While many readers welcome their local news delivered at home each week, Mr Dagher says they can now also find it online and available in 14 community languages including English along with Arabic, Chinese, Croatian, French, German, Greek, Italian, Khmer, Korean, Russian, Spanish, Turkish and Vietnamese. “The diversity of a multicultural community makes our job of delivering news and information very exciting,” he said. The ownership the Cumberland community has taken of the newspaper has not come around by accident, Mr Dagher says.
“The newspaper has a rich history of working closely with the community. “We’re constantly reminded of that special relationship – a relationship reinforced by our sponsorship and support of many community events, including exclusively the School Citizenship Awards,” he said. Mr Dagher says while the masthead reveals it is proudly Auburn, the newspaper is also the source of local news for surrounding suburbs, such as Lidcombe, Berala, Merrylands, Regents Park, Silverwater, Granville and Sydney Olympic Park.
“We’re the eyes and ears of the community, and we’re looking forward to being around for another 60 years,” he said. Aurburn Review founders, the later Alan Harris and the late Jim Pratt, were working for Cumberland Newspapers when they found out that media magnate Rupert Murdoch was taking over the company. Admitting he didn’t like Mr Murdoch or the plans proposed for the Auburn paper The News, Mr Harris who was already a branch manager at just 21, quit along with Mr Pratt, who was in his 60s.
On May 18, 1960, the pair launched the first 16-page edition of their independent newspaper, The Review, later renamed The Auburn Review Pictorial. In 1970, the The Auburn Review Pictorial was incorporated into the stable of publications owned by the Engisch family since 1920, including the Bankstown Torch, and Mr Harris was appointed to the post of marketing manager, a position he held for more than 23 years. Going on to become the general manager for three years before his retirement, he said before his passing that the paper had succeeded because it not only reported on the local community but supported it. “It’s always been local and looking after local people,” he said. “It’s the only way people can find out what is happening in their local area.”
