JUNE
2006
Welcome
to The Journal
of South Mississippi Business
RICKY MATHEWS
Publisher, Sun Herald
Publisher, The Journal
Since
its inaugural issue in October 2002, The Journal has grown to become
the largest business monthly in Mississippi. More than 35,000 business
and community leaders read The Journal each month.
Published by the Pulitzer Prize-winning Sun Herald newspaper - but
separate and independent from it - The Journal was created to report
on and record the story of economic and business development throughout
South Mississippi. We're telling the stories of entrepreneurship,
of leadership and of a new spirit of cooperation among the region's
development leaders.
From the first issue, we've encouraged and reported on the growing
efforts at "regionalism" - the recognition that the area
from Hattiesburg to the Mississippi Coast is, in fact, an economic
region. While we have our unique differences, we've got a lot in
common. For decades, we concentrated on the growth and development
of our own individual community, but that's begun to change. A new
spirit of cooperation has taken hold. South Mississippi leaders realize
that we must get more focused and aligned around common issues. And
we are finding common ground.
In fact, The Journal itself is an outgrowth of this spirit of regionalism.
After conversations with leaders of economic development organizations
along the Mississippi Coast and the Area Development Partnership
in the Hattiesburg area, it became apparent that one thing missing
was a way for these business leaders from Hattiesburg to the Coast
to communicate with each other and to promote their progress and
their needs to each other and to our legislators in Jackson and in
Washington. With their blessing and encouragement, The Journal was
born.
That regionalism has never been more apparent than in our rebuilding
and renewal after Hurricane Katrina. As the storm and its aftermath
demonstrated, we are blessed with some excellent leadership among
our elected officials and business community. The Governor's Commission
on Recovery, Rebuilding and Renewal wisely took a regional approach
and brought together some of the best minds from throughout South
Mississippi to develop the plans which will make our area a model
for the rest of the country. A major priority of The Journal is to
cover the implementation of that plan and monitor our progress.
South Mississippi's recovery will be the biggest business and economic
development story of the first half of this century. And The Journal
will tell that story not only to South Mississippi's business community,
but through The Journal and its website, to the rest of the world.
JOHN McFARLAND
General Manager, The Journal
The
Journal of South Mississippi Business launched in October 2002 with a distribution
of 8,500. By the summer of 2006, that distribution has grown to over 15,000
copies with a readership estimated at over 35,000.
Our readers are business leaders. The distribution of The Journal includes
every chamber of commerce member from Hattiesburg to the Mississippi Coast. Economic
development officials, elected officials and other business leaders are included
in our distribution. More than 1,200 copies are mailed outside Mississippi
each month. And this website offers The Journal to a worldwide audience
through the World Wide Web.
While Hurricane Katrina blew or washed away 68,000 South Mississippi homes and
damaged three-quarters of our area's businesses, The Journal's staff has worked
hard to keep our mailing list and distribution as updated as possible, maintaining
our 15,000+ circulation throughout our recovery.
The Journal is advertising-supported. By making this publication available
to the vast majority of the region's business leaders, we are providing the most
unique and most cost-effective advertising vehicle for you. Our advertising
information page shows just how cost-efficient The Journal is. We strongly
recommend you consider The Journal as your business-to-business advertising medium. And
ask about our "combination" advertising packages, which allow your
ads to appear in The Stennis News (the official publication of the John C. Stennis
Space Center) at a discounted rate.
The Journal is your publication, your opportunity to talk to South Mississippi's
business community and chamber members each month. While our editorial
staff will provide interesting and timely features each month, much of what you
find in each edition comes from readers like you. We encourage you, your
public relations department or communications committee to share your news with
us. You can write us at The Journal, P.O. Box 4567, Biloxi MS 39535
or, more conveniently, you can email us at mynews@southmississippi.biz.
A very important role of The Journal is to recognize outstanding business and
community leaders in South Mississippi and to hold them up as example. You'll
find such leaders profiled every month in our publication. Partnering with
The Sun Herald newspaper, we also sponsor an annual awards program to identify
and recognize South Mississippi's Outstanding Community Leaders and Top Business
Leaders Under 40. For more information, or to nominate someone you know,
check out the Roland Weeks Hall of Fame on our website . |
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