Jamie Chaffey (Parkes, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Hansard source

With the huge changes in the media and communications industry over the past 20 years, it has become harder and harder for local newspapers to survive. I'm proud to say that community journalism is still alive and well in the Parkes electorate. Indeed, the Cobar Weekly is celebrating its 40th birthday. That's 40 years of celebrating and commemorating community milestones, and 40 years of advocating for the Cobar community. That is a significant achievement, and I congratulate all those who have played a role in the Cobar Weekly over the years, including the managing editor, Sharon Harland, and her team.

I also congratulate the team at the Broken Hill Times, who celebrated the paper's first anniversary in October last year. The Broken Hill Times stepped in when the Barrier Truth shut after 130 years of operation. The Gunnedah Times marked its fifth birthday in November last year after it was established by the owners of the Narrabri Courier.

The electorate's own Lucie Peart, who took over the historic Gilgandra Weekly and added a number of other mastheads to the stable, has been a strong advocate for community journalism. Lucie was last year awarded life membership of Country Press New South Wales after a record eight years as president.

There are over 35 publications in my electorate, from the Western Herald in Bourke to the Hillston-IvanhoeSpectator, the Parkes Phoenix, the Champion-Post, the Dunedoo District Diary and everywhere in between. Thank you for the work that you do.

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