Willamette Week
 Cover | |
| Type | Alternative weekly |
|---|---|
| Format | Tabloid |
| Owner(s) | City of Roses Newspapers |
| Founder(s) | Ronald A. Buel |
| Publisher | Anna Zusman[1] (2023–) |
| Editor | Mark Zusman |
| Founded | November 1974 |
| Headquarters | 2220 NW Quimby St. Portland, OR 97210 US |
| Circulation | 25,000 (as of 2023)[2] |
| Website | wweek |
Willamette Week (WW) is an alternative weekly newspaper and a website published in Portland, Oregon, United States, since 1974. It features reports on local news, politics, sports, business, and culture.
History
[edit]Early history
[edit]Willamette Week was founded in 1974 by Ronald A. Buel, who served as its first publisher.[3] It was later owned by the Eugene Register-Guard, which sold it in the fall of 1983 to Richard H. Meeker and Mark Zusman,[4] who took the positions of publisher and editor, respectively. Meeker had been one of the paper's first reporters, starting in 1974, and Zusman had joined the paper as a business writer in 1982.[3] Meeker and Zusman formed City of Roses Newspaper Company to publish WW and a sister publication, Fresh Weekly, a free guide to local arts and entertainment. WW had a paid circulation at that time, with about 12,000 subscribers.[4]
Post-merger
[edit]A major change was made in January 1984, when Fresh Weekly was merged into WW, the paper's print run was increased to 50,000 and paid circulation was discontinued, with WW thereafter being distributed free.[4] WW increased circulation to 90,000 copies by 2007.[5] Circulation has declined to 50,000 by March 2020.[6]
In June 2015, Richard Meeker stepped down as Willamette Week's publisher, after more than 31 years in the position.[7][8] Editor Mark Zusman succeeded him as publisher, while also retaining the editorship.[8][9] Meeker planned to continue working for the City of Roses Newspaper Company, WW's owner.[7][9]
Features
[edit]![[icon]](/https/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (March 2018) |
Prior to his death in 2010, cartoonist John Callahan's long-running comic "Callahan" appeared weekly in the paper, for almost 30 years.[10]
Finances
[edit]Since 1984, the paper has been free; as of 2007 over 80% of its revenue was generated through display advertising.[5] For 2007, its revenue was expected to be about $6.25 million, a four or five percent increase over 2006, a growth that occurred in spite of a significant decline in classified advertising that the publisher attributed to competition from Craigslist.[5] Its pre-tax profit in 2006 was around 5%, a third to a half of what large mass-media companies require.[5]
Notable stories
[edit]Notable stories first reported by WW include:
- In 2004, making public Neil Goldschmidt's long-concealed sexual misconduct with a 14-year-old girl. Goldschmidt, a former Oregon governor, was mayor of Portland at the time of the abuse. After Willamette Week contacted him for comments regarding its upcoming story about that alleged misconduct, Goldschmidt went ahead and confessed to the relationship in an interview published in The Oregonian. That interview ran prior to Willamette Week's report appearing in print, and was intended to preempt the story's publication.[11] However, the alternative weekly did finally get the scoop, breaking the Goldschmidt story first on its website.[12] Nigel Jaquiss won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting for his work on that story.[13]
- In 2008, Willamette Week's Beth Slovic drew a conclusion that former senator Gordon Smith employed undocumented workers at his frozen-foods processing operation in Eastern Oregon while acknowledging that she has no definitive proof.[14][15]
- In 2009, reporting that then-City Commissioner Sam Adams engaged in a sexual relationship with a legislative intern, Beau Breedlove. Rumors of a relationship between the two men had circulated during Adams' campaign for mayor, but Adams denied any sexual relationship. Only after Willamette Week contacted Adams for comment on an upcoming story did he admit publicly that there had been a sexual relationship. However, he stipulated that there had been no relationship between them until after Breedlove turned 18. Adams said he'd previously lied about the relationship in order to avoid feeding negative stereotypes of gay men as somehow predatory.[16]
- In 2015, then-Governor John Kitzhaber's fiancee, Cylvia Hayes, confirmed Willamette Week's report that she married an 18-year-old Ethiopian immigrant in 1997 in exchange for a $5,000 payment so that he could keep his residency to attend school in United States.[17]
Alumni
[edit]Journalists, writers and artists who have worked at Willamette Week include:
- Mindy Aloff, dance critic and essayist
- Byron Beck, blogger
- John Callahan, cartoonist
- Katherine Dunn, author
- Phil Keisling, former Oregon Secretary of State[18]
- Susan Orlean, author
See also
[edit]- The Santa Fe Reporter, also published by Richard Meeker and Mark Zusman from 1997 to 2024.[19]
- Indy Week (Durham, N.C.), also published by Meeker & Zusman since 2012.[20]
References
[edit]- ^ "Contact Us". Willamette Week.
