A painter has a vision of the world and tries to impart that on a canvas to share with others. This is the essence of creativity and art.
So too has Jimmye Sweat imparted her vision on a canvas — newsprint and now computer screens — for decades as editor of the Northside Sun.
It is a subtle vision, not fixed in the visual arts, although that is a part of it. Jimmye’s vision is a social and cultural one: What it means to be a community planted in a little spec of the world rooted in history and geography.
This is not a vision of the world decaying from crime, sin and corruption. It’s not a vision of techno geeks and server farms. It’s not a vision of economic exploitation or left-wing extremism. It’s not a political vision at all.
It’s a vision of families coming together to make a community — a community connected by churches, schools, clubs and organizations. It’s a community of generation after generation, watching in the pages of the Northside Sun as children are born, grow up, graduate from schools, marry, participate in life and then have children of their own.
It’s a community enmeshed in death and rebirth, success and striving, community interaction and participation. People coming together and going through life.
It is an upbeat vision of hope and prosperity, not alienation and defeat. Feature stories about successes. Big spreads on engagement parties and weddings. Eagle Scout attainments. Sports victories. Fiftieth wedding anniversaries. Church expansions. Football games and homecoming queens. New residential developments. Growth and prosperity and human cooperation.
You could call it a vision of Mayberry in the suburbs.
I know hundreds of readers who have told me they read the Northside Sun cover to cover. This takes a lot of time and effort. A typical issue has dozens of photographs and articles.
But the reward is immense. You learn about the people in your greater community. You watch them grow and mature. You become familiar with a far greater number of people with whom you may actually see and interact with in your daily routine. The Sun enriches your life.
Business for the Northside Sun was a lot easier before the rise of Facebook. The Northside Sun, for this area, was the original social media. We were the only publication reporting on social gatherings, promotions, church news and basic community news. And best of all, we were truly local.
There is nothing local about Facebook. Facebook’s headquarters is in Menlo Park, California, where it has a 30-building headquarters on a 250-acre campus.
When you advertise on Facebook, your money goes straight to California.
I find it ironic to see local businesses promote “shop local” on Facebook. How about advertising locally?
Facebook can be insular. Your group can be limited to your circle of friends. The posts are more personal and less community minded. Facebook should not replace the Northside Sun. We do different things.
For one thing, the Northside Sun does not spy on you. There are no bots and cookies connected with our print edition. Plus you can’t start a fire or train your pet with your Facebook page.
The Northside Sun website, which continues to grow rapidly, respects your privacy. We do not track your clicks or invade your privacy in any way. We don’t believe in it. (We also don’t secretly tap your smartphone and eavesdrop on your conversations.)
Unlike Facebook, which generates zero original content and has no editors, only algorithms, we have actual people, like Jimmye Sweat, who work hard to present you the most important community news in a graphically pleasant, readable format.
We don’t do it anonymously. Our letters to the editor must be signed. We stand by what we publish. And unlike the Internet platforms, we are subject to centuries-old libel laws. You can believe what’s in the Northside Sun.
Northside Sun editor Jimmye Sweat has worked day in and day out for over 40 years bringing Northsiders community news that enriches their lives and connects them to others. It is truly a labor of love. Even if you don’t realize it, she has fundamentally changed for the better the ways thousands of Northsiders think about their community.
The simplest way to support Jimmye and the Northside Sun and American local journalism is to subscribe. That’s it. Just subscribe, either to the print edition or the website or both. Just Google Northside Sun or go directly to our website at northsidesun.com.
Last month, we had 24,361 visitors to northsidesun.com. There’s lots to see. Tons of local news, local obituaries, weddings, engagements, local polls (in which you can vote), group photos from social gatherings, dozens of witty comic strips and editorial cartoons, a community calendar, local columns and editorials, legal notices, archives and plenty of statewide articles from Associated Press, Mississippi Today and Magnolia Tribune.
The Northside Sun website is fast: Our lag is less than a few seconds. You can get an e-edition replica of the print paper. Our archive of past articles is huge with easy keyword searches. And if you’re really interested in local history, we have partnered with newspapers.com to give you access to 45 years of Northside Sun editions, all searchable by keywords.
