Lately, you can’t read the news without seeing another troubling headline about the recent death of a newspaper or magazine.  It doesn’t matter how small or how big, print media is in peril.  It’s sad to see and it is indicative of a larger trend.  Once these papers shut down, it’s unlikely they will ever resurface.

Amid the doom and gloom and against all odds, the Sopris Sun emerged as a brand new weekly catering to our small community of Carbondale, Colorado.  Our previous local newspaper, the Valley Journal, shut down just before Christmas leaving our happenin’ little town with no voice.  This didn’t settle well with our grassroots oriented mountain town.  Within a few short weeks the Sopris Sun was organized as a non-profit, sustainable community entity, with Trina Ortega as the Editor.  The Board reassured readers that it intends to be a profitable venture.  The non-profit classification, however, protects it from the same fate that brought down it’s predecessor.

Now in its seventh week, the Sopris Sun is going strong and today the start-up was highlighted today in the LA Times.

Backbone Media wishes the Sopris Sun well.  Two Backboners are occasional contributors to the paper, with Jessica Downing covering the local arts and humanities beat and Sue Melus covering the hook and bullet scene.