Missouri Press Association
Serving Missouri Newspapers Since 1867
Hey Post Office, let’s remember our history and agree that delivery is a priority
As newspaper publishers and all Americans brace for a proposed postal rate increase in July, I thought I’d remind everyone about the long history newspapers and the U.S. Postal Service have.
In my opinion, the post office remains the best and most reliable method to deliver newspapers. It’s a complicated relationship sometimes. I think the farther you get from your local post office, the more complicated things are.
We are lucky to have some of the best local postmasters in the Leader circulation area. They share our desire to get newspapers delivered promptly to our readers once a week and never weakly. That’s the association I want. At the federal level, the desire to deliver every day to every door seems less important.
It wasn’t always that way.
Recently, I had the honor to visit our nation’s capital and the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum in Washington, D.C. I was shocked to see how much of the museum was dedicated to the historic partnership between newspapers and the post office.
From the giant statue of Benjamin Franklin to the moody path of a colonial delivery road, the museum includes things you might expect – a fabulous stamp collection, history of the Pony Express and Air Mail, a look at baseball through a Postal Service lens. You can try your hand at sorting mail. It’s not easy. It also has lots of references to delivering the news over the centuries.
In retrospect, the connection between the post office and newspapers shouldn’t have been a surprise for me. After all, Benjamin Franklin was both America’s first postmaster general and a colonial newspaper owner, printer and writer.
The first major postal law, passed in 1792, encouraged delivery of newspapers in the U.S. Mail to help grow the nation.
The postal museum’s website reports that those early leaders recognized that newspapers were necessary to inform people in the brand-new nation. Thomas Jefferson once said, “Every man should receive those papers and be capable of reading them.” James Madison said newspapers should be moved easily through the mail to give citizens of our fledgling nation information “to monitor its elected representatives.”
Before visiting the D.C. museum, I really hadn’t thought about it, but many traditional newspaper names are tied to our shared postal connection. You’ll recognize Missouri newspaper names that include Courier, Dispatch, Post and Mail.
The Washington, D.C. museum includes a display of newspaper front pages from across the country. The headlines in this exhibit mark important events in history. I was delighted to recognize quite a few Missouri newspapers.
If you visit Washington, D.C., schedule a stop at the National Postal Museum. I hope our federal legislators also take the time to visit and learn a little bit more about our history. Perhaps our new postmaster general will stop by also. A little knowledge goes a long way.
MPAME
Congratulations to Stephanie Schumer-Vandeven and the board of the Missouri Press Advertising and Marketing Executives organization for bringing home another terrific MPAME meeting in April. Anyone who is interested in generating or preserving revenue for newspapers should make plans to attend next year. This event brings both great training and even better collaboration. Those who attend are eager to share what works and what doesn’t, the ins and outs of kick-starting new projects or revitalizing something that’s grown dusty over the years. In case you missed it, winners of this year’s MPAME Best Ad Contest were published in the April edition. A highlight is seeing the best of the best and making plans to amp up our own ads and revenue for 2025.
