We frequently get asked questions about our news outlet, and we love that! We love talking about our newspaper, our newsletter, our podcast and community journalism in general. Please continue to stop us and ask all about what we are doing! If it helps, though, we are also answering some of the questions we get asked most often here, and we’ll continue to add to this list as more questions come up.
Why did you decide to start a newspaper? Aren’t they dying?
First, newspapers aren’t dying. Todd could go on a long rant about that, and Kendall is sure he will at some point in his column or as part of an editorial. For now, just know that local newspapers are the only reliable way people can get quality information about what’s happening in their backyards. The national media certainly won’t cover it, unless it’s some sort of disaster, and the state-wide outlets will only swoop in if the story is big enough. It’s the local newspaper that cares about and covers the minutiae of life in the community.
But why did we decide to do this? That’s a good question. You can read a more in-depth rationale in our inaugural editorial, but we’ll try to summarize it a bit for you . . .
We believe in the importance of journalism and its ability to cultivate an informed society. People need access to reliable and accurate information that helps them make decisions. This is most needed at the local level. National news and social media rumors are too accessible. They taint the information ecosystem, leaving people unsure of what they can trust. By producing local news, we can give people the knowledge they need to get involved and have an actual impact on their communities. As individuals, we can’t control much of what goes on in places like Washington D.C., but we can have a say in what happens down the street.
And a printed newspaper can’t be changed. It becomes a historical document. No one can hack it. It is permanent. Besides, we need more analog opportunities in society. Picking up a newspaper and reading it gives us a break from the barrage of incessant digital distractions constantly pulling our attention in a thousand different directions. It’s a digital detox, and it’s a beautiful thing.
Why did you name your paper the Plains Pilot?
We chose this name because we want our paper to be a living “pilot” experiment for how community journalism can work by “piloting” residents of this plains town toward becoming a more engaged citizenry.
Also, Todd grew up in Canton, which used to have the Canton Pilot as its weekly newspaper. His mother worked there for a time as a typist. We thought it was a fun homage to his past as well.
Is AI writing your stories?
No. We write everything. We might use AI to develop transcripts of interviews or to search through various documents to find the most interesting bits of news, but we ultimately write the stories.
And yes. We use the em dash (—) on occasion. Though that might be an indication that AI was used to write something in other instances, rest assured that that isn’t the case with the Plains Pilot. We just know how to use all forms of punctuation properly.
You made a mistake, you clowns! Fix it!
We don’t ever intentionally get something wrong, but we are human. So we’d love to issue a correction to any errors we make.
Just email us the issue at plainspilotnews@gmail.com, and we’ll get things straightened out.
And then you’ll be able to see the fix on our Corrections page.
Why are you throwing the paper to every house in Moundridge?
Why not!? It’s fun. It’s cool. It’s a personal touch. No other newspaper around is doing that, so it makes the Plains Pilot unique. Besides, it brings back thoughts of yesteryear when kids had newspaper routes, and we like that nostalgic stuff.
Where can I pick up extra copies?
We have newsstands throughout Moundridge, and we are always looking for places to expand into.
Currently, you can find them at the following locations:
- Citizens State Bank
- Goering Hardware
- Moundridge Food Market
- Pine Village
- Main Building
- Wellness Center
I don’t live in town. How can I get a copy of the paper?
Well, if you happen to be in town and stop by one of our newsstands, you can grab one that way.
Or, we can mail one to you. That’s right. We have come up with a plan to offer mail delivery via USPS First-Class Mail (doing anything other than First-Class makes us nervous that it won’t ever reach the intended destination because we’ve been burned before by the Post Office—not in Moundridge necessarily, but in general).
That means we would carefully fold your copy of the Plains Pilot, put it in a manila envelope, slap a couple of mailing labels on it, and send it on its way.
To do this, we would have to charge a nominal fee, but that cost only factors in the cost of preparing and shipping a copy to you.
Seriously. We crunched the numbers to determine what it would cost to mail one copy of the Plains Pilot, even estimating the cost of the ink needed for each mailing label. We don’t want anyone to think we are cheating or gouging them, even if we need to cover our mailing costs.
We’re going to be super transparent here and show you the math based on our cost estimates and calculations:
$4.51 in mailing supplies & preparations + $2.17 in estimated postage = $6.68 per mailing
To make it easier to keep track of on our end, we would ask anyone interested in receiving the Plains Pilot via the mail to make a year-long commitment.
So, for 1-year of mail delivery, it would cost $80.16.
If you would like to do this, please mail your payment of $80.16, payable to THE PLAINS PILOT, to the following address:
The Plains Pilot
302 Unruh St.
Moundridge, KS 67107
Just remember to include the name and address you want it sent to, and we’ll get you into the mix for the next monthly issue.
