Due to the tactics by our chairman to strong arm directors and managers into not doing business with my new publication, I have found it difficult to acquire both, articles of interest and advertising dollars. That's okay. I will continue to bring you news but, for the time being, it will only be through our website. The costs are too high to print a weekly publication without advertising support.
At first, I figured I would still be able to move forward with the paper idea, but then I discovered that Mic Isham himself has been going to my potential and current advertisers in Hayward and telling them that the tribe is going to boycott their business if they advertise with me. He is speaking to these Hayward business owners as if he represents the entire tribal council when he is actually representing himself.
Mic actually tells the advertisers that it's "they" who want to boycott their business, meaning the tribal council. He then tells them that he, himself, has told the tribal council not to boycott their business, making himself the "hero" who saves the day. But, in order for this boycott not to take place, they must cease advertising with me.
First, the idea that our tribe would boycott any of these businesses based on their participation in the LCO Today is hilarious. These businesses simply seek to do business with the tribal membership and increase their bottom line, so they use this publication as one avenue to achieve that goal. It is you, my readers, they wish to reach. They don't care about the politics of our discussions or the content of certain stories. They only care that as many of you as possible are reading these pages. To punish them for that is way out of line. The only time the idea of a boycott of a Hayward business should come to mind would be if they were known racists or did any harm to our tribe or its members. How are they harming our tribe by advertising in the LCO Today in the hopes that you will patronize their business? Certainly doesn't sound racist either.
Second, the idea that our chairman has gone out of his way to visit these advertisers in an attempt to stop them from advertising is dirty, but beyond that, it's constitutionally illegal for him to take these actions on behalf of the tribal council when they have no idea he is doing so. The tribal council never took any action or participated in a discussion to boycott Hayward businesses who advertise with me.
At any rate, I will continue to bring you news and events via this website and my online newsletter. My main priority will be to write positive stories as you see in this latest newsletter about our schools and our community events. But, if and when information is presented to me that shows our financial status, I will forward it to you, the membership, because it is the right thing to do...you have the right to know.
The sad part is that Mic's actions will hurt many readers who don't have internet access, and there are many. A lot of our people don't have internet at home. Many of our elders just don't care to have internet. They are the ones who won't have access to the LCO Today. That's where I'm going to need your help. Print off any stories you find of interest for any persons who you think might like to read them and pass it forward. in the end, I believe my readership is roughly the same. There are many of our members who live off the reservation that can only get their news online. I had more viewership of two recent blog posts I made in regards to the casino than I had printed copies of the newsletter. Both posts reached 1,500 unique views. That's pretty decent for just getting started.
Eventually, I plan to get the LCO Today to a weekly newspaper on newsstands throughout the area once again! But for now, this website will be the LCO Today. And I'd also like to mention that in no way is my goal to discredit or put down the tribe's monthly newsletter. I think Lonnie is doing a good job. The true beneficiaries of both publications printing is you, our tribal membership. There are stories I'm going to cover that he's not and there are many he will cover that I won't. And one thing I've noticed since I started printing is that he's stepped it up a bit. The quality of his content and the publication is improving. It's a win-win for you, the membership.
To all who have continued to support me, especially those of you who are not afraid to come up and let me know...chi miigwetch!
Stay informed....Sign up for the weekly LCO Online Newsletter
Stay informed....Visit the new LCO Today website
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