Editorial: Why Small Towns Need Their Own Voice
- Gull Lake Events
- Nov 3
- 4 min read
(Part of our ongoing reflections on Gull Lake’s future)
In many small towns like Gull Lake, the absence of a newspaper or dedicated news outlet leaves a gap in how stories are told and how communities see themselves. This editorial explores why that matters—and how we’ve worked to fill that gap.
“Has Gull Lake heard of the internet?”
That was the blunt question a marketer asked during my first term as mayor. At the time, many of our businesses weren’t listed on Google, and the only news outsiders could find about Gull Lake on the web were vehicle accidents and weather events. Print media wasn’t carrying our everyday stories beyond the region. The gap was obvious: our community had no real voice online.
Without local news, communities risk becoming invisible.
Council decisions, infrastructure updates, local achievements, and everyday stories — from events to business news—are the lifeblood of our community identity, yet they often slip through the cracks.
This gap has only widened in recent years. Across Saskatchewan and Canada, many regional and area newspapers have disappeared—including the Gull Lake Advance, which for more than a century carried our community’s stories in print. Those that remain are stretched thin, tasked with covering larger territories and more communities than ever before. In practice, that often means the bigger centres win out, while smaller towns like ours risk being left unheard. National and provincial outlets rarely cover small‑town stories either, not because they aren’t important, but because they don’t see them.
The trend is clear across the country. Global News reported in December 2023 that more than 500 local news outlets have closed since 2008, including Kamloops This Week, which shut down less than six months after being nationally recognized for award‑winning reporting. Saskatchewan has felt this too: in 2025, Regina’s Prairie Dog and Saskatoon’s Planet S closed after decades of publishing, a loss described by supporters as “a big loss” for civic and cultural life. Each closure leaves behind a gap in civic life, and small towns like ours are especially vulnerable.
To change that, the marketer helped the town set up a blog on the municipal website and gave us a simple task: share any news we believed should reach the wider world. I looked after the blog, and while I wasn’t a journalist, I did my best to faithfully document our town’s happenings. Over the years, that work became more than just a duty — it became something I enjoyed. Even now, in retirement, I still treat it as a kind of hobby: a way to stay connected, to keep telling Gull Lake’s story, and to celebrate the life of our community.
Gradually, people noticed. Local and regional outlets began to take interest, and I found myself giving frequent interviews about council decisions and even broader pieces on our community. One recent example stands out: a simple post about town slogans on the Gull Lake Events website sparked enough interest that a CBC reporter called me for an interview. It didn’t result in a news story—I explained it was an editorial I had written to start a conversation—but the call itself was a reminder that even small stories, when shared, can ripple outward and draw attention beyond our borders.
Today, that early experiment has evolved into Gull Lake Events, a platform I still operate and maintain. It’s become a hub for promoting what’s happening in our community — which includes neighboring communities as well. Residents stay informed, and occasionally, outside media takes notice.
This experience underscores a larger truth: small towns are resilient.
Where newspapers have disappeared, new forms of communication have emerged. Community‑driven platforms like Gull Lake Events, along with newsletters and social media pages, can step into the role once held by the local press. These platforms may look different from a traditional paper, but they carry the same spirit: to inform, connect, and celebrate.
And Gull Lake isn’t alone. Across Saskatchewan and beyond, many small towns face the same challenge of keeping their stories visible in a world where traditional local media has disappeared. The solutions may look different from place to place, but the need is the same: every community deserves to be heard.
“Without a local voice, small towns risk being defined only by outsiders — or worse, not being defined at all.”
The importance of this work cannot be overstated. With a local voice, we can shape our own narrative, highlight our strengths, confront our challenges with honesty and transparency — and, at times, draw the attention of the outside world. Having a local voice means having agency over how we’re seen—both by ourselves and by the world.
So the question isn’t whether small towns like Gull Lake need a newspaper. The question is how we, as a community, will continue to create and sustain the spaces where our stories can be told. Whether through community‑driven platforms, newsletters, or other digital tools, the goal is the same: to ensure that Gull Lake speaks for itself.
How do you think Gull Lake should continue to tell its story? Share your thoughts in the comments, by email, or on social media—because when a town has its own voice, it has its own future.
Blake Campbell
💡 This is just one of the many stories shaping life in Gull Lake.
👉 Explore more news, events, and community highlights on the Gull Lake Events Homepage.
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