Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/341318
I should give up on trying to finish an issue early when a holiday is approaching. It seems the very thought inspires the "software gods" and other outside influences to conspire against me. Let me just add that putting together this issue was particularly challeng- ing, so I will be grateful for a July Fourth respite. Now that I have gotten that out of my system … All of us at the News Leader regularly have to put our gray matter through workouts. When I was in journalism school, that fact of life was what professors commonly referred to as "general beat reporting," the capability of covering a wide range of topics day after day. Fortunately, the longer you are in the news business, the more knowledge you acquire. A long-time reporter such as Stan Zimmerman probably could write books on all the material he has stored away in his gray matter. Several times over recent weeks, I have had the occasion to tell a person I was interviewing that I understood very well what he or she was say- ing because of experiences I have had in the past. As we pull together tidbits from our brains to supplement details from earlier articles on a subject, we are able to provide you with much more comprehensive reports than you can find in other publications. Sadly, such depth of news coverage seems to be disap- pearing everywhere. And that is all the more reason we take great pride in what we can offer you each week. On that note, we at the News Leader wish all of you a very happy Fourth of July. Editor and Publisher WELCOME