By Ken Robinson
Managing Editor

When Jerry Robinson took the role of editor and publisher of the White Center News in 1951, he was 31. The newspaper was three years younger, first published in 1923, Then, and for many years thereafter, the paper often featured what Dad called “ham dinner” stories involving a brief report about one couple visiting another for dinner. As the town grew, the details of news stories also grew. By 1962, what eventually became Robinson Newspapers included The Federal Way News, Des Moines News and then in the 1970's The West Seattle Herald, The Highline Times and later the Ballard News Tribune. Each community has a distinct character. And still does. But in the years since, the communities have grown together in a way.

In the last few years, we began to recognize that news did not stop at our circulation boundaries, that people moved around in the region as families grew. The children of parents in Burien might settle in Ballard or West Seattle. Everything began to be connected. A shopper who did not want to go downtown might drive to Fred Meyer in Burien. A couple in Normandy Park would drive to see a play at Arts West on California Avenue.

Even our employees at the newspaper, once numbering 400 when you counted the reporters, photographers, typographers, clerical staff, ad staff, people in the pressroom and mailroom, lived all over the region. A couple of years ago, against the backdrop of these changes, we gave our papers a new name and consolidated them. We are doing it again after conducting a simple experiment. We asked people where they identified with when asked by someone from out of town. They universally said “Seattle”. If you travel, and someone asks you where you are from, you probably do not say “Boulevard Park” or Alki”. Thus, Westside Seattle, our new name.

What is different

We are less likely to chase sirens than in the past and now leave that to the blogs. Instead, we offer good writing, opinion, journalism, and more in-depth coverage along with feature stories about people whose lives merit recognition. This coverage will never end because our region is richly populated with interesting people whose stories we will tell.

We need your help

In order to keep offering a picture of all the good things to learn about in the area from Ballard to Des Moines, we need your support. We need your continued loyalty as a reader and your agreement that what we are doing has value, is vital to the sense of ‘community’ and should carry on as long as financially possible. As Dad used to say, “The community needs a paper.”

Send us a note to let us know what you think about how we are doing.