MyCity Media, the publisher of MyCity Logan, is this week joining a national campaign which seeks your support to help local journalism survive.
The campaign, “Our news, your voice: Standing tall against the media crisis” officially launched Sunday, coinciding with World Press Freedom Day.
“We have an outstanding community, tens of thousands of readers, thousands of subscribers, and we proudly stand by the people of Logan,” publisher Simon Holt said.
Independent journalism is at a crossroads. While big media outlets are replaced by AI-generated content and rushed reporting, local newsrooms like MyCity Logan are the “green shoots” providing the verified, nuanced and local truth that our community deserves.
Mr Holt founded MyCity Logan at the height of Covid. Rupert Murdoch at the time pulled the pin on regional and suburban press. It wasn’t viable, according to the News Limited empire.
“We knew Logan deserved better, so we started a family-owned news business,” he said.
“We established relationships with other businesses and organisations, sourced news articles, designed pages, sold advertisements, painstakingly found 300 delivery points for newspapers, and learned new systems. As for me, I’d worked a lifetime in words. I had to learn how to count.”
Mr Holt has worked in journalism almost 40 years, primarily as a community newspaper editor and more recently as editor-in-chief of Brisbane Times. He’s written books, been a consultant for universities, and travelled the world in search of answers to newsroom sustainability.
At the end of 2024, MyCity Media joined forces with Local News Publications and established a small group of hyperlocal magazines – now branded Suburban Life.
“It is true that we have grown in size. But journalism is a high-cost exercise. Everyone in our industry is seeking the silver bullet that will help sustain a product which is essential to a functioning democracy,” Mr Holt said.
“As an independent news organisation, we operate outside the influence of government or corporate interests, and we need your help to continue this important work.
“We rely on community support to exist, and to keep our platform free for all and not hidden behind a paywall.
“We understand that times are tough for many in our community right now, so we ask that if you have capacity to give, please give what you can and consider a small monthly donation to keep us going for the long term.”
All money raised through this campaign will be used to create public interest journalism.
Other ways to help are to subscribe to our weekly newsletter. The power of numbers is vital to our existence. Click through to actually read the stories our team agonises daily over – all content is fact-checked which means readers are informed when they enter debate.
“Social media can be a cesspit of misinformation, one of the biggest threats to democracy. We aim to right the wrongs, write the truths, and keep our communities engaged,” Mr Holt said.
“We love where we live. We celebrate our cultures, our successes, our people. We call out ill-intent, and we stand up for those in need. We intend to be doing this long into the future.”
Support independent local news. Donate to MyCity Logan.
