As the Shepherd Express team is working to put out this week’s issue of your newspaper, we are reading about all the changes in our community because of COVID-19 pandemic. This health crisis is different from anything we have experienced in several generations. Schools are closing; sporting events have been cancelled. Governor Tony Evers has banned gathering of 10 individuals or more. Museums, plays, concerts and virtually every other kind of recreational events has been suspended until this crisis passes. Restaurants and bars are experiencing serious drops in their business and are being forced to lay off employees. Some states and a number of nations have mandated serious lockdowns.
This major interruption of our public life has been hard to watch. For the past 38 years, the Shepherd has worked hard to promote our wonderful and important small businesses and cultural venues. We have provided reviews and previews for the plays, concerts, restaurants
and all forms of local events and activities that make Milwaukee a great place to live, work and play. We love Milwaukee and the Shepherd has worked hard to help our city grow and prosper by highlighting its great institutions, events and businesses.
Unfortunately, the COVID-19 crisis is having a real impact on our newspaper. We are not alone in this. Most of the weekly alternative newspapers across the country like the Shepherd have temporarily shifted from both a printed newspaper and a news website to just focusing
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on the website. The Shepherd has tried to continue to do both, but that is proving too difficult as many places, including venues where you pick up your Shepherd each week, have temporarily closed their doors. People are also nervous about going out. Many of our advertisers are being forced to temporarily cut back their activities or completely close them down for the next month or two.
As a result, for the next several weeks, the Shepherd Express will shift its focus to our website and temporarily suspend our print edition. This is the first time the Shepherd newspaper has temporarily suspended publication in its 38 year history. We have had a website for the past 28 of those years, but the print edition, distributed at over 1,300 locations, has overshadowed our news website. In some ways that was unfortunate because our news website is one of the most popular and fastest growing news websites in Wisconsin. It also includes content that goes beyond what is in the newspaper. Currently, according to third-party research firms, the Shepherd’s website now has almost as many readers as our print edition. Together they have a combined readership of well over a quarter of a million readers.
Starting next week, we will temporarily suspend our printed newspaper and focus exclusively on our news website and our various e-newsletters. We will continue to serve our readers and advertisers exclusively through our website and the e-newsletters until the current health crisis gets under control, people can comfortably resume their public recreational activities and Milwaukee’s small businesses can resume serving their customers. We must continue to support our small businesses through this tough period because they have earned our loyalty and respect.
If you are interested in supporting the Shepherd directly at this time, you can become a Friend of the Shepherd today by clicking here. Your support will help us to continue to provide local coverage of all that's happening in the city.
