Livingston County News

Livingston County News is an award-winning weekly newspaper and community website providing a voice for Livingston County and the Western Finger Lakes since 1989. Since its founding, The LCN has evolved into a media company with video production; digital platforms that include its website and social media platforms; and niche publications devoted to local business and agriculture, along with multiple annual special sections. The staff has been recognized with multiple awards for writing, photography, and advertising. The Livingston County News debuted May 4, 1989, after a hectic six-week run from design to startup. The front page reported on then Livonia Town Supervisor Daniel C. West's resignation to take an appointment as head of the Rochester region office of the state Workers Compensation Board and a measles outbreak at SUNY Geneseo. There was also a heart-tugging feature on the local dog pound. Oh, yeah, there was also a story introducing the Livingston County News — it was not yet referred to in shorthand as The LCN. At the time, starting a print newspaper was a bold move. In the late 1980s and into the early 1990s, newspapers were faced with skyrocketing newsprint costs. Then — as many print papers are doing now in the face of a saturated media world, declining revenue and increasing newsprint costs — papers were looking for ways to contain expenses. But a marketing study found that Livingston County residents wanted more local news and the Johnson Newspaper Corp., which has been the paper’s only owner, obliged. The first few years were admittedly a struggle to build circulation and recognition. By the mid-1990s the paper was beginning to take off and at one point saw circulation double in less than a year. In the not-so-old days, a weekly newspaper was published once a week. But in the digital era, where social media drives so much of people's newsgathering, even a weekly publication can have a daily presence. LCN maintains a frequently updated website, has an active Twitter feed that publishes links to the day's headlines, and a Facebook page that shares stories of interest to Livingston County and allows readers to interact with the paper and each other. The LCN has established itself as the leading news source in Livingston County. The publication is well respected by readers and other media. The LCN has been voted the county’s favorite media three years in a row in a Livingston County Area Chamber of Commerce poll. The paper’s success is attributed to a desire to feed the community's demand for news by providing information and quality journalism from journalists who are familiar with the community. Source