Darkness Descends on Edmond

"Darkness of ignorance descends" as The Edmond Sun sets.

This is the fourth of my opinions on the importance of The Edmond Sun

The execution of The Edmond Sun means a darkness of ignorance is settling in on Edmond citizens, just as surely as the setting sun brings night to every day.
Democracy, freedom,  only lives in light, in the light of citizens being informed about their communities, and that light of accurate information only comes from a free press, unbeholden to the powers that be.
It is not enough for free people to live on public relations press releases from governments--cities, school boards, universities, and their branches, from the self-serving politicians. Those entities will provide only the information they want citizens to know.
Thus shutting down The Edmond Sun is more than just a historic, cultural and economic loss for Edmond. It harms an essential organ of the community's life and well being.
Where is a news staff dedicated to letting you know what really happened at city council, at the utility rates, at the zoning commission, at the school board, at public safety news, at crime events, at what politicians are really doing, at election coverage, in school sports and events, in the lives and deaths of citizens, in business openings and closings, in coverage of health issues like the pandemic? 
That's not implying corruption, but noting that a press covering a community makes corruption less likely. Light defeats darkness. It's no accident we keep porch lights, and business area lights, on at night to deter crime.
Nor is a newspaper--even a digital hybrid--the only source of information--we get much of it on social media, and other places. But the only place you can get detailed, reliable (not unchecked self-serving social media opinion) information free from conflicts of interest in our community comes from a news entity like a newspaper.  
And without that information, we are literally ignorant. Edmond is in the dark...in a descending  darkness of ignorance.