Just to hopefully reduce some confusion out there, I purchased Columbuscountynews.com from Jeff Allen Jones in December. Mr. Jones said he wanted to get out of the news business due to health reasons, and I could either purchase CCN or he’d shut it down, or possibly shift it to Brunswick County. The purchase was completed in December.
Since I took over CCN and began our makeover, Mr. Jones started another online media outlet, based out of Brunswick County but also claiming to cover Columbus. There’s been some confusion here and there about his new product, but one thing you can be sure of: Columbuscountynews.com, a division of Southeastern Community News Inc., is still the CCN you have supported for more than five years. We cover Columbus and part of Bladen counties. We are not affiliated with Mr. Jones and his company in any way, and he regularly and emphatically tells folks he wants nothing to do with Columbus County, except for collecting revenues from here, which is the right of any business in a capitalistic society. There’s nothing wrong with honest competition.
There are folks who love Brunswick County, and they have many good reasons to do so. However, we are proud to live here, work here, and be part of Columbus. This is our home. We love Columbus. Our office is in downtown Whiteville, at 125 East Main Street. We aren’t ashamed of our home county. We want to see it grow, and we want to grow with it.
If you want news for Columbus County, from Columbus County and the greater Columbus area, from people who live here and care what happens here, stick with CCN, regardless of how slick of a sales pitch someone gives you.
We don’t use bots to create readers: our analytics are compiled from true readers who have come to trust us, not fake ones bought and paid for to artificially create numbers. We do not scrape your data with our website or sell information gathered from you.
We do not use AI to rewrite stories copied from other news outlets. Even run-of-the-mill press releases are handled by a real, live, human being to conform with our standards. There’s a growing trend among news outlets across the state and nation to use AI; it’s legal, but not ethical, in our way of thinking. As the Apostle Paul said, all that which is legal is not expedient. We don’t consider bots, AI, and cut-and-paste to be journalism. It’s not honest and fair to our readers.
Your advertising dollars stay here with CCN – they don’t go to another county. You can actually visit our office and meet real people. We are invested in our community. If there’s ever a question about whether you’re dealing with a CCN representative, call me. The CCN mobile is 910.234.6991. My personal cell is 910.632.4965. The only time those numbers aren’t answered are during church or if I’m on the line with someone else.
Contrary to the spiteful rumors, I’m still here. Miss Rhonda and I are still in Hallsboro. Kelly Vereen of Hallsboro is currently our only sales representative, and she stays busy. Crystal Faircloth is still covering Lake Waccamaw, handling the Good News and church news, and writing features as well as her cooking column. Tommy Taylor brings you sports coverage from Columbus and Bladen counties. And of course, Meteorologist Christopher Cawley provides your only truly local weather forecast every day on the CCN website as well as WTXY radio.
We’re deeply enmeshed in a complete rework of our website, which was in part necessary due to some malicious acts that are all too common these days. Buying or starting a business is always a challenge, but when folks intentionally and purposefully try to cripple you from the start, it can lead to a lot of sleepless nights. Thankfully we’ll soon be launching the all new Columbuscountynews.com, and we think you’ll like the product.
We look forward to serving you for many, many years to come, and we appreciate all of your support for the only truly free source for local news for Columbus County. — Jefferson Weaver
