Star-Herald tells region’s story

    On the masthead of the Presque Isle Star-Herald, in the lower right-hand corner, reads a small line. Just four words; yet those words have proclaimed the theme of the city’s newspaper for over 135 years.     Aroostook County’s Independent Voice.
    From the birth of its predecessors in the mid-1800s, through its growth into a century and up to its present day, the local weekly continues to strive to reflect the concerns of its readers in a resonant, independent manner.
    The Star-Herald, which has been published every week for more than 137 years, was preceded by the establishment of several other, relatively short-lived publications. Today the community newspaper has expanded its reach beyond the Star City to Mapleton, Easton, Ashland, Mars Hill, Blaine, Bridgewater, Fort Fairfield, Washburn and other surrounding towns.
    “It is our goal to create an accurate and appealing weekly newspaper that tells the ongoing story of Presque Isle and central Aroostook County. If someone who had never visited Presque Isle were to read just one edition of the Star-Herald; we would like to believe they would get a real feel for the community and its inhabitants,” said Mark Putnam, managing editor.
    To do this, the seven-person staff must reach out to readers and advertisers on a daily basis to gather information in all its many forms for use in the newspaper. We also rely on community members to submit items of interest or tips to follow up on. Each issue is a mix of the planned and the unplanned and that’s the way we like it. Reporters do not have to know everything; they just have to know how to find out.
    Current staff at the Herald includes reporters Scott Mitchell Johnson, Kathy McCarty and Meridith Paterson, sales manager Jim Berry (a 36-year employee), advertising sales representatives Scott Galipeau and Bob Buckley, and receptionist Johanna Richards.
    Jack Faulkner, former Star-Herald editor, summed up the role of a community newspaper this way. “The Star-Herald has been around a lot longer than we have, and it’ll still be here a long time after we’re gone. The editor and staff are just the temporary custodians of this newspaper.”