''Knoxville Voice'' was a

populist Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term develop ...

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 ...

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state' ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

. It was published every two weeks and available free of charge in more than 300 locations throughout Knox and Blount counties. The paper debuted on April 20, 2006 and ceased publication on January 8, 2009. The summer 2007 sale of Knoxville alternative weekly

Metro Pulse ''Metro Pulse'' was a weekly newspaper in Knoxville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1991 by Ashley Capps, Rand Pearson, Ian Blackburn, and Margaret Weston, and was a member of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. In 2007, ''Metro Pulse'' ...

media conglomerate A media conglomerate, media group, or media institution is a company that owns numerous companies involved in mass media enterprises, such as music, television, radio, publishing, motion pictures, theme parks, or the Internet. According to th ...

E.W. Scripps Edward Willis Scripps (June 18, 1854 – March 12, 1926), was an American newspaper publisher and, together with his sister Ellen Browning Scripps, founder of The E. W. Scripps Company, a diversified media conglomerate, and United Press ne ...

, owner of the daily '' Knoxville News Sentinel'', left the ''Knoxville Voice'' as the only major, general-interest independent alternative newspaper in Knoxville until it ceased publication.

Origins and influences

The ''Knoxville Voice'' was originally an

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

newspaper, also published in Knoxville and devoted to minority cultural and

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...

issues. The oldest surviving issue (dated November 19, 1949) "focused almost exclusively on national news stories pertinent to African Americans, with a greater emphasis on the work of the NAACP to obtain equal rights, providing a glimpse of the beginnings of the civil rights movement of the 1960s." The paper continues an editorial tradition of

alternative media Alternative media are media sources that differ from established or dominant types of media (such as mainstream media or mass media) in terms of their content, production, or distribution.Downing, John (2001). ''Radical Media''. Thousand Oaks, ...

that extends beyond Knoxville. The spectrum of influences runs from labor-run papers like the British '' Daily Herald'' to muckraking newsletters like ''

I.F. Stone Isidor Feinstein "I. F." Stone (December 24, 1907 – June 18, 1989) was an American investigative journalist, writer, and author. Known for his politically progressive views, Stone is best remembered for ''I. F. Stone's Weekly'' (1953–1971), ...

's Weekly''. Like its local, national, and international predecessors, ''Knoxville Voice'' practiced

advocacy journalism Advocacy journalism is a genre of journalism that adopts a non-objective viewpoint, usually for some social or political purpose. Some advocacy journalists reject that the traditional ideal of objectivity is possible or practical, in part due to ...

, covering stories as they affect the public at large and filling gaps in reporting left by mainstream media. With most mainstream media outlets owned by a handful of multinational corporations, polls regularly report that nearly half the U.S. public has little or no "trust and confidence" in the mass media.: When asked, "In general, how much trust and confidence do you have in the mass media — such as newspapers, T.V. and radio — when it comes to reporting the news fully, accurately, and fairly," 37% answered "not very much" and 12% answered "none at all." The responses have been consistent for a decade. ''Knoxville Voice'' is a reflection of such public attitudes embodied in its reporting and approach to news coverage. ''Knoxville Voice'' published bi-weekly with a focus on local news and cultural events.

Notable editorial features

''Knoxville Voice'' regularly published opinion-editorial articles from notable local and national commentators, including the award-winning columnist

Don Williams Donald Ray Williams (May 27, 1939 – September 8, 2017) was an American country singer, songwriter, and 2010 inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame. He began his solo career in 1971, singing popular ballads and amassing seventeen number ...

, local

nuclear nonproliferation Nuclear proliferation is the spread of nuclear weapons, fissionable material, and weapons-applicable nuclear technology and information to nations not recognized as " Nuclear Weapon States" by the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Wea ...

activist Ralph Hutchison, and scholar and activist

Noam Chomsky Avram Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928) is an American public intellectual: a linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, social critic, and political activist. Sometimes called "the father of modern linguistics", Chomsky i ...

. In early 2007, Don Williams left the ''News Sentinel'', the Scripps-owned daily after 20 years and began writing a regular column and online blog for ''Knoxville Voice''. ''Knoxville Voice'' was the only local newspaper to publish an article critical of the controversial summer 2006 deal involving the long-term leasing of the

Sunsphere The Sunsphere located in World’s Fair Park in downtown Knoxville, Tennessee, is a high hexagonal steel truss structure, topped with a gold-colored glass sphere that served as the symbol of the 1982 World's Fair. Design Designed by the Knox ...

, the iconic Knoxville structure built for the

1982 World's Fair The 1982 World's Fair, officially known as the Knoxville International Energy Exposition (KIEE) and simply as Energy Expo '82 and Expo '82, was an international exposition held in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. Focused on energy and ele ...

Sources

{{Reflist

External links

Archives of Knoxville Voice web site

New Millennium Writings journal edited and published by Don Williams

Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance

Origins and influences

Notable editorial features

Sources

External links

Further reading