For those of us who frequently use The Vicksburg Post’s website for local news stories, that privilege will end as of May 3 according to the website.

Visitors to the site will be redirected to a payment window to subscribe to the paper. While I understand that the paper funds itself with subscriptions, it also has a responsibility to make pertinent information available.

The website is already just an abbreviated version of the actual paper. Even leaving it in that format is better than nothing.

As a Vicksburg Warren School District educator, I often encourage my students to use local sources for information instead of national sites. This allows them to make a connection between national issues and how it affects their lives. I will not be paying for 26 individual subscriptions for each computer in my classroom. The paper does provide copies each day for education purposes to the school as a whole, but that does not help them at home or in my computer research classes.

Additionally, the City of Vicksburg will also suffer since this is the main news website that many visitors and past residents of Vicksburg use. This city has already seen a downturn in motel occupancy, outside visitors to area attractions such as Riverfest and a lowered level of opinion with a rising youth crime rate. This will just be another thing to add to the list of reasons prospective residences choose to work in Vicksburg, but live and spend their money elsewhere.

Even though it is not as profitable as the daily paper many get at home, can we find a way to not take away the major online news source for this city from its residents and students?

Andrew Rainer

Vicksburg