‘Town Crier’ hits stride

E-newsletter covers COVID-19, other area news five days a week

By Michael Somerby EBS STAFF

In town centers around medieval England, one would hear the ancient cry, “Hear ye, hear ye!” and run toward it.

In those days the ability to read was a luxury, so the responsibility of dissemination, professionally speaking, fell on the shoulders of a celebrated individual: the town crier.

His job was to gather a crowd, sometimes with the assistance of a gong or bell, and yell breaking news to onlookers.

Several centuries later, in March 2019, Explore Big Sky launched our “Town Crier” e-newsletter, the latest rollout in an ongoing effort to enhance digital engagement and stay current with emerging digital trends.

The newsletter has been popular for months, but EBS has witnessed tremendous growth in the “Town Crier” audience over the last eight weeks.

The reason is plain to see.

Events of today ironically parallel some of those of medieval times, notably the spread of a pestilence. While the COVID-19 pandemic pales in comparison to the terror rendered by the Black Death, which claimed roughly 95 percent of people infected by some estimates, folks in both periods searched for answers, information and updates from their local news provider.

And nothing is more direct than straight-to-inbox delivery format, aside, of course, from standing beneath a town crier’s soapbox to hear his words.

Now, more than a year after the 2019 launch, that “Town Crier” newsletter model has evolved into a five-times-a-week dynamo, boasting more than 16,000 dedicated subscribers eager for local and regional news along with great music, stimulating quotes, timely videos and incredible photography—entirely hand-picked by the EBS staff and delivered to your inbox each day.

We aim to provide subscribers with an informative and entertaining platform where you can gather your bearings in the news cycle. Never before has a regular missive, chock-full of the content people need to navigate this temporary new normal rendered by COVID-19, been more relevant and appreciated.

For “EBS: Town Crier” seekers, a subscribe function has been added to the explorebigsky.com homepage. Visit bit.ly/2Uh1Ob9 for a direct link to the free subscription form.