Manatee Herald Publisher Update June 1, 2022

Dennis Cooley

Hello Manatee County! I have not produced an update like this since I started Manatee Herald. This update is a bit of a roller coaster, but please stick with me to the end. There are updates in here you don’t want to miss.

I started this news outlet out of frustration with the coverage by our local media. I felt our options were unfair and biased. I wanted to create something that was completely opposite = fair and unbiased news coverage.

Local news is important. Without it, business opportunities might go missed, politicians can go unchecked, local heroes go uncelebrated and a community can fall apart. It is somewhat of a web that holds communities together. So, I also wanted to ensure that the news could be read by any and all citizens. This is why our content is free.

I will never operate like the Twitter content police or the Biden Disinformation Board. They work to limit freedom of speech by taking it away and censoring it. While I haven’t agreed with everything I have published, publishing it anyway is what Republican principles are about. We are the party of free speech and I try to be its champion.

As a publisher, I don’t publish pass judgment, or believe in limiting or blocking content simply because I don’t like or agree with it. I respect and support open dialog of different ideas. Even within our party, there are varying opinions on everything. It’s amazing how widely ideas can differ even when we share the same basic foundation. Owning Manatee Herald has exposed me to many viewpoints and I’m grateful for this experience. I have learned a lot and grown in many ways.

Publishing content is a tougher business than most people can fully appreciate, especially when it comes to local political content. It’s easy to say “cover it all and print it all”. As a small start-up business, we have our challenges just like any other business with limited resources. We are working hard to continue following our principles as a fair, balanced, and free news outlet within the constraints of our budget and reach.

Covering local content has other challenges as well. It requires navigating a sometimes tricky intersection of personal relationships and the business performance as a news organization. There are times it takes a strong stomach to do the right thing or at least to do what you believe is the right thing. Consider for a moment some potential conflicts of short-term gains vs long-term relationships, quality read rates vs click bate, maintaining being trustworthy while covering party politics, and more. I hope we have proven that we take our motto of fair, balanced, and free seriously.

In addition to our motto, as it relates to the news industry, I’d like to share this insight. You have the opportunity to make the news you want it to be. If you don’t like something someone is saying about you or being printed about you, then you have three options.. 1) Stay the course because what you are doing follows your principles and you are willing to accept the press on it. 2) Change what you are doing because maybe they have a point. 3) Ignore them and not engage because you either don’t care or don’t want to give credit to what they are saying.

I feel this advice can be applied to business, politics, and personal relationships. Speaking of relationships, sometimes keeping these separated can be difficult not only as a publisher but in life in general. I know business owners who think making a political position is bad for business and others who think it has helped them gain new customers. I know people who don’t speak to each other anymore over different opinions that became too much on their relationship. And I know others that know how to draw effective lines and can vary in philosophical ideas greatly.

It all comes down to respect. Pure and simple. We all want to be respected for who we are and what we stand for, or at the very least, given the respect to have these ideas as individuals.

Unfortunately, we have become a nuclear society and are quick to blow up a relationship or position or something else just because of a disagreement. Everything seems to be a single issue determiner of right and wrong, good or bad. What happened to the understanding that we are all not perfect? News flash – No one is perfect and we will always make mistakes and have disagreements. So, if you want to judge others by single issues then you should expect others to judge you the same way.

This leads me to a few definitions and the way I have come to see them relating to content in general. Good news and bad news is different than news you like and news you don’t. There are opinion pieces, there are news articles, press releases, and more. Unfortunately, the lines are sometimes blurry and it’s hard to tell, so you really have to know your sources.

Making a relationship with Mark Young, Army veteran and strong conservative, to provide regular exclusive content with his opinion column, Tales of the Mark Side, was a pivotal moment for Manatee Herald. His opinion column which runs twice a week provides an unfiltered perspective from a strongly principled conservative. His work was the start of regularly produced, original content for us. If you aren’t following his work, you should. As he would tell you, stay vigilant.

I don’t want to just reflect back on how things are going, but also tell you about great things to come. In addition to filming more Let’s Talk episodes and sharing a weekly highlight of arrests in the Criminal Corner, we are in development for even more great local content.

I’m excited to also take this opportunity to share with you that Manatee Herald will be gaining new leadership. When I filed to run for State Representative, District 70, I knew something would have to give. There simply isn’t enough time in the day to campaign, run multiple businesses, and have a balanced home life. I didn’t want quality to suffer at Manatee Herald so I made the decision to search for the right person to carry on this responsibility. Even though my campaign has been suspended, after meeting with Bob Spencer, I knew the right thing to do was to continue working with him and to see the sale of Manatee Herald through.

Bob Spencer is a local businessman, a fellow conservative Republican, and will be taking the reigns as the new owner starting June 1, 2022. I’m excited about all the great things he will be able to bring to Manatee Herald. He brings a new level of excitement and a lot of new ideas to the table.

Lastly, I would like to thank you all for giving me this opportunity to fulfill a few personal goals by joining me at Manatee Herald. I knew I couldn’t be the only one out there that was frustrated with our local news options and the growth of readership has proven to me that starting this news outlet was the right thing to do. Several of you even clicked the donate button, which was very flattering and quite helpful, not just financially, but gave me something extra for which to work.

I hope Manatee Herald will continue to be the beacon of truth for local news and a lasting legacy representing fair, balanced, and free news to come for many generations. What Manatee Herald is doing is more than just providing news, it is a movement we should all want to be a part of. It represents freedom. It represents transparency. It represents the protection of our liberties. These principles must be protected and Manatee Herald is here to help in that fight. I ask you to please continue to follow the efforts here and show your support by interacting, advertising, and sharing our content.