The Grundy County Herald is proud to announce a more modern magazine-styled format — called the Berliner — will begin with the April 2 edition.

“We believe the new format’s presentation will provide a more enjoyable reading experience for our readers and will allow us to highlight our focus on local communities. We are dedicated to continuing our focus on local news coverage,” said Lisa Hobbs, editor and general manager of the Grundy County Herald.

The Berliner design offers an innovative, more colorful alternative to traditional broadsheet newspapers, a design the newspaper’s leadership expect will be well received by readers. News, features and other content will be organized to enhance reader experience — making the newspaper easier to read, easier to hold and easier to locate key sections. At 17 inches tall, the paper will have a more proportionate, more manageable height to width ratio than the current page height of 21.5 inches.

In addition to the more modern look and feel, the new format will also help with managing the rising cost of postage, making and keeping the paper viable as your local news source.

R. Michael Fishman, President of Lakeway Publishers, Inc., the parent company of the Grundy County Herald, says this is an exciting move that will help keep the newspaper at the forefront of community journalîsm.

“Times are changing rapidly for community newspapers, and we must change with the times,” Fishman said. “After years of delivering a traditional broadsheet newspaper, we expect the first couple of editions may feel strange to long-time subscribers. But we also expect they will quickly embrace this change of format which will bring them a more colorful, better organized and easier to manage product. A community newspaper is part of the lifeblood of any small to medium town, playing a vital role in keeping the public informed on the news of the day. This move will help to ensure that the Grundy County Herald will continue to be a vital part of this community for generations to come.”

The change aligns with the paper’s continued mission of producing community-specific credible local journalism, including rapid delivery of daily news reporting online, news that no one else can deliver, news that is relevant to you, your family and your community.