A note of thanks from the publisher

Greetings!

Since the first week of September, in the aggregate, I have been on the road for a full month. This past weekend was a wrap on the last work-related trip of the year. While traveling, I had the chance to reflect on all the many accomplishments you, the reader, and others, have helped make possible.

While I was away, The Edge turned two years old. I kept that on the down-low because I just didn't have the bandwidth on October 24, our birthday, to tell you all the reasons why it was such a milestone.

Now, I'd like to call attention to just a few of the fruits of all our work with the community, to thank you, and to encourage you to help us do more.

New reporters

It feels like I have been everywhere since September, but in fact I have "only" been to San Diego, Chicago, the Holy Land (of Kentucky), and North Alabama, all of it on behalf of The Edge, as you will see.

All this hustle has meant leaning hard on my two reporters, Jemi Chew and Aubrey Kimble (applause, applause!!). They came aboard over the summer and have been indispensable to me.

As for the fact of there being a team of reporters at all, thanks go to Melissa Newman, EdD, who is the executive director at Press Forward Kentucky, and Ginny Whitehouse, PhD, who directs the school of communication at EKU. Melissa found the funding, and Ginny helped find the labor. Technically Aubrey and Jemi are interns! But come on, what a great job these rising journalists are doing!

A note for our Berea readers: we know that there has been a preponderance of Richmond stories lately, and we appreciate you hanging in there. I am the Berea beat reporter, and aside from all the election coverage, I haven't been here to much cover the beat, whereas Jemi has been cranking out the Richmond stories.

Blessed by community

The Edge just keeps growing (which I will have more to say about later on), having an impact, and finding new ways to serve because of you, The Edge community.

It inspires me so much to hear the many positive comments, read your suggestions and encouraging messages, follow up on your news tips, and hear your concerns that lead to stories that do good in the community.

I also would like to express my gratitude to the many media partners, funders, supporters, board advisors, and peers who have been there for me and for The Edge these past two years, and in particular since I had a health scare, resulting in a chronic health diagnosis in May. My health is still wonky, but because I am blessed to be surrounded by so many good people, The Edge keeps progressing.

The love and support I have been given throughout makes me emotional. The possibilities you have all helped make available to me both as a member of this community, and as a news publisher, are nearly beyond my comprehension. I have grown so much and am so thrilled to be able to serve in this way. It has been so much fun to stretch, and to prod myself and my team to be the best we can possibly be.

Data centers

Earlier this year, a member of Berea's City Council asked me about The Edge's initial reporting on hyper-scale data centers, with the intention of learning more about how the City could best prepare itself should a data center developer wish to site one here. That conversation ultimately lead the Council to pass its data center moratorium.

Seeing how my own learning held value to local policymakers prompted me to go deeper. I began connecting with and learning from data center advocates, activists, developers, policymakers, and industry leaders, so I could confidently speak to the opportunities and challenges data centers pose.

This has led to several public speaking opportunities, including at the Brushy Fork Leadership Institute and Groundswell's Rural Renaissance Roadshow 2026, entitled, Data Center Cross Roads, this past week in Decatur, Ala., among other engagements.

As for the BFLI, the feedback I received from participants was golden. Data centers are an emotional topic that requires sensitivity and an open mind when discussing. One person wrote in the feedback survey, "We're doomed!" Funny, but not funny, and I took that to heart and have been working to hone my presentation skills so I don't cause folks to be afraid, because we are definitely not doomed.

This coming Friday, I will have a piece for you based on all that I gleaned at the Roadshow that I hope makes clear how "not doomed" we are. (Pay no attention to the fact that the analysis will drop on Friday the 13th 😲.)

The deeper learnings I absorbed and the vibrant connections I made with elected officials, community leaders, advocates, clergy, and others from all across the rural South at the Roadshow will now form the basis for a new land use project I will soon be announcing, so be on the lookout for that!

Flock cameras

After I covered an impassioned plea to City Council from a local resident that the City decommission its 10 Flock Safety automatic license plate readers, I was curious to know more. This resulted in The Edge's investigation of the ALPRs across all three jurisdictions in our readership area.

The investigation helped pull focus onto the technology's use in both Berea and Richmond such that during the election, Flock cameras featured in nearly all candidates' campaigns across Richmond and Berea.

When incumbent Berea mayoral candidate Bruce Fraley announced that he was considering decommissioning the cameras, The Edge went even deeper and wrote a second investigation that addressed the questionable behavior of the tool's manufacturer, Flock Safety Corp., the potential threat its internal policies hold for its municipal customers, and how when some jurisdictions sought to decommission the cameras, the company would not comply.

The final result of our reporting is still pending, but already we have helped center public conversation on the Constitutionality and ethics of such surveillance.

Election 2026

The Edge's extensive election coverage at the federal, state, and local levels this year would not have been possible without partnerships from Anthony Hudson and his team at StreamGoMedia and Kelly Wallingford and his team at WBON-TV.

Wow, there is so much one can achieve when the people are good at their jobs and are fun, too! The one thing I did not do because of lack of resources was interview all of the magistrates before the primary in May. But by the summer, things had fallen into place and for the general election, we covered all the candidates who would work with us, and even those who refused.

