HAWTHORNE — To local news junkies, it was like gospel.

But, on the day after Christmas, Hawthorne Press met the same fate as scores of other community papers around the nation, when it printed its final edition following a 95-year run.

The independent publication, which mostly covered crime, education and politics in Haledon, Hawthorne, North Haledon and Prospect Park, had operated in the red for years, according to an editorial printed in its last issue. In spite of that, its publisher, Linda Missonellie, continued to pursue her calling, she wrote.

Missonellie, a former trustee of the library board and school board, wrote her decision to cease publication was "one of the most difficult" that she ever made.

"In a world where social media dominates," she wrote, "all print media is on life support ... Both on a financial and personal level, this newspaper cannot sustain another year."

The paper was sold at local delicatessens and luncheonettes for 50 cents per copy, and it regularly printed legal ads, police blotter and obituaries. Its last issue — a 16-page installment — reviewed the past year's most noteworthy events under a banner that read, "Best and Worst of 2019."

Missonellie, a borough resident, declined a request for an interview.

She and her late husband, William Missonellie III, took over the weekly paper from his uncle, who died in December 1965.

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Under their direction, the paper converted from broadsheet to tabloid format and navigated many changes in technology, such as the advent of digital photography and high-speed computers.

Missonellie wrote in her editorial that she resisted the idea of creating a website, calling online media an "abject failure."

Mayor Richard Goldberg said the paper did a lot more than inform its readers — it held politicians in check.

"We used to read the editorial every week to see what we did right, to see what we did wrong," said the mayor. "You want to make sure someone is making sure that we don't become a runaway train."

The downfall of local news outlets is a coast-to-coast collapse.

Citing research by the University of North Carolina, The New York Times reported last month that more than one out of every five newspapers in the country has shut down over the past 15 years.

"It's going to be tough to overcome," Goldberg said about losing the borough's oldest weekly publication. "The paper will sorely be missed by the residents of Hawthorne."

Philip DeVencentis is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: devencentis@northjersey.com Twitter: @PhilDeVencentis