Connect with the Icons using our new form:
Share News - Media Release Maker

By Paula Pyzik Scott, Icon editor-owner
Phone 567-400-4266, email [email protected]

I am celebrating three years as the owner-editor of the Bluffton Icon and Ada Icon. Golly, how time flies.

Looking forward, I expect time will continue flying. So I’ve got a new bee in my bonnet: to improve how the Icon generates and reports news in Ada. The Icons have one employee, me, and a few “stringers.” And I don’t think that’s a sustainable business model.

My goals are to increase the Icons’ “bandwidth” while keeping the news free and the ads affordable by:

• Recruiting paid writers from Ada.
• Expanding the number of sources that volunteer information to the Icon.
• Making it easier to get the ball rolling and connect with the Icon.

That last point is super important: Please don’t wait for the Icon to call or show up on your doorstep. And don’t assume that the Icon has decided not to cover your event or organization.

What gets covered? The squeaky wheel. The Icons rely on media releases, newsletters, emails, conversations at chamber meetings, chats at council and school board meetings, and social media—including News in 45810—for news leads, details and photos.

Don’t have a connection with the Icon? You can use our new form:
Share News - Media Release Maker
which will walk you through providing the basic components of most news stories: the what, who, where, when and why. You can submit this form to submit information for something happening right now as well as to touch base on a topic that is still over the horizon.

Wonder if you have what it takes to be a local reporter? Some good indicators are: 1) you read the news, 2) you're already at your keyboard a few times a week or even daily, 3) you love knowing who's doing what and where, 4) you like to see both sides of every story.

What I hear most from members of the community is “Gee, you must be busy.” But I’ve also been told “The Icons must be a labor of love” and “You’re doing God’s work!” 

The Icons exist because Bluffton and Ada are busy, strong communities. I invite you to be part of a local collaboration that provides a reliable, convenient way to communicate with everyone who is interested in what is happening in Ada, Ohio.