Anthony, Hunter Saylor, and Aaron Lang at StreamGoMedia in Berea helped me record 15 interviews over the course of less than two hours a day every day across seven nonconsecutive days. And they built a studio just for the occasion. It really was remarkable. Thank you so much!

Kelly and his team, including Michael Watkins and Grendalyn Morton, moved me from being a reporter in the field during the primary to being a co-anchor on camera during the general election. I loved every minute of both.

I also need to thank Melissa Newman again, because she provided the funding I needed to have a production assistant, Berea College junior, Connor Williams, for the election coverage we did on the podcast.

For that, I also must thank Jacob Dickerson, PhD, Chair of the Communication Department at BC, who ensured we had use of the College's podcast studio to record interviews with every single Congressional (lower chamber) candidate, and all the state candidates who agreed to be interviewed.

Developing stories

We will continue to cover the damage to private property in Richmond's Covington Woods neighborhood, thanks to poor oversight of construction on the City's regional sports complex. We are also closely following the decision by Richmond's Planning and Zoning to shift the responsibility of common area upkeep in residential subdivisions from home owner associations to private property owners.

As editor, I believe these two stories beg the question as to whether policymaking in Richmond is done transparently and with competent oversight.

And with a new Fiscal Court about to settle in, we will be watching closely whether and how land use policymaking in particular shifts in the County.

Sustainability summit

How does an independent news publisher stay in business? That was the question on the table in San Diego this September when I attended the LION 2026 Independent News Sustainability Summit.

I was asked to speak about how I run an online news outlet without much infrastructure (I rule my empire from the love seat in my tiny living room is the short answer), and in particular, what I've had to forego due to budget constraints (a full-time reporter and a copy editor top the list, which is long), and if I've been able to succeed without those things (mostly yes, but only if I remember to run the spell check).

I also was there to speak about the results of a listening tour I did of seven counties in Eastern Kentucky regarding how land use information is disseminated and acted upon in rural communities. The results of that are folded into my data center work, described above. The foundational take-away is that information systems exist whether or not they are formal.

National Press Foundation Fellow

Based on The Edge's reporting on local business trends, including local residential real estate trends, I was in Chicago as a National Press Foundation Small Business Reporting Fellow, sponsored by the US Chamber of Commerce.

Ultimately, what I learned will help me better cover the concerns small business owners have about tariffs, the economy overall, and off/on-shoring. This was the second consecutive year I was named a fellow. Last year, I was a Federal Action, Local Impact Reporting Fellow. I am honored to have been chosen and grateful for the thoughtful programming NPF offers to its fellows.

Kentucky Foundation for Women

In order to cull through more than 300 pieces I have published here and elsewhere since 2018, so that I could organize them into a book, I applied to the Kentucky Foundation for Women's Loretto residency program.

I was graced with this opportunity, which also allowed me to explore what is known as Kentucky's Holy Land, given that Loretto is one of five religious orders located in the Bardstown area.

In addition to completing three essays, including the latest in The Edge's Book of Common Good project, sponsored by the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky, outlining a book proposal, and editing my reporters' stories, I spent a lot of time in church, in the woods, and walking in the moonlight, enjoying the peace and serenity of it all. I also watched the World Series.

Grateful for life

And while this is not really work-related, I would like to share that I am now the volunteer patient advocate at Saint Joseph Berea.

Once it was explained to me how near to death I had been after a thyroid storm caused me to have heart failure earlier this year, in gratitude for the high level of care I received—especially in the emergency room at Saint Joe's in Berea, where my ultimate ICU stay began—I asked how I might serve. The advocacy opportunity was available, and I was happy to step into it.

If you ever have concerns or comments about the quality of healthcare delivery you or a loved one experience at Saint Joe's you can contact me and I will be happy to listen and act as a liaison if necessary.

Response to challenge

The fact is, without our amazing audience—YOU—none of this would even be worth the effort. You have been the reason I have asked so many questions, interviewed so many people, connected the dots, and trained my reporters to do the same.

Until recently, I proudly proclaimed that we are the most-read digital-print news outlet in Madison County, our coverage area. But last week, an employee of WEKU demanded I prove it.

When I asked why The Edge's readership numbers matter to a publicly funded media outlet with infrastructure supported by a state university, that is neither our direct competition, nor of the same format, the response was a direct challenge to my integrity, which is not good for business if you run a news organization.

However, while I have the utmost confidence in my claim, I agree that if I say we're number one, there had better be evidence to back that up.

That is why I am seeking a third party audit to verify The Edge's status as the most read print-digital news outlet in the County. You can read more about that here.

Meanwhile, until I am able to get an outside audit, I am not going to publish our numbers, even though I believe that on sheer readership of our flagship publication alone (not social media) we are ahead by at least three times. Nor for the time being will I make the claim we are number one, even if I believe we are.

That's because I don't fully understand why this challenge has been put to me the way it has and by whom, and until I have a reliable, neutral way to parse the data, I will not willingly expose this amazing community and body of work that we've built to the whim of someone has made clear to me is not invested in our success.

What I will do is continue to ask for your support! Especially if I end up having to pay for an auditor. 💵

And if you are already a free subscriber and really want to help us grow even stronger, please become a paid member of our community.

If you're a paid subscriber and want to help us do more, you can upgrade your membership level!

Thank you for everything!

Peace,
Whitney