Ah, Facebook. It's good to have you back ...
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"Still not paying to read your *insert poo emoji here," Scott said.
That was one of the first charming comments as the Illawarra Mercury Facebook page roared back into life on Friday morning.
Thanks Scott for your delightful greeting ... on our Illawarra Mercury Facebook page. There is an irony in that, isn't there?
If you choose to not subscribe to our news service then that's totally fine, even though doing so does enable us to continue to provide local journalism jobs and news that would otherwise not exist.
And for the five millionth time, just to reassure readers again, all our Illawarra Mercury journalists and photographers are local and live in this region and the paper is not produced in New Zealand. Our subs desk was briefly outsourced, but that stopped more than five years ago. So can we do away with that myth already?
News sites across the country reappeared on Facebook after the social media giant and the Australian government agreed to amendments to the media bargaining code legislation.
The new amendments include a two-month mediation period to give parties more time to create deals before a final offer arbitration process.
The government will also have to provide digital platforms one month's notice before any code is designated.
The week without Facebook has been an interesting one to be brutally honest.
Sure, we've missed some of the traffic Facebook provides, but we didn't miss the cesspool of negativity it can be and seems to have evolved into.
Yet once again, Facebook will return as just one of the ways we deliver our content out into the world.
Once again we'll suffer those like Scott who make the social media platform the "pleasant" place it can be.
But we will also welcome back those who make it a much better space.
Readers like Lyn, who simply offered "Welcome back" on our first post on Facebook on Friday.
Thanks Lyn, it's great to see you again too.
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Julian O'Brien
Editor of the Illawarra Mercury and former editor of The Advocate (North-West Tasmania). Journalism is simply about telling good stories well and we do so now across a broader platform than ever before. Our role as a regional masthead is to not only share the stories our readers care about but to be a passionate torch bearers for community at every opportunity. We are stronger together.
Editor of the Illawarra Mercury and former editor of The Advocate (North-West Tasmania). Journalism is simply about telling good stories well and we do so now across a broader platform than ever before. Our role as a regional masthead is to not only share the stories our readers care about but to be a passionate torch bearers for community at every opportunity. We are stronger together.
