Most newspapers, including this one, do a good job of disseminating information throughout their communities. On the other hand, newspapers do a poor job of promoting themselves, in part out of fear it would undermine their credibility.

Journalists are taught objectivity early on in their schooling; self-promotion is frowned upon. That said, newspapers are their own worst enemy in economically uncertain times like these. We sometimes fall prey to our own standards.

Newspapers do a great job of informing the public. They walk a fine line between public steward and naysayer, between watchdog and cheerleader.

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The Hood River News is no exception. When a local farmer is injured in a tractor accident, we help get the word out about a fundraiser in his honor. When youth sports teams win championships, we help them celebrate by publishing their photographs and game results. When city leaders are pondering budget cuts, we do our best to examine all sides of the issue.

Newspapers help shape conversation by encouraging letters to the editor. Letters and other opinion pieces allow readers to share different points of view. (The variety of letters on this page and page A5 is a great example of how readers respond to news articles and community issues in the Hood River Valley.)

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Some newspapers haven’t survived, but others are doing just fine, thank you. We’ve tightened our belts, put on our thinking caps and started whittling out a course for the future. That course will include input from our customers and business partners. And despite what some may read or hear, newspapers have a strong group of supporters.

More than 104 million adults read a print newspaper every day, more than 115 million on Sundays. In contrast, 94 million watched the most recent Super Bowl and 23 million watched American Idol. Locally, more than 8,000 people read the print edition of the Hood River News during an average week. And so far this month, more than 12,000 unique visitors have read the News online.

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Another myth is that young people no longer read newspapers. The reality is that 61 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds and 25- to 34-year-olds read a newspaper in an average week and 65 percent of them read a newspaper or visited a newspaper Web site in the past week.

Newspapers are a reliable advertising venue. Google’s own research shows that 56 percent of consumers researched or purchased products they saw in a newspaper. Google also says that newspaper advertising reinforces online ads: 52 percent are more likely to buy products if they see it in the paper.

We have our flaws; we make mistakes, admit them (often on our own pages) and move on.

We’re also like a lot of other businesses facing an economic meltdown and an ever-changing business model. We’re trying to figure out how to best embrace technology — more specifically how to merge print and digital media. All the while, we’re doing so with a set of standards in mind — standards our customers have expected from us for more than 100 years.