The ''Northwest Florida Daily News'' is a daily
newspaper
A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written 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 politics, business, spor ...
published in
Fort Walton Beach, Florida
Fort Walton Beach is a city in southern Okaloosa County, Florida. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 20,922, up from 19,507 in 2010. It is the principal city of the Fort Walton Beach− Crestview− Destin Metropolitan Statistical Are ...
. It was founded in 1946 and is owned by
Gannett
Gannett Co., Inc. () is an American mass media holding company headquartered in McLean, Virginia, in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.[Okaloosa County
Okaloosa County is located in the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, extending from the Gulf of Mexico to the Alabama state line. As of the 2020 census, the population was 211,668. Its county seat is Crestview. Okaloosa County ...]
's southern region. The ''
Okaloosa News-Journal'', published at the county seat of
Crestview at the northern end of the county for many decades, carried early accounts of the developing region. As the southern communities of Fort Walton,
Destin,
Shalimar,
Cinco Bayou,
Mary Esther,
Ocean City,
Wright
Wright is an occupational surname originating in England. The term 'Wright' comes from the circa 700 AD Old English word 'wryhta' or 'wyrhta', meaning worker or shaper of wood. Later it became any occupational worker (for example, a shipwright i ...
,
Valparaiso and
Niceville expanded, so did the need for local coverage. The civic leaders gathered at a downtown
Fort Walton bar which had the only available meeting room. Present were Clyde Meigs, Fred McCaully, Paul Roberts, Ray Folmar, R.L. Odom, Howard Gill, L. Ferrin, George Klosterman, Lee Courter, Frank Bizelle, Braden Ball, W.R. Cummings, DeWitt Lamb (the first editor), Andy Anderson, Leon Bishop, Toopey Work, Bill Williams and Bill Folb.
Perry Publications, a group of about 30 papers, began publication of the ''Playground News'' February 7, 1946. The first issue contained 24 pages, about 65 percent of which was paid display advertising. From the mid-1960s, the newspaper's offices and printing plant were on Eglin Parkway in downtown Fort Walton Beach. The paper was sold to Freedom Newspapers, Inc., now
Freedom Communications, on July 1, 1969. On August 22, 1975, the newspaper printed the edition for the first time at a new plant and offices at 200 N.W. Racetrack Road in Fort Walton Beach, which would remain the base of operations through the fall of 2011.
In 2012, Freedom sold its Florida and North Carolina papers to
Halifax Media Group. In 2015, Halifax was acquired by
New Media Investment Group.
Over its history, the paper has gone by three names:
*''Playground News'' February 7, 1946 - September 2, 1962
*''Playground Daily News'' September 3, 1962 - February 29, 1988
*''Northwest Florida Daily News'' March 1, 1988–present
Due to the close ties between the Fort Walton Beach community and
Eglin Air Force Base
Eglin Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base in the western Florida Panhandle, located about southwest of Valparaiso in Okaloosa County.
The host unit at Eglin is the 96th Test Wing (formerly the 96th Air Base Wing). The 9 ...
, the ''Playground/Northwest Florida News'' supplanted the ''
Okaloosa News-Journal'', published in
Crestview, Florida
Crestview is a city in Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. The population was 27,134 at the 2020 census, up from 20,978 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Okaloosa County. With an elevation of above sea level, it is one of the h ...
, as the county paper of record.
Hunter S. Thompson
Hunter Stockton Thompson (July 18, 1937 – February 20, 2005) was an American journalist and author who founded the gonzo journalism movement. He rose to prominence with the publication of '' Hell's Angels'' (1967), a book for which he s ...
wrote a sports column for the ''Northwest Florida Daily News'' (then called the ''Playground News'') while stationed at Eglin Air Force Base. Thompson landed the job in early February 1957. Hired by Publisher Wayne Bell, Thompson wrote under the pseudonyms Thorne Stockton and Cubley Cohn.
[''Northwest Florida Daily News'', June 16, 1997, p. 1B.]
Subsidiaries
Subsidiaries include the ''Eglin Dispatch'' and the ''Hurlburt Warrior''.
References
External links
''Northwest Florida Daily News'' official site ''Northwest Florida Daily News'' official mobile siteFreedom Communications subsidiary profile
*
{{Gannett
Newspapers published in Florida
Newspapers established in 1946
Gannett publications
Okaloosa County, Florida
1946 establishments in Florida
Fort Walton Beach, Florida
Daily newspapers published in the United States