by Benjamin Chase
From the Mound
“There are places I remember
All my life, though some have changed
Some forever, not for better
Some have gone and some remain”
“In My Life” – The Beatles
John Lennon wrote “In My Life” as what he described as his first truly autobiographical work, looking back on relationships from his youth. He was also frustrated with the lyrics, calling them ridiculous and boring in interviews over the years.
One of the themes throughout the song is that while the past can influence and inform our present, it should not dictate it.
You likely immediately notice some new things about the front page today. Growing up, I recall the Plainsman sunburst logo on everything the paper published or sponsored within the community. That logo on the top of the paper allowed me to recognize the paper when I had eye surgery and could not focus on letters. It was memorable.
We’ve had some hints and social media teasers about our other big announcement in today’s paper. The cubist-ish representation of a pheasant that you see instead of a typical column header is a logo with the color blend that we’re going to use at the paper. Much like the sunburst face on the paper, we’d like to see that emblem become well-known within town to represent the paper.
Announcements like this deserve a level of intentional explanation, which is why this column is going to be a rare one to begin on the first page of the paper. In general, as editor, I will work hard to ensure that only fact-based pieces find their way on the front page – unless it’s a way for us to communicate to you from the paper.
On August 6, 2025, life changed at the Plainsman. In my short time (six and a half years so far) with the paper, that was my second major change. The first was just four months into my tenure, when COVID-19 and the significant reduction in advertising that came with the pandemic led us to drop the Thursday paper, reducing the number of papers from six per week to five.
Throughout my life, the Plainsman was published six days a week, with the sixth day rotating: no Saturday paper, no Sunday paper, or no Monday paper.
Finances and the changing world required that change in March of 2020. Advertising has returned, but the ability to staff a paper for six days has not, due to the cost increases after 2020.
Over the years I was a reporter with the paper, I observed managing editor Curt Nettinga and publisher Mark Davis negotiate through numerous changes to the content of the pages, whether it was altering the comics, changes in staff, or negotiating the changes of a potential takeover purchase bid of our overarching company, they negotiated the changes with as little public change as possible.
While it’s been difficult to hide some of the changes since August, Shaun and I have worked hard to lead the paper and ensure as few hiccups as possible were publicly noticed. Mike Carroll and I are the two left in the newsroom, and, outside the classified and legal sections, we are still putting together every page of the paper and writing a significant portion of the content. That content we don’t directly write, we have to edit to ensure proper formatting and sometimes simply to find a fit within the paper.
Some things have changed for sure. I used what was available and provided us with the best options for comics and puzzles in the paper. Most recently, the contract with our weather page provider expired, so we began producing that information in-house. Those are things that were absolutely noticed. It may not be what you’re used to, provide the same details, or be as eye-catching as previous things that were used in the paper, but our goal of providing the absolute best local news, sports, and community coverage that we can in the Heartland Region remains.
To be blunt, if we’re going to make changes where we go for the “cheap” option, it’s going to be on things like comics, weather, and puzzles that are truly filler in our paper. We don’t employ a cartoonist, puzzle maker, or meteorologist, so any of those items in the paper are sourced from outside the area.
Outside of when it didn’t work, few even noticed the heavy amount of work that Shaun and I have been putting into the billing systems and website over the past two-plus months after our web host was changed. In the midst of an exciting and busy basketball season, we both spent hours working to ensure our readers had the best possible product online and received high-quality business responses as well.
Have we been perfect? No. However, we want to err on the side of enhancing our community involvement and standing. We want the Plainsman to be viewed as much a part of the city of Huron as the South Dakota State Fair, the train roundhouse, or an immensely large and colorful bird.
I truly hope you enjoy the redesign of the paper’s face. I hope you find our logo as we intend it: a way to put a stamp of our work on the community while also representing it.
Our emails have changed since August. If you ever want to contact me to discuss the changes in the paper, the best way to reach me is [email protected]. Thank you for your support!
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