Saving The Print Medium

[Matt Wilson]

The Long View

Kevin, I always enjoyed reading your articles. I, for one, would enjoy seeing them again, even if it's just on an occasional basis. I know how busy life can be, which makes it very difficult to make some of these types of commitments, so I'm sure we all understand if you can't do it all the time, or at all, but I think your commentary and perspectives on life would be appreciated by all.

Now I need to get off my duff and figure out a way to contribute.

[babyishcare]

The annual anticipation surrounding the announcement of the Pulitzer Prizes has, in recent years, been joined by a new journalistic custom: elegiac reflections on how the profession has changed, accompanied by grim harbingers of what’s to come.

In other words, newsrooms of the future will be more subject to the interests of advertisers, and not even powerful national outlets will be immune. The pressure on smaller publications may be even more intense.

[Matthew Welcher PWA]

I posted this on Joe's forum this morning

Hello to all of you. Yes the magazine is late. I apologize. I have been working on it as much as I can, Gordon and I sat down before i took it over, the magazine his legacy. We spoke into long hours about the changing times, the social media, websites and down loadable content. The way that someday it would need to change.
I have been trying to figure out how to make the magazine come out faster, more reliably, and to each of you regularly and on time.
For the last 3 years I have struggled, hard trying to get content to put into the magazine. Without content to put into a magazine to read what actually is there?
The magazine is not a company, it is just a few people, my self, my wife, my friend who takes care of the computer side, and another who proof reads and edits for me. The magazine isn't and has never been a great money maker, it is something that takes so much time for a very minimal part time wage.
Some of you know this already, some of you do not. I have and will continue to do my best to get it caught up, but again without content coming in to me what can I put in there?
I have begged, I have pleaded with truck owners and subscribers to send me articles, stories, pictures. I have never wanted it to get to this place, in this time. I am sorry.
The subscriber numbers have dropped alot, some because they have passed on and are no longer with us. Some as Gordon told me. "They may not give you a chance, don't take it personally." also he warned me "When they find out what your day job is it will complicate things, you must keep a seperation" Over time I could not do that, I had to write about the shop.
Being the G.M. Of Vintage Power Wagons takes alot of my time, scheduling planning, and making sure the annual Power Wagon Rally takes alot of my time through the year also.
I am truly one of the guys that all day every day I am about the wonderful trucks.
I have posted here and on my own forum quite a bit. I have started a feed on the PWA forum to try and come up with a way to save the paper print. I have had ideas from just a few people.
I have asked, pleaded and begged for content for the magazine, for ideas.
Call me, e mail me write me a letter. Work with me to help save this. Again my sincerest apologies.

Matthew Welcher
Power Wagon Advertiser
PO Box 530
Fairfield Iowa 52556
641-919-0663
b1pw1948@earthlink.net

[Jay Turnbull]

Matthew, many a death bed promise has been sworn to, in the belief that the comfort it gives a dying friend will be be carried into eternity. Holding a dying buddy in your arms in the midst of chaos surrounded with an aura of hopelessness, the only thing of any meaning is the words we speak that he will not be forgotten. It is for our comfort more than our dying friend's it would seem, but his smile and that knowing look as life fades somehow lives with us forever. Maybe it is guilt felt of a promise made too hard to keep, or perhaps the exhaustion in the effort to keep it that grips our souls, but it's the fear the we will lose him if we do not fulfill that promise to it's exactitude.
Hold tight to the essence of the foundation of that friendship is built on, stand on it and look forward, with vision as if that buddy still stood next to you. Then step forward and you now own the path with your own clarity and uniqueness that could only have come about for having lived along side that friend. This what anyone would want for others left to carry on to do. Especially a friend who was a unselfish teacher, mentor, leader and visionary.
The healing will be in whatever unique entity PWA evolves to.
Highest regards, Mobilized Medic

[jim lee]

Never did magazines, sorry.

But I have run forums in the past. The thing I found out is that getting a forum going or shutting it down is much like a camp fire. Put all your sticks together and away it goes. Spread it all about and the fire goes out. When I was doing this, the best forum I had, had only 3 selections: Chat, Classified & Burn barrel. Its all about critical mass. This forum here has all its "mass" spread out all over the place. You get a comment here, one over there.. People go on about wanting their information categorized.. But what they really want is to talk to each other.

Burn barrel was something I actually came up with to support complete freedom of speech. You can say anything you want. If we think its too offensive? We wont delete it, we just move it to the burn barrel. Flame wars go in there as well, have fun! Worked great! Pretty much Zero maintenance.

Of the dodge forums the only one that seems to be going at all is DodgePwerwagon.com one and it has everything in one big pile.

Anyway, take it for what it's worth. I'm just tryin' to help and that's what I saw. Your milage may vary.

-jim lee