The New Era (newspaper)

The New Era is a newspaper in Sweet Home in the U.S. state of Oregon. It has been published weekly since its inception in 1929, and covers east Linn County. News historian George S. Turnbull opined in his 1939 History of Oregon Newspapers that despite the city's small size, the paper had been "lively and well made up."[1]

The New Era
TypeWeekly Newspaper
FormatBroadsheet
Owner(s)Miriam and Scott Swanson
PublisherScott and Miriam Swanson
EditorScott Swanson
Founded1929
LanguageEnglish
Headquarters131 Main Street, Sweet Home, Oregon United States
Circulation1,678
Websitewww.sweethomenews.com

Regional renown

At the time of the New Era's founding, the Sweet Home had already attracted attention outside its immediate area. Turnbull noted the columns of Mrs. Ole M. Feigum, a "wide-eyed country correspondent" chronicling the local habitat, who had served for several years as a correspondent to Portland's much larger Oregonian, and who later earned national recognition as a "country correspondent."[2] In covering the New Era's launch, the Oregonian challenged the New Era to live up to Feigum's having "given renown to her dwelling place."[3]

Newspapers from larger population centers in Oregon have continued to cite the New Era's coverage of the Sweet Home area since its establishment. The Oregonian cited the New Era's coverage of a local Stewart Holbrook speech, in analyzing the controversial nature of the writer's advocacy around migration to Oregon.[4] Its publishers and journalists have been quoted numerous times by neighboring papers, as experts on Sweet Home news. New Era publisher Alex Paul was interviewed about his economic predictions for the region in 2000, and a 2017 story revisited that interview.[5] Many smaller examples span recent decades.[6][7][8][9][10]

Founding and ownership

The New Era was the first newspaper to take hold in Sweet Home. Prior to the founding of the New Era, the Intermountain Tribune was briefly based in Sweet Home in 1913 to 1914. Owner T. L. Dugger moved it there from Lebanon, and later moved it again to Scio.[11]

G. H. Crusen founded the New Era in 1929, as a weekly[3] four page paper.[1] John T. Russell was the publisher as of 1939; Turnbull identified his principal goal as preserving the town during the planning of dams for the Willamette Valley hydroelectric project.[1][12] Russell, who had previously been in the newspaper business in Ohio, owned the paper until 1946, including a period of partnership with Dave MacMillan.[11]

William L. Dudley and A. E. Macoubrie were the publishers from 1946 to 1970, and later publishers included John & Jack Nelson, Connie Johnson, and David O. Cooper.[11] In the late 1960s, "journalistic maverick" Bill Wickland served as the paper's editor,[13] running a provocative column called "The Wacky World of Bill Wickland." Circulation increased 25% in his first six months. But he was considered a "crazy radical," and was dismissed after a change in management.[14]

Alex and Debra Paul bought the paper from the Coopers in 1985.[15] Scott and Miriam Swanson bought the paper from the Pauls in 2005.[16] Alex Paul went on to serve on the Linn-Benton Community College Foundation Board, and to work as a journalist at the Albany Democrat-Herald.[17]

References
  1. Turnbull, George S. (1939). History of Oregon Newspapers . Binfords and Mort. p. 301.
  2. "Death takes Mrs. Ole M. Feigum, Ace of Country Correspondents". Oregonian. March 13, 1936.
  3. "Sweet Home Has a Newspaper". Morning Oregonian. October 12, 1929. p. 8.
  4. "Holbrook's Hurt Pride". The Oregonian. February 9, 1953.
  5. Petroccione, George (December 27, 2017). "January 1, 2000: Sweet Home will see few changes, residents say". Corvallis Gazette Times. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  6. "Movers and Shakers". Albany Democrat-Herald. March 15, 2004.
  7. Paul, Alex (September 11, 2014). "Craig Fentiman, six-term Sweet Home mayor, won't seek re-election". Albany Democrat-Herald.
  8. Novak, Theresa (December 19, 2017). "Marcola area searched again for man". Register-Guard.
  9. Paul, Alex (April 10, 2018). "Sweet Home honors dedicated volunteers". Albany Democrat-Herald.
  10. Paul, Alex (April 27, 2018). "Sweet Home loses its favorite cheerleader". Albany Democrat-Herald.
  11. "Linn County Newspapers". Linn County Roots.
  12. Robbins, William G. (1978). "The Willamette Valley Project of Oregon: A Study in the Political Economy of Water Resource Development". Pacific Historical Review. 47 (4): 585–605. doi:10.2307/3637373. JSTOR 3637373.
  13. "Boating Bills Debated". The Oregonian. May 11, 1969.
  14. "Bill Wickland: A Career Turned Upside-Down". The Oregonian. June 23, 1985.
  15. "The New Era sold to Scott and Miriam Swanson". The New Era. April 10, 2005. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
  16. "New Owners at Oregon's 'New Era'". Editor & Publisher. April 11, 2005.
  17. "Local resident Alex Paul honored by LBCC". The New Era. June 20, 2007. Retrieved 2018-07-21.

http://www.sweethomenews.com

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