Sound-Off returns digitally

BY PHILL BARNETT
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN

THE INTERNET — The Mountain Citizen has officially launched its newest online platform: MountainCitizen.com. The website may be accessed from any device connected to the Internet by navigating to mountaincitizen.com in your browser.

When you arrive on the homepage, you will be greeted by a feed of the most recent articles published on the website. Scrolling down the homepage will remind readers of the experience of skimming through a physical copy of the Mountain Citizen. The feed is filled with titles and excerpts that link to full articles elsewhere on the site. A free or paid subscription to the website is required to comment on the articles in order to prevent spam.

Some articles are premium and subscription-protected. While a free excerpt is available for these articles, users who do not have a paid subscription will not have access to the articles past the first few paragraphs.

Subscriptions are available for purchase on the Subscriptions page of the website through PayPal. Digital subscriptions are currently available on a weekly ($0.99/week), monthly ($2.99/month), or annual ($20/year in-county; $27 out-of-county) basis. A digital subscription with a print subscription, the Annual Archiver bundle, is also available ($20/year in-county; $27 out-of-county). Current traditional newspapers subscribers will have full access to the site and should expect instructions via U.S. mail. 

The top of each page of the website features a menu of buttons that take you to another section of the site, such as a feed of articles of a certain category or a search or contact page.

One of the menu items is the Community Calendar, a regularly updated interactive list of community events in and around Martin County. The Community Calendar is hosted through Google Calendar, so you can add the Community Calendar to your own Google Calendar account by clicking the plus button in the bottom right-hand corner of the calendar.

The Mountain Citizen’s website features many opportunities to interact with the paper and other readers. One of the most eagerly anticipated features of the website is the Sound-Off page. The Sound-Off page, found in the menu, brings back the classic Mountain Citizen Sound-Off, asking readers to answer a question each week either anonymously or with their name attached.

The Mountain Citizen will select the best responses to publish on the website. In order to participate in the Sound-Off, users will need a free or paid subscription. Paid subscribers will also be able to access an archive of online Sound-Off questions and featured answers.

Your first time visiting MountainCitizen.com, you will be greeted by a popup encouraging you to subscribe to the online edition to gain access to more content and features on the website. A subscription is not required to view the website and many of our articles are available in full, free of charge. You can clear this popup by clicking the ‘X’ in the upper right-hand corner.

You should also see a cookie notification that allows you to select how the website and our partners may use your data and store cookies on your browser. This is in place to ensure that all of your personal browsing data is being safely and ethically handled. You must select a preference for this popup.

Logged-in subscribers will not encounter these pop-ups. Along with the ability to comment on articles and participate in the Sound-Off, a free subscription is also useful for a more streamlined experience on the site.

Advertisers interested in placing ads online should contact the Mountain Citizen at 298-7570 or mountaincitizen@bellsouth.net. Advertisements can be placed on specific pages, articles, category feeds, headers, footers, or anywhere else on the site to meet your advertising goals and budget.