As editor/publisher, I want to share a few thoughts on our plans at the Dorchester Reporter (@DotNews) for covering our communities during this COVID-19 emergency.

Yes, COVID-19 is the BIG story and it likely will be for a while. Our team of reporters and contributors @DotNews continue to work from our newsroom and remotely to document what’s going on, both w/ CONVID-19 and other neighborhood issues. We fully intend to print the weekly editions in Dorchester and Mattapan, which are circulated on Wednesdays each week. We have contingency plans in place to publish online-only at http://www.dotnews.com if there’s some interruption in printing capacity.

But, whatever the medium, our reporters and columnists and editors will continue to share information.

We have a long thread online now that synthesizes reporting from our team and @StateHouseNews here.

Right now, we’re very interested in hearing from our readers about what they want to know… Please DM our reporters @DotNews or email us at newseditor@dotnews.com.

Today, we’ll be spending time talking to people at neighborhood stores/restaurants/cafes to get a better sense of what’s happening at those businesses and to find out more about how is this crisis changing behaviors/spending and the like. We’d love to hear more about what people are doing to prepare.

We’re staying in close contact with health centers and hospitals in Dorchester and Boston to document what they are hearing/seeing. Our contributor— @BillWalczak— offers some valuable insights on that in today’s edition.

One business note: While our newsroom remains open and active at this time, we have made an important change in protocol that impact advertising and other walk-in appointments. Effective today, all advertisers — including those seeking to place legal notices— must do so through phone (617-436-1222), fax (617-825-5516) or email (addesk@dotnews.com). We will not accept walk-in business during the state of emergency.

This is an incredibly fluid story. It’s magnitude and scope is unprecedented. But we’re committed to staying focused on the local angle and providing the best information we can to our readers.

-Bill Forry
@BillForry