Why We and Warren Buffet Love Small Town Newspapers

It's Wednesday, Nugget day, the day that The Dahlonega Nugget hits the stands and our mailbox.  

We love The Nugget and read it cover-to-cover to catch up on police reports, read Wayne Knuckles' editorials, see what questions Dr. John (the County Commission Chairman) is answering in his column, and check to see if any Lamar Photography photos are published.

The Nugget is our home town newspaper - a photo-rich, information packed paper that keeps us informed on upcoming social events, festivals, sport scores, and so much more. The Nugget is more than just pictures and words on a page. It's a printed forum for local Lumpkin residents, politicians, school leaders and community organizers.

One of our do-not-miss sections is the Letters to Editor page and/or pages. Thee written commentaries and personal missives record the pulse of the county. (And yes, D&B has had at least one "Got to get this off my chest" letter published.)

Perhaps one of the main reason for my Nugget Love is that a small town newspaper is where I got my first job and where I became a news junkie. 

Based on investment reports, looks like I am not the only one who loves the hometown newspaper.  Seems that savvy investment guru Warren Buffet  has invested lots of millions in small town newspapers. Why, you ask? Because, according to The Street, "Local small town papers.... focus on providing the news that everyone wants like sports and other local affairs." And that's just the role that Dahlonega's Nugget does.

No to Bowden. Yes to the Stealth Candidate.

The people have spoken. Tim Bowden was voted out as District 2 Commissioner for Lumpkin County in the recent run-off election.

Steve Shaw, sort of a stealth candidate, bested Bowden by about 15% of the votes. The total was BOWDEN 1257 (42.55%) and SHAW 1697 votes (57.45%).

As District 2 residents who weren't too happy with Commissioner Bowden, we can only hope that Mr. Shaw will be a better representative for our area. Unfortunately, we don't know  that much about Mr. Shaw. He's what we call the stealth or mystery-man candidate.

The soon-to-be Commissioner Shaw didn't spend a lot of time handshaking, kissing babies, riding in parades, hosting fundraisers or going to campaign events. He was a no-show at the major candidate debates. The Dahlonega Nugget even had a hard time tracking him down for an article on candidate position statements and qualifications.

Let's hope that newly elected Commissioner Shaw has time to devote to his new part-time county job, and that he won't be so hard to find when a constituent has a question or wants to talk to him. We can also hope that if Mr. Shaw is given a key to the county, he won't lose it.