WE would never have found a more conducive atmosphere to refresh our roles as journalists tasked with seeking the truth for the reading public than the onset of a new year and its bright prospects of renewal.
For more than 12 years since the first copy of OpinYon came off the press as a weekly advocacy paper, the thread binding all succeeding issues has been kept entwined by its original vow to provide a venue for vigorous public discourse and a guide for meaningful public action.
We have strived to be relevant to our readers in spite of the developing age of digitalization, which has doomed a big part of the newspaper industry globally, and even pushed less resilient players to bankruptcy or near it as the lifeline of ads crossed over to the virtual world.
The current coronavirus pandemic could not have come at a worse time. Street sales of newspapers dwindled as movement of people and goods limped amid travel restrictions.
The economy sputtered and most businesses were left idle or had to fend for themselves to survive.
And like other media outfits, OpinYon could only plod on through the crisis. The conditions thus call for rising above adversity, calling for creativity to find another enterprise model, and exploring other sources of earning so that the functions of informing and awakening the citizenry, and stirring debate on issues that matter could be pursued.
With this relaunch issue, we go beyond ridding the weekly of dull, trite stories and cluttered pages.
With a deeper sense of professionalism and ethical conduct, we reengage with the mission to become one of the leading media organizations in all its print editions, including those in the provinces, on website and social network sites.
We move a step further, an inch deeper, and a day longer to bring updated information, insight and analysis helpful in setting up a vibrant venue of ideas and discussions on today’s immediate issues. We subscribe to a highly visual presentation of content to our readers.
As we dare to take a stand, we also do so to inform, to educate, to engage, and to inspire.
With the start of 2022 and a fresh reboot, we, too, declare: Out with the old, in with the new, and embark on a more meaningful chapter.