''The Journal News'' is a
newspaper
A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.
Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as p ...
in
New York State
New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...
serving the New York counties of
Westchester,
Rockland, and
Putnam, a region known as the
Lower Hudson Valley
The Hudson Valley (also known as the Hudson River Valley) comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York. The region stretches from the Capital District including Albany and Troy south to Yo ...
. It is owned by
Gannett.
''The Journal News'' was created through a
merger of several daily community newspapers serving the lower Hudson, which had previously been organized under the Gannett Suburban Newspapers umbrella; the earliest ancestor of the paper dates to 1852. Although the current newspaper's name comes from the ''Rockland Journal-News'', which was based in
West Nyack, New York
West Nyack is a hamlet and census-designated place in the town of Clarkstown, Rockland County, New York, United States. It is located north of Blauvelt, east of Nanuet, southwest of Valley Cottage, southeast of Bardonia, and west of Central ...
, and served Rockland County, the ''Rockland Journal-News'' was actually the third-largest newspaper that Gannett merged to create the larger newspaper. ''The Reporter Dispatch'' from White Plains, New York, and the ''Herald Statesman'' in
Yonkers
Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York (state), New York, after New York City and Buffalo, New York, Buffalo. The popul ...
were larger and served Westchester County.
For years prior to the October 12, 1998, merger that created ''The Journal News'', ten of the newspapers shared some content and printing presses, although the ''Rockland Journal-News'', formerly ''The Journal-News'', the ''Rockland County Evening Journal'' and the ''Nyack Evening Journal'', operated its own full composing room and printing press until fall 1996. The ''Rockland Journal-News'' had an independent staff of editors, writers, photographers, an artist, etc., from the time of the 1964 purchase by Gannett until the 1996-1998 consolidation period. In that, there was a fierce independence that led to exceptional reporting and photography on both sides of the Hudson River.
Gannett acquired nine of the newspapers in 1964 from the Macy family and added ''The Star'' in
Peekskill, New York
Peekskill is a city in northwestern Westchester County, New York, United States, from New York City. Established as a village in 1816, it was incorporated as a city in 1940. It lies on a bay along the east side of the Hudson River, across from ...
in 1985.
These newspapers previously appeared on newsstands in the evening. In 1989, Gannett created a morning edition for Putnam County, Westchester, and the Bronx called ''The Sunrise'', but it folded after a year. Today, ''The Journal News'' appears in the morning like other New York dailies.
History
Newspapers that merged in 1998 to create ''The Journal News'':
*''Rockland Journal-News'' (
West Nyack)
*''The Citizen Register'' (
Ossining)
*''The Daily Argus'' (
Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...
)
*''The Daily Item'' (
Port Chester
Port Chester is a village in the U.S. state of New York and the largest part of the town of Rye in Westchester County by population. At the 2010 U.S. census, the village of Port Chester had a population of 28,967 and was the fifth-most populou ...
)
*''The Daily News'' (
Tarrytown
Tarrytown is a village in the town of Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, approximately north of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by a stop on the Metro-North Hu ...
)
*''The Daily Times'' (
Mamaroneck
Mamaroneck ( ) is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States.
The population was 31,758 at the 2020 United States census over 29,156 at the 2010 census. There are two villages contained within the town: Larchmont and the Village of M ...
)
*''The Herald Statesman'' (
Yonkers
Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York (state), New York, after New York City and Buffalo, New York, Buffalo. The popul ...
)
**''The Patent Trader'' (
Mount Kisco
Mount Kisco is a village and town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The town of Mount Kisco is coterminous with the village. The population was 10,959 at the 2020 United States census over 10,877 at the 2010 census.
It serves as a ...
) (itself the product of a 1956 merger of Northern Westchester papers) was subsequently acquired by Gannett and folded in 2007.
![Paperboy license 1970 New York State](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Paperboy_license_1970_New_York_State.jpg)
*''The Reporter Dispatch'' (
White Plains)
*''The Standard-Star'' (
New Rochelle
New Rochelle (; older french: La Nouvelle-Rochelle) is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the southeastern portion of the state. In 2020, the city had a population of 79,726, making it the seventh-largest in the state o ...
)
*''The Star'' (
Peekskill
Peekskill is a city in northwestern Westchester County, New York, United States, from New York City. Established as a village in 1816, it was incorporated as a city in 1940. It lies on a bay along the east side of the Hudson River, across fr ...
)
''The Journal News'' successfully launched ''
Putnam Magazine
''Putnam Magazine'' is a regional lifestyle magazine that covers Putnam County, New York, and it is published by the local (Rockland, Westchester, Putnam) newspaper, ''The Journal News'', a division of Gannett. The publication was launched in 200 ...
'' and ''Rockland Magazine'' in 2005, and ''
Scarsdale Magazine'' (originally ''InTown Scarsdale'') in early 2006.
