By Carlena Knight
In commemoration of Antigua and Barbuda’s 40th Anniversary of Independence next month, Observer media will be contributing to the celebration by publishing a magazine befitting the momentous occasion.
The media company is known for its publication of events such as Carnival and Independence and this year will be no different.
“Given that we are celebrating such a milestone, that being 40 years of Independence, we have corralled the [hard-working] reporters that we have here, our editors and so on, to put together an Independence supplement like no other, and we are going to be releasing that towards the end of this month, around Independence,” explained Kadeem Joseph, one of the staff members spearheading the campaign.
“I know that this has become one of those things that children look forward to … because it provides a lot of information about Antigua and Barbuda and about where we want to be. It’s an excellent resource document. We are looking forward to people getting a chance to see what our team here has put together with respect to Independence here in Antigua and Barbuda.”
The magazine will feature regular historical facts and national symbols, but will also have fun and out of the box stories, local expressions, games played back in the day, and even ghost stories we all grew up hearing from the older generations.
This time around, the diaspora will be playing a huge role where content is concerned as according to Commercial Manager Stacy Samuel “they, too, have played a significant role in contributing to the nation over the years”.
“Although, we have the bulk of the work done, we are still leaving those spaces open for our corporate partners. Some would have already contributed but others may want to get on board, so we can never have too much of that support. We want our corporate partners to come in and speak with us. We have reached out to a lot of people but we can’t reach out to everyone,” Joseph added.
Interested persons can reach out to [email protected] with the subject area Independence magazine detailing if they want a half or full-page spread.
The magazine will be distributed free of charge in an online format, similar to The Daily Observer newspaper.
“In addition to our regular modes of distribution that being email, web, WhatsApp or on our social media pages. We will also be distributing via BIP. That is a software that is done via Digicel and if you are a BIP customer you can also get the paper via that portal,” Samuel explained.
Samuel revealed that there is still a possibility that a limited amount could be printed but it is not a definitive thing.
Both Joseph and Samuel shared their hope that the general public will move past the bias or stigma that surrounds Observer media, and will instead read the content, whether provocative or not, and appreciate the content and stance from the viewpoint of the writers.
The 40th Anniversary of Independence magazine will be published on November 1st.