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The Seattle Times

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The Seattle Timesis an American daily newspaper based inSeattle,Washington.Founded in 1891,The Seattle Timeshas the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and thePacific Northwest region.The Seattle Times Company,which owns and publishes the paper, is mostly owned by the Blethen family, which holds 50.5% of the company; the other 49.5% is owned byThe McClatchy Company.The Blethen family has owned and operated the newspaper since 1896.

The Seattle Times
The July 4, 2006 front page
ofThe Seattle Times
TypeDaily newspaper
FormatBroadsheet
Owner(s)The Seattle Times Company
PublisherFrank A. Blethen
EditorMichele Matassa Flores
Founded1891;133 years ago(1891)(asSeattle Press-Times)
Headquarters1000 Denny Way
Seattle,Washington
98109
Circulation210,156 (as of 2022)[1]
ISSN0745-9696
OCLCnumber9198928
Websiteseattletimes.com

The Seattle Timeshad a longstanding rivalry with theSeattle Post-Intelligenceruntil the latter ceased physical publication in 2009.

The Seattle Timeshas received 11Pulitzer Prizesand is widely renowned for itsinvestigative journalism.[2]

History

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The Seattle Timesoriginated as theSeattle Press-Times,a four-page newspaper founded in 1891 with a dailycirculationof 3,500, whichMaineteacher and attorneyAlden J. Blethenbought in 1896.[2][3]Renamed theSeattle Daily Times,it doubled its circulation within half a year. By 1915, circulation stood at 70,000.

The newspaper moved to theTimes Square Buildingat 5th Avenue and Olive Way in 1915. It built a new headquarters, theSeattle Times Building,north of Denny Way in 1930. The paper moved to its current headquarters at 1000 Denny Way in 2011. In 1966, the publication changed to its current name ofThe Seattle Times.[4]

The Seattle Timesswitched from afternoon delivery to mornings on March 6, 2000, citing that the move would help them avoid the fate of other defunct afternoon newspapers.[5]This placed theTimesin direct competition with itsJoint Operating Agreement(JOA) partner, the morningSeattle Post-Intelligencer.[6]Nine years later, thePost-Intelligencerbecame an online-only publication.[7]

TheTimesis one of the few remaining major city dailies in the United States independently operated and owned by a local family (the Blethens). The Seattle Times Company, while owning and operating theTimes,also owns three other papers inWashington,and formerly owned several newspapers inMainethat were later sold toMaineToday Media.[8][9]The McClatchy Companyowns 49.5% of voting common stock in the Seattle Times Company, formerly held byKnight Ridderuntil 2006.[10]

Awards

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The Seattle Timeshas received 11Pulitzer Prizes,[2]most recently in 2020 for its national reporting of theBoeing 737 MAXcrashes[11]by reporters Dominic Gates, Mike Baker, Steve Miletich and Lewis Kamb. It has an international reputation for its investigative journalism in particular.[12]In April 2012, investigative reporters Michael Berens and Ken Armstrong won thePulitzer Prize for Investigative Reportingfor a series documenting more than 2,000 deaths caused by the state of Washington's use ofmethadoneas a recommended painkiller in state-supported care.[13]In April 2010, theTimesstaff won the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting for its coverage, in print and online, of theshooting deaths of four police officersin aLakewoodcoffee house and the 40-hour manhunt for the suspect.[14]A tenth Pulitzer Prize was awarded in 2015 for breaking news coverage of theOso mudslide.[15]

Timesphotographer Jerry Gay won the 1975Spot News Photographyprize for "Lull in the Battle",an image of firefighters resting after fighting a house fire. In 1982, reporterPaul Hendersonwon thePulitzer Prize for Investigative Reportingfor his coverage of the case ofSteve Titus.Titus had been wrongfully convicted of rape, and in a series of articles Henderson challenged the circumstantial evidence in the case, convincing the judge to reverse Titus' conviction.[16]

