Skagit Valley Herald will be delivered every morning starting March 31

Currently, the Skagit Valley Herald is delivered in the afternoon Monday through Friday, and in the morning on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.

The Skagit Valley Herald’s switch to morning publication seven days a week will be a big change for everyone — our readers, vendors, suppliers and staff members will all be making dramatic adjustments. It’s the most ambitious challenge we have taken on since we added a Sunday newspaper in 1999.

We are hopeful that over time, the advantages of weekday morning delivery will keep our valued readers connected to the Skagit Valley Herald.

We want to hear from you about our plans. There are several ways you can respond:

• by e-mail, .
• Add your feedback to this article by clicking on the comments link located above (login required).

A lot of questions will occur to readers. We have also considered many of the same questions and have tried to come up with some helpful responses.

When will the paper be delivered?
We will deliver the Herald to your home by 6 a.m. or by 7 a.m. in our more rural routes. The newspaper will be in some stores and boxes earlier than that. The newspaper will continue to be delivered by 8 a.m. on Sundays.

How will the conversion affect our news coverage?
There are advantages and disadvantages to both the morning and evening “news cycles.” But given our existing printing and delivery deadlines, many of the stories you see now in the afternoon Skagit Valley Herald were written the day or evening before and are not being read until the following evening.
We are able to pick up some breaking regional, national and international news stories in the morning and bring them to you that afternoon. Our sports staff already works an almost exclusively evening shift, covering local events for stories and photos that will appear the next day — but not until the afternoon. With morning delivery, you’ll see those same stories at 6 a.m.

Publishing a morning newspaper every day will allow us to bring you much fresher coverage of evening events and public meetings in Skagit County. We’ll be writing stories on deadline to appear in the next morning’s paper. Stories that break overnight or during the day, local and otherwise, will be posted to our Web site, goskagit.com, throughout the day. Some will be followed up for the next morning’s newspaper.

None of our news-gathering ability will be diminished. We expect that much of the local information we generate will be getting to you sooner.

What about people who are used to reading the paper in the afternoon?
We understand that people have different schedules and reading habits. By making sure your Skagit Valley Herald is available by 6 a.m., we make it possible to read the paper any time of the day — over coffee, at lunch, or in the evening. We’re creating more options to meet the needs of busy readers.

What if I already get another morning newspaper?
There are several other morning newspapers available in Skagit County — but none of them covers this area as thoroughly, consistently and passionately as does the Skagit Valley Herald. Our morning content — local, fresh, timely and topical — will be unique. And we will also continue to provide all the other newspaper features you have come to expect, including news from the state, region, nation and world.

Will the youth news carriers lose their jobs?
Our youth carriers are very important to us. We are attempting to retain as many as we can. Going to morning delivery will also increase the number of opportunities for youngsters who want to become carriers — with evening delivery many were not able to have routes because of after school activities.

Why are we changing?
This was not an easy decision, but one we believe we must make to stay vital and competitive, to better serve our readers and advertisers, and to remain a growing, thriving Skagit County business that employs 150 people.

Our goal as a communications company is to be the indispensable provider of information that our readers can use to make decisions about how they live, work, recreate and participate in our diverse and growing community. Our commitment to the community is symbolized by the new Skagit Valley Publishing Co. facility that is being built on Anderson Road.

We believe our long-term future will be best assured by morning delivery, and that the change will better position us to be a round-the-clock provider of information that can’t be found anywhere else.

The shift from evening to morning publication by American daily newspapers has been steady over the past few decades, for economic reasons and in response to changing habits.

At one time, when Skagit County was largely agricultural, it made sense to publish an afternoon paper that was available after a hard day of work. Now, more and more people are heading out early for their jobs or other activities, in need of information that’s on their doorstep as they prepare for their busy lives.

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