Call Us Ink-spired
What goes around comes around. It’s true with most trends — just look at today’s fashion. Turns out, it goes for newspapers too. Print isn’t dead, it’s just changing.
Many young people are now opting for custom newspapers instead of programs on their wedding day. Maybe we’re just news nerds, but we find it very aesthetically pleasing. Your big day is newsworthy, and should be print-worthy too, right?
You can find these templates on etsy or on websites like The Ceremony Club. *Bonus points if you take photos with the newspapers.
The trend isn’t just for weddings. We’ve seen it for graduates, baby announcements and more. The irony is that many local newspapers still offer space for announcements but, we digress.
Darlene Stark, circulation director of local newspaper The Pilot, says “people like to keep papers for certain things. I have people come in to buy extra copies all the time if their photo is in the paper, or for something like sports or obituaries.” The Pilot also prints special sections worthy of celebration, like its annual 20 Under 40 tab or the Open Daily tab (printed during the U.S. Golf Open and distributed at the championship, in hotels and around town.)
Though not everyone has the time or money to make a whole custom newspaper, creativity stops at nothing. Now we’re seeing announcements simply written on regular old newspapers. We just recommend skipping the obituaries page if you participate … could be awkward.
Sandhills local Christina Bailey said she got the idea for her maternity photos from Pinterest. “I didn’t want a super traditional shoot with a sonogram,” she says, “but I wanted to do an announcement and to me it felt newsworthy.” Paige Bartos Photography brought her vision to life. Though Christina admits she usually consumes her news online, she says, “I just love that it feels so nostalgic. It brings a feeling to the pictures.”
Recently, The Village Wine Shop announced their newest location, coming to downtown Southern Pines, with the newspaper trend. Owner Mary Schlaff said they weren’t ready to reveal all of their plans just yet, but they wanted to announce that it was happening. “I was thinking along the lines of headlines and breaking news. I saw other examples on Instagram and I thought it would be something fun and different as a way to announce this,” Mary says.
Local boutique Harper Jewel announced its third anniversary event at its sister location in Asheboro with the trend. “I think it’s a cute way to get your point across,” says owner Brittainy Byrd.
During NC State’s recent basketball triumph of making it to the final four, students flocked to get their hands on a copy of its student newspaper, The Technician.
The physical paper gained popularity as the basketball season progressed, leading them to print four times the amount they usually would, according to an ABC 11 article. Staff handed out thousands of copies of their Final Four special edition to students and alumni. The Pilot typically prints 10,000 copies of each edition, but printed around 500 extra copies during the Moore County Blackouts in December 2022. Many free copies were handed out around town by The Pilot’s staff.
Previous Technician copies during the tournament also gained popularity with students. One student wrote their underdog slogan, “Why Not Us?” on the paper which was photographed and shared on the official NC State Instagram page.
We may not fully understand the psych behind it but seeing things physically in print, or in some cases on print, still holds meaning.
“It’s like the new vinyl,” says Darlene. “Vinyl came back around for younger generations, maybe now newspapers can be the new ‘in’ thing.”
Who said young people aren’t into newspapers?
