Guilford County has a new law they have to adhere to, and newspapers like the News & Record don't like it.
The county is now required to post public notices on its website rather than print them out in local newspapers, like they used to in the past. The News & Record is among one of the newspapers in Guilford County that is planning to sue the county as well as the state of North Carolina.
Without the requirement of public notices having to be published in the papers, local journalists fear they will lose significant revenue that publishing the notices had once brought. The county is planning on issuing public notices for private businesses like local attorneys in addition to notices about the cities and towns that make up Guilford County. Since all 13 municipalities will be required to go to the county website to air their public notices, instead of newspapers, the papers will see revenue loss.
The lawsuit will be filed soon, and the county is aware. The new website where public notices will go is up and running currently. For now, notices will be run in newspapers and on the website to make for an easier transition.