- ^ "Willamette Week Media Kit 2023" (PDF). Retrieved 2023-04-24.
- ^ a b Bellotti, Mary (April 25, 1999). "Alternative success story". Portland Business Journal. Archived from the original on June 10, 2015. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
- ^ a b c Nicholas, Jonathan (January 9, 1984). "Free, and fresh, weekly". The Oregonian, p. B1.
- ^ a b c d "At Age 33, 'Willamette Week' Has Best Year Ever For Display Ads, Publisher Says". Editor & Publisher. November 16, 2007. Archived from the original on February 20, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
- ^ Mesh, Aaron (March 14, 2020). "Portland Mercury Halts Print Editions Amid Coronavirus Shutdowns". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on 2020-03-17. Retrieved 2020-04-28.
- ^ a b "WW Has A New Publisher". Willamette Week. June 11, 2015. Archived from the original on June 15, 2015. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
- ^ a b Meeker, Richard H. (June 17, 2015). "To Our Readers [editorial]". Willamette Week. p. 5. Archived from the original on June 20, 2015. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
- ^ a b Walker, Mason (June 12, 2015). "Willamette Week publisher steps down". Portland Business Journal. Archived from the original on July 7, 2015. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
- ^ "A fresh look and future memorial to John Callahan at Legacy Good Samaritan Park (photos)". The Oregonian. July 19, 2017. Archived from the original on March 4, 2018. Retrieved March 3, 2018.
- ^ Boulé, Margie (January 31, 2011). "Neil Goldschmidt's sex-abuse victim tells of the relationship that damaged her life". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- ^ Jaquiss, Nigel (May 12, 2004). "The 30-Year Secret". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on August 17, 2011. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
- ^ "The 2005 Pulitzer Prize Winners - Investigative Reporting". The Pulitzer Prizes. 2005. Archived from the original on February 25, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
- ^ Mapes, Jeff (September 10, 2008). "Willamette Week raises illegal immigration issue at Gordon Smith's frozen-food plant". oregonlive. Archived from the original on 2022-05-18. Retrieved 2020-04-28.
- ^ Slovic, Beth (September 10, 2008). "Señor Smith". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on June 20, 2014. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- ^ Griffin, Anna (January 25, 2009). "Sam Adams decides to stay put; can Portland move on?". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on October 28, 2013. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
- ^ Johnson, Kirk; Paulson, Michael (February 16, 2015) [published online February 15]. "Oregon Governor and Fiancée Walked Tangled Path to Exit". The New York Times. p. A1. Archived from the original on December 14, 2015. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
- ^ "Phil Keisling". Hatfield School of Government: Center for Public Service. Portland State University. Archived from the original on July 16, 2015. Retrieved July 15, 2015.
- ^ Narvaiz, Matthew (2024-08-14). "Santa Fe Reporter sells to former Albuquerque City Councilor Pat Davis". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
- ^ Sorg, Lisa (2012-08-22). "Steve Schewel announces sale of Independent Weekly". INDY Week. Retrieved 2019-10-20.