“They are just trying to sell newspapers.” “This was just in there because so-and-so told them to print it.” “They won’t put that in The Tribune because what’s his name will be mad.”

These three statements have one thing in common: They are myths and have no truth when it comes to how The Tribune approaches the process of determining what is news.

Often, many of the stories that we print generate lots of discussion in the community and online.

Just as often, there are misconceptions about the process used to determine if something is newsworthy and reportable.

Those three statements in the first paragraph are purely false. None of those reflect the process and how we think about what goes into the newspaper and what should not.

It just doesn’t happen that way.

The first step is we just ask ourselves: Is this newsworthy? Is this something the public needs to know?

Lots of things can go into determining those two answers.

Does it involve public agencies? Does it involve tax dollars? Are there public safety elements? Does it concern elected officials? Is it just of local interest?

If the answer is “yes,” then it likely becomes something that could be printed.

These are just examples and we often ask ourselves many other questions based on the individual circumstances.

The next part is: How do we get the information? Is it factual? Can it be proven? This is perhaps the most important because even if something is newsworthy, if we cannot get the evidence to back it up, we simply will not report on it. That’s why you may hear gossip and rumors — true as they may be — that you don’t read in the newspaper.

If we can’t prove it, we can’t print it.

The theme throughout is: What are the moral, ethical and legal obligations to the community?

We try to consider the impact of every story we write. We have a responsibility to the citizens of Lawrence County and our thousands of readers to do our best.

Does that mean everyone is going to be happy all the time? Of course not, but I can say we do not take anything lightly and decisions are discussed at great length.

The majority of any newspaper’s revenue comes from advertising. When you look at circulation, about 85 percent of The Tribune’s distribution is to subscribers so flashy headlines or putting something on the front page to “sell papers” simply doesn’t add up.

We could print that “Aliens land on the courthouse lawn,” for a week straight and the extra papers sold wouldn’t generate enough revenue to pay our electric bill.

As far as being influenced by outsiders what to print or not to print, it just doesn’t happen. We gather all the information about any given story and make a determination from there. Who it will make mad or who it will please isn’t ever part of the process.

I’m sure I will never be able to convince the naysayers, but we aren’t beholden to anyone and we have only one agenda: To provide Lawrence County citizens with the most local news reported as fairly and accurately as possible.

Are we perfect? Of course not, but that doesn’t mean there are any grand conspiracies.

Michael Caldwell is publisher of The Tribune. To reach him, call (740) 532-1445 ext. 24 or by e-mail at mike.caldwell@irontontribune.com.