Twenty-four years ago, I was a volunteer columnist for the Macon Courier, a black weekly paper in Macon.  The last editorial I wrote was entitled, “We shouldn’t shop where we can’t work.”  The publisher at that time had to run the article by the owner for approval; he refused to print it.  He feared it would harm the business because of advertisements.

Two weeks later, I published the first copy of the Georgia Informer.  What began as a defiant move of frustration has since bloomed onto a booming business.  I must admit; it hasn’t been easy.  Though we have experienced the same struggles of any small business, we have experienced many triumphs and successes, also.

For more than two decades, the Georgia Informer has steadily grown.  We are now covering more of the black movers and shakers in Georgia.  Because of the representative we now have in Atlanta, we are better able to cover important entertainment and news events from our state’s capitol.  In addition, we are now on-line.  Readers can contact us by e-mail at georgiainformer@prodigy.net and visit our website at www.gainformer.com where our stories and articles are updated daily.  But that’s not all.  Many of the issues, events, and businesses we cover can now be seen on The Herbert Dennard Show, a one-hour presentation that complements the paper and website and highlights important issues of the day.  The show airs weekly on Wednesdays at 8:oo pm and Fridays at 10:00 am.

While we will continue to grow and make productive changes, there are certain areas that will remain constant during our growth.  For example, we will continue to publish lottery information and statistics and salaries of public officials and employees.  In addition, we will cover more health news stories, especially those that have an impact on the black community.  Furthermore, we will continue to highlight profiles of professionals and ministers and do occasional exposes – all from an African American perspective.

As we celebrate our twenty-fourth anniversary, the Georgia Informer would like to take this opportunity to say “thanks”.  Without you, the readers and advertisers, our success would have been impossible.  We encourage readers to let us know when your purchases have been the result of a published advertisement you have seen in the Georgia Informer.

O n our twenty-fourth anniversary, we are vigilant in keeping pace with the age of technology.  We are no longer a fledgling newspaper; we now intend to soar to greater and greater heights while keeping our integrity, fairness, and un-biased reporting on a par with any publication, anywhere.  That's a promise.