Today's edition of the Daily Journal begins the 140th year - and the 15th decade - during which we've reported news of Tupelo, Lee County and Northeast Mississippi.

In the same year, 1870, a few months before the first edition of what would become today's Daily Journal came off the press, a new town, Tupelo, received its charter and officially became part of Mississippi's map.

Community and newspaper have thrived during 140 years of extraordinary and ever-faster change and progress, thriving in the larger view in parallel histories embracing respect and partnership - tempered with the historic adversarial and essential critical role of the free press.

The Daily Journal today begins a year-long celebration and continuation of our newspaper's history, its role in shaping the region and reporting the region's news. We have spent most of our first 140 years investing in and participating to a unique degree in the substantial, tangible, economic, educational, civic, spiritual, artistic and ethical development of the larger community.

We are determined to maintain, improve, sustain and expand that historic commitment, using our corporate resources, advancing technology and intentional involvement to keep our readers - with the printed page and in the new media of electronic technology - informed, inspired and intellectually stimulated.

We are fully aware of the challenges for newspapers nationwide, but the financial problems facing some companies are not necessarily a universal phenomenon. Prudent business practice, built on a foundation of community-based philanthropic investments, remains at the core of our commitment to readers and advertisers.

During this historic year the Daily Journal will regularly publish stories and photos from our pages about the formative events of the community's history, and we will host a series of events and emphases illuminating and reaffirming our continuing commitment.

We are committed to the next 140 years of our company and community as firmly as the 14 decades we'll review and reaffirm during 2010.

The Journal remains acutely aware of the visionary heritage and leadership that has brought us to 2010. The ideas of guiding lights like the late Publisher George A. McLean and Editor Harry S. Rutherford remain firmly fixed. Their constant willingness to use new and innovative technologies, broaden and alter news coverage for changing times, and use our editorial voice to weave together the best intentions and plans from Tupelo and the region - our customers - remain central in the newspaper's vision.

Our goal remains building community, nurturing a rewarding quality of life for all, and reporting with accuracy and fairness the events, plans and personalities of the day, in print and online.