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COVID-19 closes Revelstoke news outlet temporarily

The Revelstoke Mountaineer said the decision was due to declining revenue
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The Revelstoke Mountaineer said they are temporarily closing.

The editor, Aaron Orlando, made the announcement on March 22 that the magazine and revelstokemountaineer.com will no longer be providing news updates.

“Effective immediately, we will no longer be covering ongoing news,” reads an article from the company published online.

However, in a Facebook update, Orlando clarified he might post stories occasionally in the coming months related to COVID-19.

Orlando writes the COVID-19 outbreak has wiped the company’s revenue streams almost completely.

“I’m sorry, I’d like to keep going, especially given the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic situation, but we simply don’t have the ability to pay people to do the work.”

The company said it will keep the website and its back catalogue online for the time being.

The Mountaineer said given the gravity of COVID-19 implications, it’s unclear if or when conditions will be right to resume.

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Orlando wrote this marks the end of nearly 12 years working as a journalist in Revelstoke.

Aaron Orlando. (Facebook)

He was a previous editor of the Revelstoke Review and started the Revelstoke Mountaineer roughly five years ago.

The federal government announced this week they plan to provide financial support to media organizations to keep journalists working and reporting during the COVID-19 crisis.

“Right now, it is more important than ever that Canadians have access to the latest news and information,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.

The announcement follows the closure of numerous publications by one large newspaper chain in Atlantic Canada resulting in hundreds of layoffs.

READ MORE: Pandemic-related supports coming for media and journalism, Trudeau says

Other community newspapers across Canada, such as the Jasper Local, have also suspended operations as advertising revenues evaporate.


 

@pointypeak701
liam.harrap@revelstokereview.com

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