One of the greatest things about this electronic age in which we live is our easy access to news.

I’m a news nerd. The first thing I do every morning is check Google news with a cup of coffee. Then, I check the Web site of the hometown newspaper of where I grew up. Finally, I look at several regional newspapers to get an idea of what’s going on around us.

The added benefit of 24-hour access to news is the immediacy in which it is available.

In most cases, breaking news can be available in roughly 30 minutes of it happening. Granted, it won’t be the full story, but you’ll get an idea of the event unfolding, and updates throughout the day keep you abreast of the situation as it develops.

I remember growing up that you could only get news once a day from your daily newspaper or from the 5 p.m. or 6 p.m. news broadcast.

Now, you can get news whenever you want it.

The Demopolis Times is proud to be part of the ever evolving 24-hour access to news.

Last week, we launched a daily e-mail, which is currently delivered to nearly 2,000 mailboxes five days weekly.

If you’ve not yet signed up, doing so is simple.

You can register your e-mail address at our Web site’s homepage at www.demopolistimes.com. You’ll find a yellow box where you can enter your e-mail address and subscribe. Joining the list is absolutely free.

As an added bonus, the same subscribers to the daily e-mail will also receive breaking news alerts. In the event of a significant news event, you will be alerted via e-mail virtually immediately. As the situation develops, you will be able to follow it on our Web site, www.demopolistimes.com.

Newspapers have long been pigeonholed by their publication cycle: daily, bi-weekly, weekly, etc. Now, by embracing the opportunities the Internet affords us, the Demopolis Times has been able to add near-immediacy to its bi-weekly publication cycle.

Jason Cannon is publisher of the Demopolis Times.