In 2005, ''The Journal News'' expanded its Custom Publishing division and began publishing a series of suburban lifestyle magazines about the Lower Hudson Valley region. The first of these publications was ''
InTown'', which covered the Westchester market with hyper-local editions targeting different regions of the county: In late 2006, these numerous editions were all consolidated into one county-wide publication, ''InTown Westchester'', which publishes 10 times a year.
*Bronxville/Tuckahoe/Eastchester
*Larchmont/Mamaroneck
*Northern Westchester (Bedford, Chappaqua, Katonah, Mount Kisco)
*River Towns (Dobbs Ferry, Hastings, Irvington, Tarrytown)
*Rye/Harrison/Purchase
*Scarsdale
*White Plains
''The Journal News'' also publishes five ultra-local community weekly ''Express'' newspapers serving Northern Westchester, Putnam, Yorktown/Cortlandt, Sound Shore, and White Plains as well as the ''Review Press'', a weekly newspaper covering Bronxville, Eastchester, and Tuckahoe.
''The Journal News website, LoHud.com, features daily news updates, more than 40 blogs, as well as ''Varsity Insider'', an online source for varsity sports, featuring rosters, schedules, and statistic for high school teams throughout the Lower
Hudson Valley
The Hudson Valley (also known as the Hudson River Valley) comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York. The region stretches from the Capital District including Albany and Troy south to ...
region.
On March 7, 2010 ''The Journal News'' closed its press and outsourced printing.
On August 7, 2013, the newspaper laid off 26 staff members, including 17 journalists, and its editor, Caryn McBride.
In February 2022, ''The Journal News'' ran an advertisement for an upcoming article on the
East Ramapo Central School District
East Ramapo Central School District is a school district in Ramapo, New York, United States. It is headquartered in the Senator Eugene Levy Dr. Jack R. Anderson Education Center.
History 20th century
On March 4, 1952, seven school districts me ...
, which
Agudath Israel of America condemned as reproducing classic antisemitic tropes similar to those found in the
Protocols of the Elders of Zion
''The Protocols of the Elders of Zion'' () or ''The Protocols of the Meetings of the Learned Elders of Zion'' is a fabricated antisemitic text purporting to describe a Jewish plan for global domination. The hoax was plagiarized from several ...
. The
Anti-Defamation League's New York / New Jersey branch also condemned the advertisement, stating that it "draws from the worst of millennia-old antisemitic tropes about Jews".
2012–2013 pistol permit map controversy
On December 22, 2012, ''The Journal News'' published an interactive map showing the names, addresses and home locations of all pistol permit holders licensed in Westchester and Rockland Counties.
The newspaper was sharply criticized by both residents of Westchester and Rockland Counties as well as by major, national news organizations.
Despite this, the newspaper's editor and vice president, CynDee Royle, said that they had sought to publish even more detailed information to which the counties had denied them access,
and the paper sued neighboring Putnam County, which refused to provide similar information.
The following day, blogger Christopher Fountain published the names and addresses of the staffers of ''The Journal News''.
The newspaper and some of its staff responded by hiring armed security, a move that critics called hypocritical considering the paper's anti-gun stance.
Rockland County law enforcement officers condemned the map, saying that it endangered lives, including those of corrections officers. Several newspapers also published reports of victims of domestic violence, rape, or other violent crimes who reported that their attackers now had possession of their addresses as their names were published online.
As a result of the publication, protests were held at the
State Capitol in
Albany,
and the
New York State Legislature
The New York State Legislature consists of the two houses that act as the state legislature of the U.S. state of New York: The New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly. The Constitution of New York does not designate an officia ...
passed a law allowing gun owners in the state to opt out of having their identifying information be available to the public.
This catalyzed other states across the country to pass similar privacy measures.
''
Newsday'' reported that police were investigating if ''The Journal News'' pistol permit map played a role in a burglary in White Plains, New York. According to police, at least two burglars broke into a home on January 12, 2013 but were unsuccessful in an attempt to open a gun safe, which contained legally owned weapons. Police were investigating what role, if any, the Journal News database played in the burglars' decision to target the home.
On January 19, 2013, the newspaper removed the interactive map, although the information it contained was subsequently leaked on the Internet.
Notable people
Former contributors:
*
Irving Brecher
Irving S. Brecher (January 17, 1914 – November 17, 2008) was a screenwriter who wrote for the Marx Brothers among many others; he was the only writer to get sole credit on a Marx Brothers film, penning the screenplays for '' At the Circus'' ( ...
– sportswriter for ''Yonkers Herald''
[Press Staff (March 21, 1937)]
"Youth Pens Radio Gags; Fellow Who Jibbed Milt Berle Becomes His Author for Network Show"
''The Pittsburgh Press''. Retrieved August 29, 2020.
*
Michael Gallagher – investigative reporter
References
External links
* Official website.
*
Magazines published by ''The Journal News'':
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Journal News, The
Daily newspapers published in New York (state)
Westchester County, New York
Gannett publications
Rockland County, New York
Publications established in 1852
1852 establishments in New York (state)