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Letter from the Editor Dear Reader, It’s time for some good news, wouldn’t you agree?
We’re seeing robins in the yard and flowers poking through the soil, more of the sun, and less of the bad news that washed over us in 2020. Vaccinations are becoming available, more of society is opening up, and we’re cautiously planning spring travel, family gatherings and other “normal” activities.
During this past difficult year, you showed our journalists at MLive how much you relied upon them to keep you informed, safe and able to make the best decisions for your well-being, and that of your family.
And that has led to some good news for us: We learned recently that MLive.com was the 7th most-read local news site in the entire country in 2020. We trailed news organizations in major cities like New York, San Francisco and Houston. (Hats off to our corporate cousin, NJ.com – the largest news organization in New Jersey – which was No. 1 on the list.)
The distinction comes from comScore, an analytics site that tracks audience to news sites and issues monthly and annual reports.
We know how much MLive matters to the daily lives of Michiganders, because for eight straight years, from 2013 to 2020, comScore’s tracking has placed MLive.com as the No. 1-read news site in the state. This readership – 12.5 million unique visitors in January – has its foundation in our eight newspapers across the state, some of them with community roots that exceed 175 years.
But it also shows how our journalists’ work resonates with readers across the state, even in communities where we have no longstanding newspaper brand. They read our weather reports, our Capitol coverage, our pro and college sports reporting, and our Life & Culture and Michigan’s Best stories that reflect our shared pride in the Mitten State.
I’ve been writing this column for a couple years now, and each time that I praise our work or the journalists who do it, I inevitably get a letter from someone saying, “Don’t break your arm patting yourself on the back.”
Yes, it’s our job to do this. But it’s important to do it well, and to do it with intent and purpose when we live in an unprecedented era for news. Not just the headlines that have unfolded, but in how people get their news, and how they discern factual information from misinformation or even disinformation.
It’s also important because, for almost a year now, we have asked our digital readers to support our mission with paying subscriptions. This is a major evolution in our 25-year relationship with online readers, and it’s a critical part of our ability to do the work we do for you in the future.
I am thankful for the thousands of you who have signed on as subscribers, and I encourage those who read the coverage we still provide for free to sign up; click this link for subscription offers.
We’re nine years into MLive Media Group, an outgrowth of our two-centuries-old partnerships with readers in our communities. None of us here take for granted that relationship, and that’s why it is very meaningful when we see ourselves at the top of the comScore list each year.
So instead of envisioning my arm patting our collective back, see it as reaching out to you in a fist-bump of appreciation, and an invitation to not only subscribe, but to join an active conversation with me and our journalists about how we can serve you better.
If all goes well, that fist-bump will become a warm handshake soon enough.
🎧 To hear all the stories behind the stories, click here and subscribe to our Behind the Headlines podcast.
Editor's note: I value your feedback to my columns, story tips and your suggestions on how to improve our coverage. Let me know how MLive helps you, and how we can do better. Please feel free to reach out by emailing me at editor@mlive.com.
John Hiner Executive Editor Vice President of Content Mlive Media Group
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