HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. — This month, two Houston County women teamed up to launch what they call the county's first African American newspaper.
Founders Rutha Jackson and Kimberly Hicks say they started it to highlight Black businesses, families, accomplishments and more.
“I said, 'Hey, I have this idea, what do you think?' And she said, 'Hey, I was just thinking the same thing,'” said Hicks.
Their topics include education, business, health, fashion, and politics. They say they hope to appeal to a wide audience.
“We wanna be diverse in who we reach, definitely, so others can come in and they can learn about how we contribute, how we celebrate each other, the good things that we actually do within our community. So there's an educational piece for everyone,” said Hicks.
It's available both on paper and by online subscription.
“We will be offering internships. Anyone who wants to write for our paper, we're not turning anyone away,” said Jackson.
Black Voters Matter helped them fund the first edition.
They're selling ads, and they hope to get more subscriptions and sponsorships.
“We're printing once a month. We're hoping to grow to once weekly, but we need the community's support in doing that,” said Hicks.
So far, nearly 250 people have read the paper.
“We're excited for just having the idea that our word or our voice is going to be heard and that people are actually going to read about our stories,” said Jackson.
Currently, the business is home-based, but as it grows, they hope to move into an office space.
This Sunday, July 18, they're hosting an event to celebrate the paper's launch. It's free and open to the public – it’s from 4 p.m. -6 p.m. at 1302 Watson Boulevard.
Here's the website for the newspaper.