A year of changes for the Chronicle

Doesn't time fly when you're having fun?

Or rather, it does while you're at work and everyone else is on holiday, enjoying a well-earned break. It's hard to think we are already a week into 2012 and at this early stage many of us are still reflecting on the past year and establishing goals and devising lists of things we'd like to achieve.

While most people have been reflecting, resting and recharging for the year ahead, the Chronicle team has been continuing putting out a paper each day.

We hope you are enjoying some of the special features we developed to keep you entertained over the holidays: puzzles, our lifeguard profiles, best summer series and revisiting those who made the news in 2011.

Sifting though the papers of the past year searching out suitable topics, it became clear how much the paper has transformed over the year.

Newspapers are organic beasts always undergoing change - how else are we to meet the ever-changing expectations of our readers?

We launched new initiatives like our Education page and Business Extra, and the weekly Regions page continued to gather momentum finding interesting stories and great characters from our region.

We also focused on trying to bring you, the readers into the coverage more, so began running more supplied pictures and focusing on Wanganui people for many of our stories, such as our election coverage with our street profiles and reader panel.

Our new-look website aided this and now online readers can comment directly on stories, submit photographs and stories directly through our website, which can also now host video.

It is a fast-paced environment where change is constant and I expect that to carry on into 2012.

We will be developing more new content and finding new ways to package existing material and to help us define what we do, and how, it would be great to find out what it is you would like to see more of in your Chronicle in 2012.

Our challenge is trying to be all things to all people - some like sport, some prefer arts and others like the puzzles or family notices. Space and resources are limited so, to help us decide which features are working, and where to devote our energies, drop me a line and tell me what direction you want your paper to go in.

Feedback: editor@wanganuichronicle.co.nz