INTRODUCING SOUTHERN GOSPEL NEWS: SouthernGospelNews.com and its sister online publication, TexarkanaNews.com, were many years in the making and launched under the direction of Executive Editor R. Thornton (see biography below) on August 4, 2019. The concept was initially developed in 2015 with the idea of establishing a news organization for the ArkLaTex that covered both hard news and the arts for the region including Northeast Texas, Southwest Arkansas, North Louisiana, and Southeast Oklahoma.
OUR CHALLENGE: The ArkLaTex has a population of more than 1 million people, and the geographic area it covers is vast. The popularity of music styles varies greatly, but Southern Gospel Music and Country Gospel are some of our region's most popular music genres. In addition, our demographic and economic research showed our local communities in the Four States area wanted more information about Southern Gospel Music and more Gospel concert options as well. This exciting discovery led to a critical question: How do we effectively cover Southern Gospel on a local level but still offer interesting Southern Gospel and Country Gospel news and information for national and international readers?
REACHING OUT TO THE COMMUNITY: To cover Southern Gospel Music in the ArkLaTex fairly and evenly, we decided to create local "hubs" to distribute news. This would allow us to produce "hyperlocal" or "very local" news for the important communities of our region. At the same time, we will offer charts and music reviews of new Southern Gospel albums and singles on SouthernGospelNews.com. An added benefit is that our effort could spur an increase in music sales and expand tour dates for local concerts of Southern Gospel music as more ArkLaTex citizens become further educated about the hard-working groups, artists, and musicians.
SOUTHERN GOSPEL MUSIC MATTERS: Above all else, we want to be sure we effectively report on Southern Gospel Music. The genre that gave us The Cathedrals, Gold City, The Happy Goodman Family, and The McKameys has branched out to include more diverse influences, such as elements of country, bluegrass, and folk. We want to respect and honor classic Southern Gospel music while also offering news and perspectives on other Roots Gospel artists who establish innovation with songs and writing within the category.
SOUTHERN GOSPEL NEWS AND THE WAY FORWARD: Our mission is simple: We want to provide relevant, interesting news and information for fans and potential fans of Southern Gospel music. We also want people in other areas of the ArkLaTex (and beyond) to learn more about Southern Gospel music and this wonderful genre of music - while doing our part to promote local music artists, review new music and expand opportunities for Southern Gospel concerts and events.
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| Our editor, R. Thornton |
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