'We will continue to be there with you through this crisis': A letter to readers of The News by Mark Waldron

Last March, when the country was first plunged into a national lockdown, we pledged that we would be #therewithyou. It was a phrase blazed across the front of this newspaper - along with our sister titles around the country - and has proudly formed part of our masthead ever since.

It sits there along with ‘Trusted news since 1877’. These are not two throwaway phrases we use lightly or have added to fill space. They are values which we live by every day as your local newspaper.

Way back then we also boldly stated from our front page that we would beat whatever the pandemic threw at us together. How true this was proved throughout the months that followed. And we know our united resilience remains as strong today.

Throughout 2020, we printed hundreds of photographs of our selfless key workers who helped to keep the cogs of our great city and surrounding towns turning during the darkest of days. Today we will continue to rely on the army of health workers, emergency services personnel, volunteers, shop workers, refuse collectors and many more to keep our communities running and support those who need their help the most.

SEE ALSO: The News announces the date of its 20th Business Excellence Awards

We may not be physically clapping every Thursday but we will still subconsciously applaud the army of frontline workers in our hospitals, surgeries, care homes, clinics and practices who have

in effect become a human shield to us all.

It was not just the professionals we saluted last year as we shone the spotlight on the everyday #actsofkindness among friends and neighbours. As we embark on this new year we will continue to feature those people across all communities who rally around or just do something special to bring a smile to our faces.

Throughout last year we ran our #supportlocal campaign to promote and champion our local businesses as they adapted and diversified to stay afloat and selflessly sought ways in which they too could help those most in need. We were out on the streets when our High Streets and pubs and restaurants opened their doors again last summer. And our backing remained as loud when we hit a second lockdown and urged you to focus your Christmas spending locally. This campaign remains part of The News DNA.

Aside from the celebration of local life we also have a duty to report accurately on the pandemic and its impact on our lives. We take no pleasure in reporting the scale of this crisis. At the end of the day we are all human - we feel every single emotion as well, particularly when we have reported on lives both lost and turned upside down.

But it is our responsibility to bring you the news you can trust and so you are aware of the scale of the virus and the steps we all need to take to keep ourselves and our loved ones safe. We will continue to give voice to our trusted local health professionals to ensure we provide you with as much context and transparency in a bid to tackle the tide of misinformation.

On Monday night the Prime Minister warned the weeks ahead will be the hardest yet and said ‘now more than ever, we must pull together’. At least this time we are armed with two vaccines which will start to turn the tide against the virus.

Today, as we find ourselves locked down again, our commitment to you, our readers, is that we will continue to be #therewithyou. I hope that you, in turn, will continue to show your support for our journalism in the weeks ahead.

For one thing is certain: together we will beat this… AGAIN.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

You can subscribe here for unlimited access to Portsmouth news online - as well as fewer adverts, access to our digital edition and mobile app.

Our trial offer starts at just £2 a month for the first two months.