Controversies

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2002 headline controversy

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In February 2002,The Seattle Timesran a subheadline "American outshinesKwan,Slutskayain skating surprise "afterSarah Hugheswon the gold medal at the2002 Olympics.[17][18]Many Asian Americans felt insulted by the headline because Michelle Kwan is also American.[19]Asian American community leaders criticized the subheadline as perpetuating a stereotype that people of color can never be truly American.[19]The incident echoed a similar incident that happened with anMSNBCarticle during theWinter gamesin 1998,[19]which was reported on byTimes.[20]The newspaper's Executive Editor at the time of the controversy, Mike Fancher, issued an apology in the aftermath of the controversial headline.[19]

2012 election controversy

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On October 17, 2012, the publishers ofThe Seattle Timeslaunched advertising campaigns in support ofRepublicangubernatorial candidateRob McKennaand astate referendumto legalizesame-sex marriage.The newspaper's management said the ads were aimed at "demonstrating how effective advertising withThe Timescan be. "[21]The advertisements in favor of McKenna represented an$80,000 independent expenditure, making the newspaper the third largest contributor to his campaign.[22]More than 100 staffers signed a letter of protest sent toSeattle Timespublisher Frank Blethen, calling it an "unprecedented act".[23]

Joint Operating Agreement

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"Quarters of the news editor", one in a group of four photos in the brochureSeattle and the Orient(1900), collectively captioned "TheSeattle Daily Times—Editorial Department "

From 1983 to 2009, theTimesand Seattle's other major paper, theHearst-ownedSeattle Post-Intelligencer,were run under a "Joint Operating Agreement"(JOA) whereby advertising, production, marketing, and circulation were controlled by theTimesfor both papers.[2]The two papers maintained their own identities with separate news and editorial departments.

TheTimesannounced its intention to cancel the JOA in 2003, citing aclausein the JOA contract that three consecutive years of losses allowed it to pull out of the agreement.[24]Hearst sued, arguing that aforce majeureclauseprevented theTimesfrom claiming losses as reason to end the JOA when they result from extraordinary events (in this case, a seven-week strike by members of the Newspaper Guild). While a district judge ruled in Hearst's favor, theTimeswon on appeal, including a unanimous decision from theWashington State Supreme Courton June 30, 2005.[25]Hearst continued to argue that theTimesfabricated its loss in 2002. The two papers announced an end to their dispute on April 16, 2007.[26]

The JOA was terminated when thePost-Intelligencerceased publication; its final printed edition was March 17, 2009.[7]

Content

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The Timescontains different sections every day. Each daily edition includes Main News & Business, a NW section for the day, Sports, and any other sections listed below.[citation needed]

Friday:NW Autos; Weekend Plus

Saturday:NW Homes

Sunday:Business; ShopNW; NW Jobs; NW Arts & Life; NW Traveler; Pacific NW Magazine

Pacific NWis a glossy magazine published every week and inserted in the Sunday edition.

Delivery and page width

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For decades, thebroadsheetpage width of theTimeswas13+1⁄2inches (34 cm), printed from a 54-inch web, the four-page width of a roll ofnewsprint.Following changing industry standards, the width of the page was reduced in 2005 by 1 inch (2.5 cm), to12+1⁄2inches (32 cm), now a 50-inch web standard. In February 2009, the web size was further reduced to 46 inches, which narrowed the page by another inch to11+1⁄2inches (29 cm) in width.[27]

