Bright and Johnston are veteran newspaper professionals. A few paid staff members and a team of volunteers run the day-to-day business operations of The Echo.
More than 175 Grady College journalism students have benefited from The Echo experience. Following working for The Echo, about two dozen have chosen community journalism as careers. We hope you’ve noticed the expanded news coverage, enhanced with more than ever photos.
For a quick glimpse at The Echo’s report card, here are a few achievements since 2021:
- Readership has doubled.
- Advertising has tripled.
- Tax-deductible donations are building a much-needed rainy-day fund.
- Subscribers get free e-editions delivered on Wednesday.
- Multiple social media platforms have been added.
- In 2024, The Echo won the coveted statewide Beacon Award for its outstanding coverage of local education.
- The Echo has won 31 awards for excellence in the Georgia Press Association’s (GPA) annual Better Newspapers Contest. Next month, your newspaper will bring home 13 awards from the GPA convention.
- The Echo’s story and Oglethorpe County have been featured in multiple newspapers and magazines across the U.S. The most recent was in The Chronicle of Higher Education, serving the nation’s colleges and universities.
All of these accomplishments are great. But without readers, advertisers and donors, none of this would be possible over the past 43 months. We like to say, “Teamwork makes the dream work.”
If you are not a subscriber, advertiser or donor, we hope you like what you read this week. We welcome you to our team and become a regular reader 52 times per year. Please see the subscription ad on Page 5.
And for The Echo regulars, thank you for trusting us to be Oglethorpe County’s most complete source of news and information. Tell a neighbor, co-worker and friend to subscribe as well.
We’ve said it before, and we say it again.
We are the only newspaper in the world that loves Oglethorpe County.
And we are honored to serve you.