Whiskey-curious but never had the chance to sip around and see what you like? Forno Bistro is now offering a flight called âWhiskey Explorationsâ thatâs for exactly that.
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Local News
How our local news is being rewired â and how you (yes, you) are a big piece of the puzzle.
Abby Tegnelia
âThe future of daily news in the Spa City.â
You might recognize my tagline, but how much do I really believe that newsletters, in my case the Dispatch, are the future of journalism?
So much that Iâve bet my livelihood on it.
The Saratoga Torch Club invited me to be their guest speaker Monday night, asking me to hark back to when you got the same print newspaper as your neighbor, explain what the heck happened â and then share my ideas for whatâs next.
I began my ode-to-newsletters by diving straight into why local news is so important: Local news readers (like you!) are more likely to be involved in their communities and know their neighbors, according to the Pew Research Center. Reading stories about people and businesses you know helps weave the connective tissue that we crave.
âThe disappearance of shared information produces a quiet civic loneliness,â reads an article that the club posted about my talk. âPeople still live near one another, but they inhabit different informational worlds. And yet Tegnelia does not view this moment as an ending. She sees it as a reset.â
I do!
âThe newsletter, in her view, represents a structural correction â a return to direct communication between journalist and reader,â the coverage continues. âUnlike social platforms, newsletters are not subject to algorithmic invisibility. They arrive intentionally, in a readerâs inbox, carrying the unmistakable imprint of a human voice.â
They mention that my first Substack inspiration was none other than Dan Rather â who at 89 was a Substack early adapter, launching Steadyin 2021. What he did for national news, I hope we can create on a local level here in Saratoga.
The catch? I need help and support â I canât thank you (yes you!) enough for being here, during my earliest stages as I figure out how to grow a newsletter business.
As I said Monday night, âThe new model requires journalists to adopt a mindset unfamiliar to many in the profession. Tegnelia argues that the future of local journalism depends on entrepreneurial fluency as much as editorial skill. This shift places journalists in a new role â less like reporters working within institutions and more like founders building them. The language of startups may seem foreign to traditional newsroom culture, but Tegnelia believes it is precisely what local journalism now requires: agility, experimentation, and a willingness to iterate in public.â
I must have talked a long time, because there is so much more. Letâs end with:
âFor those of us who care about the future of communities like Saratoga, the implications are significant. If Tegnelia is right, the future of local news will not be determined by the revival of old institutions but by the emergence of new ones â smaller, nimbler, more personal, and more intertwined with the daily life of the places they serve.
âAnd perhaps that is the deeper lesson unfolding here in Saratoga. The future of local journalism will not be decided by technology alone. It will be decided by whether people still believe their stories are worth tellingâŠâ
New here? Join the movement! Free to sign up â or pledge just $6/month to declare that you believe Saratogaâs stories are worth telling.
đ° IN BRIEF
Rotary Club taking applicants for high ed scholarships
High school seniors attending private or public school within the Saratoga Springs City School District can apply now for scholarships ranging from $2,500 to $20,000 from the Rotary Club of Saratoga Springs and the Saratoga Springs Rotary Education Foundation. Applicants must pursue a degree at an accredited 2- or 4-year college or post-secondary vocational educational institution. Studentsâ financial need, extracurricular and work activities, community service and academic performance are all considered when reviewing applications.
The deadline for applying is April 1.
In 2025, the Foundation awarded scholarships totaling $101,000 to 15 students.
Subway franchisee Russ Faden is reviving plans for a mixed-use apartment complex on West Avenue near the Amtrak station, reports the Albany Business Review. Faden and his partners are calling their four-story, 23,000-square-foot project West Station (think 76 apartments plus 6,100 square feet of commercial space), the plans of which have recently been resubmitted.
Saratoga Tattoo Expo returns
The Saratoga Tattoo Expo is coming to the City Center and will feature more than 75 artists and vendors this April 24-26.
