Shawville’s The Equity newspaper sold [Video]

The Equity newspaper has been a community news staple in the Pontiac region for over 140 years.

Managing it for the last 70-plus years has been the Dickson family, reporting on everything from council meetings to community events and New Year’s babies.

“My grandparents bought the business in 1953,” says Sophie Kuijper Dickson, who is editor of The Equity, and working alongside her father Charles Dickson to publish the weekly editions.

“It’s completely a family business. It’s almost like a family member is what I’ve realized.”

But in recent times, the Dicksons say they have watched as similar community newspapers have folded in the face of changing times and the demands of the digital age. The recent Canada Post strike as demonstrated the fragility of the paper’s business model.

That led the family to decide to sell the business.

“I think a big part of it was that we realized …