Sprengelmeyer was the Washington D.C. correspondent for the Rocky Mountain News before deciding to try his hand at running and reporting for a small town newspaper. He has brought a professional approach to news reporting in a town of less than 3,000 people and it has served to increase sales, he says.

Sprengelmeyer does it all, from reporting to driving to Clovis to pick up his press run — a five and a half hour drive according to Google Maps.

What is the draw for readers in a small town to read the paper?

“If a house burns down, everybody here knows it, saw it, knew the people, probably hugged them, but they still want to read about it in a paper that comes out four days later,” Sprengelmeyer told the New York Times.

Follow NMI on Twitter and become a fan of NMI on Facebook. Got a news tip? Want to pitch a story idea? Send us an e-mail.