Journal editorial: Governor candidates exclude print media

There was a time when political candidates actually wanted to appear in newspapers.

Not just in the headlines after saying something regrettable at a county GOP luncheon, but in actual advertisements. Full-page declarations of love for taxpayers. Smiling photos in rolled-up sleeves. Grainy family portraits standing in front of combines and American flags. You know, the classics.

Apparently, those days are now as extinct as classified ads and common sense.

Last week, two of South Dakota’s four Republican gubernatorial hopefuls made it clear they would not be investing any advertising dollars with South Dakota NewsMedia members, which essentially includes nearly every community weekly in the state and other publications, like The Dakota Scout and South Dakota NewsWatch.

 announced, with great fanfare, a “statewide advertising campaign” that includes television, radio and social media. Missing from that triumphant list? Newspapers. Every single one of South Dakota’s 105-member newspapers.

Naturally, this revelation arrived not through smoke signals or interpretive dance, but through a press release sent directly to newspapers.

Because of course it did.

Nothing says “we don’t value newspapers” quite like using newspapers to spread the word that you don’t value newspapers.

It’s a fascinating strategy, really. The candidate apparently believes South Dakotans should hear his message while watching television, scrolling Facebook or listening to the radio on the way to work, but not while reading the local newspaper that, for a fact, local people – and voters – read religiously every week.

The logic seems to be this: local journalism is important enough to provide free coverage of campaign announcements, but not important enough to deserve advertising dollars.

That’s a bold stance from someone seeking statewide office in a state where many communities still rely on weekly newspapers as their primary source of local information.

It’s especially ironic considering politicians love newspapers during election season. But when it comes time to actually support the institutions delivering that coverage?

Well, then it’s all TikTok videos and targeted digital ads narrated like monster truck commercials.

To be fair, campaigns have every right to spend advertising dollars however they choose. Television reaches large audiences. Radio remains effective. Social media can target voters with terrifying precision. Campaigns follow data.

But perhaps candidates should avoid wrapping those choices in grand declarations about “statewide outreach” while pretending newspapers don’t exist.

Because here’s the uncomfortable truth: when the cameras leave and the campaign buses move on, local newspapers are still here.

They’re here when city taxes go up. When school budgets shrink. When tornado sirens sound. When local businesses open. When veterans pass away. When kids win spelling bees and communities bury firefighters.

Newspapers don’t disappear after Election Day.

And despite years of predictions about their demise, people still read them, especially when it’s a newspaper dedicated to the local community, local people and local happenings.

So, congratulations to Jon Hansen who’s launching his “statewide advertising campaign” everywhere except the publications that have spent decades covering the very communities he now hopes to govern.

At least he remembered where to send the press release.