References

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  1. ^"The Decline of Local News and Its Impact on Democracy"(PDF).League of Women Voters of Washington Education Fund.November 14, 2022.
  2. ^abcd"Overview of the Seattle Times".The Seattle Times.Archived fromthe originalon January 31, 2014.
  3. ^Crowley, Walt (August 10, 2006)."The Seattle Times publishes its first edition edited by new co-owner Alden J. Blethen on August 10, 1896".HistoryLink.org – The Online Encyclopedia of Washington State History.
  4. ^"The Seattle Daily Times (Seattle, Wash.) 1896-1966".Library of Congress.United States.RetrievedSeptember 3,2021.
  5. ^American Journalism Review:40 Years Of Death In The AfternoonArchivedMarch 30, 2006, at theWayback Machine
  6. ^"Seattle Times Shifts to Mornings".The New York Times.March 5, 2000.RetrievedJanuary 28,2016.
  7. ^abPérez-Peña, Richard (March 11, 2009)."As Cities Go From Two Papers to One, Talk of Zero".The New York Times.RetrievedJanuary 28,2016.
  8. ^Richards, Bill (June 2009)."Blethen's Choice".Seattle Business Magazine.RetrievedJune 28,2016.
  9. ^Mapes, Lynda V. (June 16, 2009)."Times Co. completes long-stalled sale of Maine newspapers".The Seattle Times.RetrievedJune 28,2016.
  10. ^"McClatchy Now Gets 49% of 'Seattle Times'–And Gains 2 Other Washington Papers".Editor & Publisher.March 14, 2006. Archived fromthe originalon August 28, 2016.RetrievedJune 28,2016.
  11. ^Baruchman, Michelle (May 4, 2020)."Seattle Times wins Pulitzer Prize for Boeing 737 MAX coverage".The Seattle Times.RetrievedMay 4,2020.
  12. ^Outing, Steve (November 16, 2005)."Investigative Journalism: Will It Survive?".NetNovinar.org.Archived fromthe originalon October 4, 2007.
  13. ^"The 2012 Pulitzer Prize Winners".
  14. ^"The 2010 Pulitzer Prize Winners".
  15. ^"Seattle Times awarded Pulitzer Prize for Oso landslide coverage".The Seattle Times.April 20, 2015.RetrievedMay 4,2020.
  16. ^Paul Henderson, Pulitzer Prize-winning Seattle Times reporter who championed the underdog, dies at 79 | The Seattle Times
  17. ^Chang, Iris (2003).The Chinese in America: A Narrative History.Penguin Books.ISBN978-1-101-12687-5.RetrievedFebruary 20,2018.
  18. ^Tewari, Nita; Alvarez, Alvin N., eds. (2009).Asian American Psychology: Current Perspectives.Taylor & Francis Group.p. 421.ISBN9781136678028.RetrievedFebruary 20,2018.
  19. ^abcdFancher, Mike (March 3, 2002)."Times won't forget readers' reminder on Kwan headline".The Seattle Times.RetrievedFebruary 20,2018.
  20. ^Sorensen, Eric (March 3, 1998)."Asian Groups Attack Msnbc Headline Referring To Kwan – News Web Site Apologizes For Controversial Wording".The Seattle Times.RetrievedFebruary 20,2018.
  21. ^Brunner, Jim (October 17, 2012)."Seattle Times Co. launches ad campaigns for McKenna and gay marriage, draws criticism".The Seattle Times.Archived fromthe originalon January 20, 2013.RetrievedOctober 25,2012.
  22. ^Gill, Kathy (October 22, 2012)."Seattle Times Ad Buy Leads To Newsroom, Reader Protests".The Seattle Times.Archived fromthe originalon April 13, 2013.RetrievedOctober 25,2012.
  23. ^Brunner, Jim (October 18, 2012)."Seattle Times news staffers protest company's political-ad campaign".The Seattle Times.Archived fromthe originalon October 26, 2012.RetrievedOctober 25,2012.
  24. ^Richman, Dan; Phuong Lee (January 26, 2006)."JOA fight between P-I, Times may heat up".Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
  25. ^"TheSeattle Post-Intelligencer,Court sides withSeattle Timesin JOA dispute "
  26. ^Pryne, Eric (April 17, 2007)."Seattle Times, P–I reach agreement to keep both newspapers publishing".The Seattle Times.RetrievedNovember 16,2007.
  27. ^"Seattle Times making move to 46-inch web".News and Tech.com, February 2008
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