The People's Platform

A note from Encore's Executive Director.

Encore’s mission is simple: to serve the people by elevating the voices, stories, and cultures that shape our community for the better—past, present, and future. That’s not a political stance. That’s a civic one.

Our platform exists for we the people. That phrase isn’t just poetic—it's foundational. It’s rooted in a belief that people, informed and connected, are powerful. That belief runs through me, through our partners and volunteers, and through every reader who understands that communities thrive when truth, creativity, and shared humanity take center stage.

Someone recently asked if Encore plans to give “equal time to opposing sides.” It’s a fair question on its face, but one that deserves deeper reflection.

Equal time has never meant giving a megaphone to misinformation, to willful distortion, or to voices committed to tearing down the very liberties and communities we aim to uplift. That isn’t balance—that’s surrender.

Encore does not, and will not, offer a platform to propaganda, hate speech, or rhetoric meant to divide, dehumanize, or deceive. Not because we fear disagreement, but because we respect truth and civic responsibility. We believe in a marketplace of ideas, not a flea market of falsehoods.

This platform belongs to you—our neighbors, our artists, our educators, our local leaders, our readers. It belongs to people who believe that informed communities are essential to a functioning democracy.

Encore is not beholden to any party, corporation, or ideology. We are accountable to our community. We will publish stories that reflect a range of lived experiences and ideas, but we draw the line at anything that undermines civil rights, public trust, or factual integrity.

So, what is fair?

Fair is honest. Fair is contextual. Fair is not giving oxygen to narratives that seek to strip others of theirs. If you have a different interpretation of what “fair” means in this work—if you want to talk about how we cover this community with more nuance, more humanity, and more integrity—then let's have that conversation.

Encore will remain committed to being a space for truth, curiosity, and connection. Because we the people deserve nothing less.

Shannon Rae Gentry

Executive Director, Encore