New Year’s resolutions

Published: Saturday December 29, 2007

A year ago in this space, we resolved to set a high standard for ourselves, to have high expectations of our community, to be constructive, to appreciate good work, and to reach out to our readers. We have been kept our promises. And we know we can do much more.

Our resolutions this year are much the same:

SET A HIGH STANDARD. We again resolve to bring you a first-class newspaper every week.

Like a good museum, seeking to showcase the best and the most promising talent, our Arts & Culture section has reflected and contributed to the vitality of the Armenian cultural scene and the involvement of Armenians in the arts. We will continue to do so.

Our enhanced coverage of community life has allowed you to see yourself, your relatives, and your friends in the paper more often. We will continue to be your paper, while working harder to cover the issues that weigh on your mind.

We are proud of our first-hand coverage of developments in our nation's capital. We will build on our record there, bringing you more interviews and thoughtful analysis.

Likewise, we are pleased to be able to bring you first-hand coverage of developments in the homeland. We will continue to try to balance coverage of politics and arts with stories about the lives and work of ordinary folks in various parts of Armenia and Karabakh.

We also resolve to develop an Internet presence that meets your information needs in an efficient and accessible manner.

HAVE HIGH EXPECTATIONS. The Armenian-American community in the early 21st century has the human and the material resources to excel at whatever it chooses to do. We again resolve to set our sights high, and to hold our community to high standards.

BE CONSTRUCTIVE. Looking at Armenia and the diaspora, it is difficult not to see problems and crises. Anyone can write a scathing critique.

We report problems, of course, and we will continue to hold officials and organizations in all realms of Armenian life, in the homeland as well as the diaspora, accountable. But an important part of our job is also to look for challenges and opportunities. We resolve to continue to track down the officials, the groups, and the citizens who are finding solutions, overcoming obstacles, seizing opportunities, and to write about them.

APPRECIATE GOOD WORK. Across the United States and beyond, Armenian groups - small and large, long established and newly formed - as well as individuals are implementing great projects. We resolve to continue to be on the lookout for them.

REACH OUT. With so many wonderful people in our communities, producing a newspaper can be a most enjoyable challenge. We resolve again to organize our work so we can be away from the office and in the community as much as possible.

DON'T FORGET TO WRITE! Finally, we have a New Year's resolution for you, our readers: Write to the editors of the Armenian Reporter. (See box below right for addresses.) Let us know what you think about the issues we cover, the issues we ought to cover, the way we cover them, and anything else on your mind. And let us know some of your resolutions.