It is never reassuring to see a newspaper go out of business or to dial back its presence and I was saddened earlier this week at the news the Medford Mail Tribune published its last print paper Friday, Sept. 30.

The paper announced it was going to switch to an all-electronic format beginning in October.

The reason? Costs of printing and delivering the print paper proved to be too costly for the local, hometown paper, according to Publisher Steven Saslow.

The good news, of course, is the paper will still have a presence with its online product. The paper isn’t folding. The bad news, obviously, is the print edition of the paper is gone.

There is no way to avoid the reality that the newspaper industry has evolved — changed — over the past 20 years. Newspapers across the nation are gone, creating massive news deserts where information to keep voters informed has evaporated.

That’s isn’t good news for our democracy.

Now, more than ever, the nation needs newspapers and what they can offer to a community. Yet our industry continues to face unprecedented challenges. Costs — for such key items as newsprint — continue to climb and inflation plays an insidious role. We are not alone regarding the impacts of inflation. All businesses face a tough road ahead as we navigate through an epoch of inflation.

Newspapers play a vital role in our democracy. Our Founding Fathers front-loaded a free press into the Constitution for a reason.

I am glad the Medford paper will continue online, but I am saddened the print product of the gazette is going away.

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If you missed one or more issues of The Observer this week, here are a couple of stories you might have missed.

Round-Up may have ended Saturday, Sept. 17, but our coverage persisted.

Dick Mason reported about the role a La Grande business is playing in turning worn out parts of wind turbines into scrap metal. B&K Auto Salvage and Recycling has been contracted with a wind farm-related organization to cut up gearboxes, main shafts and blade hubs. The parts are then sent the metal to Portland for recycling.

The auto salvage business began receiving shipments from wind farms in the Arlington area on Thursday, Sept. 1. B&K has received 141 shipments from semi-trucks as of Sept. 20. That is our third most popular story online and worth a read if you have not done so.

Mason’s reporting this week also highlighted the difficulty the fate of Mount Emily Shay No. 1, a steam-powered locomotive used for logging operations in Union County for three decades through the late 1950s. The train will soon be moved from Prineville to Portland where it will be maintained and operated by the Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation, which recently assumed ownership of it from the Oregon Historical Society.

Into the weekend The Observer is teaming up with our sister paper, the East Oregonian, on a story about the lack of a gubernatorial debate for Eastern Oregon.

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