Book Review by David Hoffman
(The Hollywood Times) 10/16/26 – Let’s begin this book review with a groaner of a joke.
What’s rainbow-colored (as well as black and white) and, most importantly, “read all over”?
The answer: The best darned weekly general-interest newspaper, edited from an LGBTQ perspective while remaining straight-friendly, boldly serving Northern Virginia—the incomparable and inimitable Falls Church News-Press.
And now, Dear Reader, our fullest attention must be paid to a new book chronicling the literal genesis of this remarkable newspaper in 1991 and the revelations found in its many consecutive weekly editions—more than 1,800 and counting—through 35 years of journalistic rites (and writes, rewrites, and rights) of passage.
Yes, it’s a weekly miracle!
It’s published on schedule, in print and online, all while navigating the demanding discipline of the business bottom line. Advertising dollars, column inches, budgets, and deadlines must somehow come together every single week.
Because the Falls Church News-Press is very much like the little engine that could.
And at the center of it all is that wise old journalistic owl, Nick Benton—the maven and majesty, the publisher and poobah, the editor and educator—whose name has become inseparable from the newspaper’s masthead.
It’s Benton saying aloud every week, “I think I can.” And perhaps, always under his breath, “At least I hope I can.”
And he does.
Nota bene: Benton delivers hyperlocal news covering not only the eponymous Little City of Falls Church but also Arlington County, the City of Alexandria, and neighboring portions of Fairfax County.
He does it with finesse and flair, covering politics and local government, public schools and sports, arts and entertainment, housing and transportation.
It’s a frequently breathtaking tightrope act, with Benton somehow maintaining his balance while leaving readers to gasp in amazement.
How does he do it?
Imperturbably, it seems, and always with a twinkle in his sometimes jaundiced eye, guided by his signature passion for progressive politics, feminism, and humane values.
That’s the weekly miracle.
Of course, every superhero deserves an origin story.
Think back to the 1930s and that legendary ink-stained reporter Clark Kent of the Daily Planet. Also known as Superman, he could leap tall buildings in Metropolis in a single bound.
Or consider Bruce Wayne, the brooding, mysterious man of wealth and power in wicked Gotham City, whose cape and bat mask conceal a burning zeal for justice and a determination to fight crime and corruption from his secret Batcave beneath Wayne Manor.
Sounds familiar, folks?
Well, perhaps not when we consider the contemporary White House, home to our current political cross to bear—a president whose name conveniently rhymes with “Dump.” Yes, him. Melania’s husband.
But I digress.
Our own journalistic superhero, Nick Benton, has an origin story worth celebrating.
It begins when, as a small boy (he’s a large boy now), Benton published his very first newspaper at the tender age of six.
Called The Benton Star, it was produced on a mimeograph machine provided by his mother, with young Nick selling copies door to door throughout his neighborhood.
“Either I was born with printer’s ink in my veins, or I have simply never grown up — I have never been entirely sure which,” Benton writes in his immensely readable, endlessly quotable, wise, and witty memoir, The Mighty News-Press (BCI Books, Falls Church, Virginia, 2026, 72 pages).
If you care about the future of local journalism, this slim volume, written by a giant in his profession, is essential reading.
The book’s subtitle sums up its significance beautifully: How a Small, Persistent Weekly Newspaper Contributed to the Transformation of an Entire Region Over 36 Years.
Beginning to quote from Benton’s account of his life’s work presents a danger similar to opening a bag of potato chips.
You begin with one. Then comes a tempting second. Perhaps a tantalizingly salty third.
And suddenly, you simply cannot stop.
So let’s exercise a little discipline with this delicious task and select just one more passage:
“In 1991, I founded the FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS. At first, it filled a gap, nothing more — there was no consistent local coverage of the decisions shaping the city, and someone needed to provide it.”
Those words capture the very heart of Benton’s achievement.
What began as an effort to fill a gap in local reporting became something far greater: a sustained commitment to informing a community, holding power accountable, and preserving the vital connection between journalism and civic life.
At a time when local newspapers across America face mounting economic pressures, disappearing advertising revenue, and an uncertain future, Benton’s story offers both a valuable history lesson and a timely reminder of why independent journalism matters.
The Mighty News-Press is more than a memoir about running a small-town newspaper. It’s a spirited tribute to persistence, public service, and the enduring power of the printed word.
And perhaps its greatest lesson is also its simplest.
Never underestimate the little newspaper that could.
Especially when Nick Benton is the fellow keeping the presses rolling.
