The Estevan Mercury and Southeast Lifestyles have brought their websites together, creating a comprehensive place for the public to find out what is happening in the city.
The merger took place on March 15. All of the content will be found at www.estevanmercury.ca. The site will boast the in-depth coverage of news, sports and cultural events and stories that the Mercury is known for, and the great human interest stories found in Lifestyles each week.
“This is a logical next step in bringing the two newspapers together,” said Jim Ambrose, the publisher of the Estevan Mercury and Southeast Lifestyles. “We are excited to get to this position, and even more excited to bring forward changes that will engage the community.”
In the last two years, the advertising, administrative, editorial and production staff of both newspapers have been brought together. The papers also share an office at 68 Souris Avenue North in Estevan.
The Estevan Mercury was established in 1903 and it is the oldest business in Estevan. Since it opened, the paper has maintained a strong tradition of sharing all the news in Estevan, regardless of whether the news is good or bad.
In its 113-year history, the paper has won many awards for the strength of its reporting, and it has documented the biggest stories and the most memorable moments in Estevan’s history.
Lifestyles traces its roots to 1999, when it started publishing as Estevan Lifestyles Publications, and it has always strived to be a positive reflection of southeast Saskatchewan. Last year it merged with the Southeast Trader Express to create the new publication, Southeast Lifestyles.
Lifestyles editor David Willberg noted that a strong online presence has been a part of Lifestyles since 1999. In 2006 it was presented with the award for the top website among the Saskatchewan Weekly Newspapers Association
It’s the only time the award was ever handed out.
“The employees at Lifestyles have always been proud of our website,” said Willberg. “But this was an outstanding opportunity to create a one-stop shop for everything that people need to know about what is happening in the city.”
The Estevan Mercury has had a strong online presence for many years as well. It usually has more than 50,000 page views a month, making it one of the most visited websites among weekly newspapers in the province.
The new website will also boast numerous other features, including opinion pieces, a comprehensive community calendar, videos, photo albums, classifieds, obituaries and information on advertising. The Cheers & Jeers that appear each week in Lifestyles will now be found on the Mercury site.
The Facebook and Twitter pages for both the Estevan Mercury and Southeast Lifestyles will also join together as part of this process.
This will not impact the print version of either publication. The Estevan Mercury will continue to be distributed on Wednesdays in the Estevan area, while Southeast Lifestyles will continue to be available on Fridays.
