The ''High Plains Reader'' is an

alternative newspaper An alternative newspaper is a type of newspaper that eschews comprehensive coverage of general news in favor of stylized reporting, opinionated reviews and columns, investigations into edgy topics and magazine-style feature stories highlighting l ...

serving the Fargo metropolitan area, with an estimated readership of 20,000 to 30,000 weekly between print and online readers. The tabloid was founded in 1994 by Ian Swanson, Peter Ryan, and Len Schmid in

Grand Forks, North Dakota Grand Forks is the third-largest city in the state of North Dakota (after Fargo and Bismarck) and the county seat of Grand Forks County. According to the 2020 census, the city's population was 59,166. Grand Forks, along with its twin city ...

and is currently owned by Raul Gomez and John Strand who purchased the paper in late December 1996. After a flood and fire destroyed their Grand Forks office, the ''Reader'' moved its office to Fargo. In 2004, the ''Reader'' celebrated its 10th anniversary in different venues in the Fargo-Moorhead area, including Ralph's Corner Bar. Distribution ended in the Grand Forks area in 2009. In 2014, HPR celebrated 20 years.

Features

The paper features reviews of bands, movies, and theater in Fargo-Moorhead, plus a calendar of weekly events. Its editorials generally take a more leftist tack than those of ''

The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead ''The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead'' or more recently ''The Forum'' is an American, English language newspaper. It is the major newspaper for Fargo, North Dakota and the surrounding region, including Moorhead, Minnesota. It is the flagship and names ...

''. Recurring portions of the ''High Plains Reader'' include the weekly editorial, written by Editor Sabrina Hornung, photojournalist and news editor C.S. Christopher Hagen, or Co-owner John Strand; the cover story; features; opinion; wellness; a theater column; movie reviews by Greg Carlson; a Best Bets section, generally giving brief synopses of upcoming events, focusing mostly on local musicians; and a calendar section, a detailed list of daily events for the upcoming week.

Controversy

The ''Reader'' began carrying Allison Moorhead's sex column in late 2004, which had a controversial and short run at North Dakota State University's newspaper '' The Spectrum''. Longtime HPR contributor Ed Raymond withdrew his "The Gadfly" column in protest. The column offered general information about sexual activities, including accounts of the writer's own, rather than a question-and-answer format. Moorhead stopped writing for the ''Reader'' in early 2005. Ed Raymond returned to writing his column the following June.

External links

*{{Official Website, https://hpr1.com/ Alternative weekly newspapers published in the United States Newspapers published in North Dakota Fargo–Moorhead Greater Grand Forks Newspapers established in 1994 1994 establishments in North Dakota