Complete Story
07/02/2018
This small California publication provides a blueprint for how local buyers can save a newspaper
Recently, the Half Moon Bay Review covered a school bond election that appeared too close to call. There was an extensive report on racism experienced by Asian Americans following a viral video of a local incident that shocked many. There were stories on youth softball, plans for an encampment to ease homelessness and new programs at the local high school, to name just a few of the things the newspaper covered.
In some ways, it was just another full week for me, the editor of a small-town newspaper who has more of a calling than a career. In other ways, it was a new beginning for the 120-year-old weekly newspaper tucked into the little yellow building next to City Hall in a city 30 minutes south of San Francisco.
On June 1, a group of local citizens closed on the purchase of the Review and its related assets, which include a pair of magazines, a website and the building we call home away from home.
It was anything but a garden-variety media purchase. In this case, the buyers were not planning to drink in profits and spit out whatever remained.
