The Renton Reporter will move deeper into the Internet age of community journalism in January, moving to a once-a-week print edition in order to concentrate on beefing up its daily news coverage at rentonreporter.com.

The move is both financial and strategic, as readers expect to find more local news on the Internet and advertisers want to tap into this online readership.

Many of the same features now in the Renton Reporter will continue in the one free Friday edition. There readers will find a week’s worth of news, community features and a look ahead to what’s coming up in the days ahead.

“While many newspapers are concerned about declining readership due to the Internet age, the Renton Reporter is taking the opposite approach, purposefully reducing its frequency of distribution in favor of focusing more resources to publishing an online edition with breaking news content and regular community features that readers have become familiar with in our printed edition,” said Publisher Ellen Morrison.

“We are now able to offer our customers a great mix of print and Internet for their marketing needs. We will be a daily newspaper with our online edition and have our tangible version on a weekly basis,” she said.

The first once-a-week print edition is Friday, Jan. 2. The Renton Reporter is now delivered for free on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Also making the move to Fridays is the Auburn Reporter.

“Our goal is to be the preeminent provider of local content and advertising in the Valley,” says Josh O’Connor, vice president of East Sound Newspaper Operations, Sound Publishing, Inc.

Sound Publishing, Inc., publisher of the Renton Reporter, is the largest publisher of community and suburban newspapers in Washington and is also one of the area’s largest commercial web printers.