It’s great to be back in Baltimore!

This area is the most exciting place in the country right now. The great people, the incredible arts, entertainment and cultural scene, the thriving economy with a bright future and the fantastic overall quality of life all make this home for my family and me.

But the biggest reason is The Baltimore Examiner itself.

Getting a chance to be part of American newspaper history and return to a place I love is the opportunity of a lifetime.

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When Michael Phelps talked to me about coming back to Baltimore to lead The Examiner, his enthusiasm was inspiring. It was the enthusiasm of a proud parent talking about the new baby — in this case a brand new newspaper — he had helped bring into the world.

But it also is an enthusiasm based on fact.

The fact is: The Baltimore Examiner is an over-achiever.

In just six months, The Examiner went from start-up to being the No. 1 weekday daily newspaper in Maryland.

Nothing else reaches as many adults in this area as we do.

On an average day, about 360,000 adults read home-delivered editions of The Examiner. I believe these are the citizens who vote in higher numbers than average. They are more likely to contribute to charity, serve on boards and be actively involved in their communities.

Our readers are the people who get involved. They are the citizens who make a difference in the futures of everything from the neighborhood to the nation.

They need and want information. In their busy lives they need it in a compact, quickly read package.

Based on generally accepted estimates, at least another 36,000 adults read the 14,000 Baltimore Examiner copies available daily in strategically placed boxes throughout the market.

That means about 400,000 Marylanders read The Baltimore Examiner on an average day. Combined with readers of 80,000 copies of the Maryland Edition of the Washington Examiner, it means we reach more than half a million people in this state on an average day.

Working with Michael Phelps in Washington to add the most value to that astounding number for our readers and advertisers, while growing our unique local voice, is the kind of mission I love.

One of the factors in the success of The Baltimore Examiner is our commitment to hard-hitting local journalism. Our readership audit proves that more citizens turn to The Examiner every day than any other source to find out what is going on in their communities, state, nation and world.

Our mission is to be a value to our readers, a value to advertisers, a great employer and a contributor to the community.

I’m looking forward to seeing old friends again here and making many new ones as we build on the solid foundation of The Baltimore Examiner’s first seven months.

Michael Beatty is the publisher of The Baltimore Examiner. He can be reached at mbeatty@baltimoreexaminer.com.