COMMUNITY Newspaper ignores politics, prints only good news By Wendy Fisher Emeiald Contributor Wouldn't it bn nice to have a newspaper with no religion or politics that prints just good news? That idea popped into l.ucky Colehour's mind three months ago as he sat fishing on a river bank. Hut Colehour didn't stop there. He started his own news paper based on that idea and ti tled it fust Good News. The newspaper is printed bi weekly. and its third free issue will hit area businesses and the University Dec. IS. In a front-page article of the second edition of lust Good News. Colehour explained win he created the newspaper. "It’s time for the Pollyannas to be heard, it's time for the rose-colored glasses to tint the world, it's time to return to the optimism that made this coun try what it is!" Colehour wrote. "Our media should be report ing the good things instead of the sensationally bad.” In the early i‘)80s. Colehour ran a cable television program, based in San Diego, called Good News. "We reported the news — the good news, the uplifting, inspiring items that never make the front page, but should.” he wrote. "I received hundreds of beautiful letters from all over the world, and I loved doing that show." Colehour later sold his por tion of the program and moved to Oregon to escape the pollu tion and overcrowding of San Diego. ‘Just Good News’ looks for upbeat story angles Colehour defined a lust Good .Yews story as anything uplift ing with no sox. drugs, vio lence, religion or politics Ho said his message to readers is. "Don't take anything too seri ously." The newspaper itself is rela tively simple The second edi tion was four pages long The print in lust Good News is larg er than most newspaper print, and along the bottom of the pa per is printed. "FOR KNTKR TAINMKNT ONLY Please Pass Me Along to a Friend and Make The stories in the Lane Coun ty edition ranged from intro ducing the Grand Theatre in Sutheriin. to a new family en tertainment center in Roseburg. to local Frisia^' golf organiza tions. journalism professor Carol Smith said lust (!ood News is not a new newspaper formula It is a community newspaper, which is the "lowest rung" of journalism The papers have al ways been around as bulletin boards for little towns, Smith said, adding that the only dif ference is lust Good News has a good-news spin. A sentence taken from a front-page story of the paper re fleets that community style "Vern and Phyllis own and op erate the Mini-Mart Cookie Thrift store on Stephens across from John Deere ." Smith said the newspaper "is an interesting concept but not well executed at present." and that right now it has novelty going for it. which will gel ad vertisers. l>ul tlir editorial It \ IS il.lfi Hut. she