The Hometown Observer

Welcome to The Hometown Observer…a new paper in town…but DEFINITELY NOT your typical newspaper. It is a “newspaper done right”…a paper for you and all about you, the residents of Mt. Airy, New Market, Urbana, Walkersville, Green Valley, Monrovia and Ijamsville. In every issue, every week, The Hometown Observer will tell the stories of your life. Think newspapers are dying? Our team is made up of p

eople with many years of experience in the newspaper industry. James was the President of The Gazette for many years. We get that most people think newspapers are dying. The question is why? We would wager that it is not so much because people want to read all their news online…you still see plenty of people reading papers at coffee shops, restaurants, at schools, in libraries and lots of other places…even young people. (And ironically, most of them have a Smartphone, a computer and/or a Tablet with them). No, we believe the main reason people are not reading newspapers as much as they used to is that
most newspapers have lost touch with their audience. They have forgotten that the paper should have news that matters to the reader. But not at The Hometown Observer…
You won’t have to beg us to get your story in the paper. When it comes to community news, we think you should get to have stories that you want to see published in the paper without feeling like it would be easier to part the Red Sea. Did your kid win an award? Send us a photo and tell us about it. We are happy to put it in. Is your school doing something interesting? Let us know. We’ll cover it. Is your business having an event or an anniversary? Send it in. No direct promotions, please…but you can buy an ad for that. And our AD PRICES ARE CHEAP!! See our rates Is your kid’s little league team in first place? We would love to put that in the paper as well. Whatever it is, let us know. We will be delighted to publish your news as space is available. Think of us like a Facebook in print for your community…the clip and save type news that you want to put in scrapbooks or send to the grandparents!**

The Hometown Observer is easy to find…
We deliver to over 22,000 homes and businesses in Mt. Airy, New Market, Urbana, Libertytown, Ijamsville, Monrovia, Green Valley and Kemptown. The paper is free to those who want it. We also make the paper available pretty much wherever you go throughout the community. You can find it every Thursday or Friday. Look for us at your favorite restaurants and retail shops, as well as in doctors’ offices, libraries, schools, real estate offices, coffee shops and just about everywhere else, including your own driveway! Got a story? Just send it to us at [email protected]. Please include photos…we have limited photo resources so we can’t guarantee a photographer at your event. We hope you enjoy this new kind of newspaper. And for you techies, the paper is posted weekly online as a flip book....but we encourage you to try the print copy. We still think there is something special about holding a print newspaper in your hands, grabbing a cup of coffee and catching up on all the news that matters to you. Enjoy the paper, YOUR paper, and let us know what you think…just send us an email at [email protected]. Now, here’s to telling the stories of your life! James Mannarino
Chief Story Teller and Advertising Sage

** There are only 3 simple rules. We publish news based on space availability and make no guarantees other than we will do our best to get it in and we get to choose what goes in and when. Second, it has to be accurate and honest and we reserve the right to verify the facts. And finally, it must follow the golden rule. If your story is a complaint about someone, please don’t send it. We don’t want to get sued and we don’t want you to get sued! Don’t miss our AMAZINGLY LOW ADVERTISING RATES!!!