And we don’t consider this a subscription because we want the Plains Pilot itself to be free as long as we are financially able to. So, we think of the $80.16 per year cost as the Plains Pilot Postage Provision (or P4 for short and nerdy).
How can I financially support the Plains Pilot?
Your generosity is appreciated. We’ve had so many people ask how they can help ensure we continue producing local news that is easily accessible to all members of our community. That’s why we’ve come up with a few different ways folks can help while keeping the Plains Pilot free to residents in general.
Advertising
Our primary revenue stream is display advertising. Businesses or individuals can take out an ad in the Plains Pilot, and we also offer digital ads on our website, our email newsletter, and in our podcast.
We also have rates for classified ads, and we have a special program for young entrepreneurs.
If you would like to purchase ad space or learn more about our classifieds or young entrepreneurs program, please email us at plainspilotnews@gmail.com or call Todd at 620-245-4551.
You can also see our current advertising rate card here: https://plainspilot.com/advertising/
Pilot Patron
Of course, if you aren’t a business and don’t really have anything to advertise, but you still want to help, you can consider becoming a Pilot Patron.
The Plains Pilot is free, so this isn’t a subscription.
And don’t think of it as a donation. Think of it as leaving a tip or giving a gift.
There’s no obligation to do this. It’s just something we developed following the outpouring of kind words and questions about subscribing we received after our first issue.
If you decide to become a Pilot Patron, your support will help us continue to produce local news and our mission of “charting a course for community connection.”
Those who contribute will be recognized for their generosity by having their names listed as a Pilot Patron.
You can read more about this here: https://plainspilot.com/patron/
Merchandise
Perhaps you want to contribute financially and show your support out in the community. Then our merch store is just the ticket. We’ve got T-shirts, drinkware, stickers and more.
Check it out here: https://plainspilot.com/merch/
Though it drives Kendall crazy, Todd spends an enormous amount of time playing with new designs for T-shirts and whatnot, so check back often, as he’s likely to put new things in the store from time to time, even if Kendall doesn’t know about it.
Proceeds from any purchases go to support the Plains Pilot, so it’s a win-win. You get a cool piece of gear you can show off to your friends, and the Plains Pilot keeps the lights on.
Do you accept news stories or photos from community members? What about letters to the editor?
Absolutely! If you have a bit of news to share or a stellar photo you’d like to see printed, send it to us. We can’t promise you if/when we’ll use it, but we will make every attempt to do so in a timely fashion.
Also, we want our opinion page to be a place of robust and respectful discussion, so we encourage letters to the editor. Just be sure to follow the guidelines we’ve established when it comes to letters to the editor.
To submit a story, photo or letter to the editor, just email it to plainspilotnews@gmail.com.
In addition to the monthly paper, what else do you have?
Well, we have this website. We have a monthly email newsletter called the Plains Pilot Signal, and we have a bi-weekly podcast called Plains Pilot Radio.
You can sign up for the newsletter here: https://plainspilot.substack.com/
And you can find our podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, though we hope to add more platforms in the future.
You have some news stories on your website from different outlets. What’s that about?
What you are seeing comes from nonprofit news outlets that allow other media organizations to republish their work for free with proper attribution.
Typically, we pull from places like the Kansas Reflector, The Daily Yonder, and The Conversation.
We relied on these outlets quite a bit at first because we were trying to build up the website and have it fully functional by the time we were ready to start putting our own content out in the world.
Now, we still might use a story or two from one of these publications if we find them particularly interesting or applicable to our readers.
Sometimes, The Conversation stories can be a bit nerdy because they are based on academic research. Todd’s way into that, but Kendall will do her best to keep him contained and not post every article he likes.
Instead, we’ll try to keep it to things that might actually interest or benefit a majority of the Plains Pilot readers in some way. Sure, Todd reads the Plains Pilot, but he doesn’t really count when it comes to this.
What’s with the weird graphics you have on this site?
Well, Todd thinks that’s a little rude. He doesn’t find them weird at all.
But he is in love with the 1950s and the Atomic Age aesthetic, which heavily featured atomic particles and futuristic motifs dressed in bright colors and geometric shapes.
So, we like to incorporate that look on occasion. Kendall allows it to placate him a bit. Then he won’t throw a fit because she certainly won’t let him decorate the house that way. Not a chance!
What do you have planned for the future of the Plains Pilot?
We have a lot of ideas. First, though, we have to make sure we can keep ourselves afloat. Todd likes to joke about losing the house, but we are hopeful. We figure if we continue to put good out in the world, good will come back to us. As long as the good returns in a timely fashion, we’ll keep on keepin’ on. Then we can start sharing some of the exciting ideas we have. So . . . stay tuned.