2015-01-15

Read the Latest Acorn!

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Enjoy the new online reading experience!

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Acorn online content now offered free

'Paywall' removed

The new millennium has been a transformative time for newspaper publishing.

Changing reader habits and the advent of new technology have placed big demands on companies in the print news business.

The Acorn and its parent company, Times Media Group, understand that their biggest responsibility is not only the delivery of credible, relevant information in a timely fashion, but making sure residents have easy access to the publication when stories become available.

That’s why we’re super excited about the news being shared today.

Following a five-year stretch in which Acorn readers were given the option of purchasing online subscriptions to the paper, that so-called “paywall” is coming down.

“Mr. Publisher, tear down this wall,” the late President Ronald Reagan might have once said.

And so we did.

Starting immediately, all online content from our five Acorn publications will be available at no charge to the reader, meaning a paid subscription is no longer required to click and read articles. The weekly Acorn has always been delivered to your driveway at no cost—that more than 40-year tradition will continue—and from now on The Acorn on the internet will be free as well.

Why the change?

The Acorn is your community newspaper, and we want to make sure it stays that way. We believe it’s important that residents feel a connection to the stories we write and also learn about the businesses that advertise in their community. The absence of a paywall is the best way to ensure this free-flow of information remains.

We also invite readers to sign up for the new, easy-to-read Acorn newspaper e-edition delivered weekly to your e-mail. Viewed on mobile, desktop or laptop, the pages are super easy to navigate and, free, just like the print paper.

Local journalism is first gear in the engine that drives America’s free press, and a free press it shall be.

Archives

Student donates tech to adults with cerebral palsy




Individuals with cerebral palsy are improving their computer knowledge and skills thanks to a donation by Ben Flyer, a senior at Agoura High School who raised $3,420 to purchase technology for students in the Thousand Oaks Adult Day Program. United Cerebral Palsy Los Angeles helped Flyer with his efforts. “Without the adaptive software and hardware, a number of students were […]

Exploring the Wild



Briefs



Vendors sought for Earth Day event Environmental vendors and exhibitors are wanted for the 18th annual Arbor Earth Day event from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sat., April 18 at Conejo Creek Park North, 1379 E. Janss Road, Thousand Oaks. Businesses and nonprofit organizations with environmental information or products can take part in this event. Presented by the City of […]

When it’s time to say goodbye to a pet pal




Scout was Jerry Shevick’s special friend. She was a rescue dog that liked to patrol his backyard in Westlake Village to the point where she would break through screen doors to get outside. Rambunctious but lovable. When the female dog passed away from lymphoma several years ago, Shevick was shocked to see how his pet’s body was treated when it […]

Hot Flashes

Under your glass

And so it’s the new year. We’re going on diets of gravel and kale, jogging until our sciatica erupts, scraping glitter off the piano and placing some neglected reads on the nightstand instead of watching “Pawn Stars.” For a week. As for me, well, I found my inspiration under a martini glass. Not my glass. Must have been someone else’s. […]

Ida Lauper Smith

(1927 – 2014)

Ida Lauper Smith, 87, of Westlake Village passed away on Friday, December 26, 2014, surrounded by her family after a brief illness. Ida was born August 1, 1927 in Los Angeles, California to Albert Lauper and Ida Pfister Lauper. Ida grew up in Los Angeles and worked at the Shell Oil Company where she met her life partner, John Carter […]

Mountain bikers brush up on skills



Study the sap in your family tree

Learn about genealogy at open house in Thousand Oaks

The Conejo Valley Genealogical Society will host an open house for the public from 6 to 8 p.m. Tues., Jan. 20 at the Grant Brimhall Library, 1401 E. Janss Road, Thousand Oaks. The club is open to those interested learning more about genealogy. The event will feature special areas that will spotlight the CVGS Computer Interest Group, the Beginner’s Tools […]

More donors are stepping up to make community park a reality



Additional donors are contributing to the development of the new Westlake Village Regional Family Park and Triunfo YMCA. The first phase of the park is slated to open this spring, with the Y on schedule to open in the fall. Pierce Brothers Valley Oaks is providing $50,000 over five years towards the construction of a Veteran Memorial Gardens, American monument […]

Free spay, neutering services available for pit bulls, mixes



The Humane Society of Ventura County is offering free spay or neutering to pit bull and pit bull mixes for a limited time this month. Funding is limited and the program will only last for a short time so Ventura County owners of pit bull and pit bull mixes should act soon. HSVC began its first free spay and neuter […]