The Pembroke Citizen Journal is the first newspaper devoted to the Town of Pembroke since the Pembroke Mariner and Express stopped publishing the physical paper on December 3, 2021.
Since that time, the residents of Pembroke have relied on generic news sites, social media, and friends and neighbors to get their updates on the town. The volunteers at the PCJ saw that residents wanted, and deserved, better coverage of where we live.
The PCJ has now been online since late spring, and our readership is growing steadily. Our writers, editors, and technology staff are all volunteers, but we knew when we started it would be our goal to hire professionals for editing and writing the paper's articles. We are getting started on accepting advertising, and our paid subscribers support us every week. We thank them all.
Community newspapers only succeed with the support of the people who read the publication and contribute to it, either through donations, commentary, or submissions. We are asking you to be a part of this community newspaper. Every week brings new readers, but we need your help to keep this paper free and expand its reach. Our goal, along with a paid professional staff, is to eventually publish a print newspaper each week, but this is a long-term goal. For now, we want to focus on bringing an online paper to the town that meets everyone's needs, with fair and unbiased reporting. We want to hear from you. We want you to tell your friends, family and neighbors about the paper. Ask them to read it and send us additional story ideas. And yes, even send us your complaints when we have missed the mark.
Most of all, we need your financial support. As with most publications these days, either online or in print, there is a request (or requirement) for a donation with your subscription. We will not ever require payment to read the Pembroke Citizen Journal. This is our paper for our community. To ensure we are successful, we need you to be a partner with us. Please consider a one-time or monthly donation, or if you are able, a more sizable amount to help us move toward the future as financially viable.
We are planning a launch event on Friday, October 23, at the Community Center, from 7pm-9pm. It will be a chance for you to hear more about the Pembroke Citizen Journal, play a little Pembroke trivia against your fellow citizens, and have snacks and adult beverages. Tickets are free, but limited, and you will be hearing more about this in the coming weeks. Mark your calendars now!
