Swift Communications Inc. is an American

digital marketing Digital marketing is the component of marketing that uses the Internet and online based digital technologies such as desktop computers, mobile phones and other digital media and platforms to promote products and services. Its development duri ...

and

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, sports a ...

publishing company based in

Carson City, Nevada Carson City is an independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,639, making it the sixth largest city in Nevada. The majority of the city's population lives in Eagle Valley, on the ...

. Swift's primary markets are

resort town A resort town, often called a resort city or resort destination, is an urban area where tourism or vacationing is the primary component of the local culture and economy. A typical resort town has one or more actual resorts in the surrounding ...

tabloid newspapers and websites as well as agricultural publications. Swift Communications has been noted for "being outside of the mainstream" and "drawing national attention inside the industry" for disabling commenting and implementing

paywalls A paywall is a method of restricting access to content, with a purchase or a paid subscription, especially news. Beginning in the mid-2010s, newspapers started implementing paywalls on their websites as a way to increase revenue after years of ...

on most of its online newspaper's websites. Many of Swift's newspapers are heavily composed of paid

advertorial An advertorial is an advertisement in the form of editorial content. The term "advertorial" is a blend (see portmanteau) of the words "advertisement" and "editorial." Merriam-Webster dates the origin of the word to 1946. In printed publications, t ...

"sponsored content".

History

''Swift Newspapers'' was founded by Philip Swift in 1975. Swift, a former executive at the Scripps League of Newspapers, exchanged his equity interests in the company for ownership of two daily newspapers. After dozens of acquisitions and mergers over the years, Swift amassed a large number of print publications and in 1991 the company began concentrating on the

resort A resort (North American English) is a self-contained commercial establishment that tries to provide most of a vacationer's wants, such as food, drink, swimming, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term ''resort ...

sector by launching ''Tahoe.com'' and ''Reno.com''. In 2006, the company changed their name to Swift Communications. Swift also prints

advertorials An advertorial is an advertisement in the form of editorial content. The term "advertorial" is a blend (see portmanteau) of the words "advertisement" and "editorial." Merriam-Webster dates the origin of the word to 1946. In printed publications, ...

, catalogs, realtor magazines and phone book advertising.

Swift decisions draw industry attention

In November 2009 Bob Berwyn, a journalist for the Summit Daily News (SDN), wrote a column which criticized the marketing practices of Vail Resorts, one of the paper's largest advertisers. He left the SDN shortly after the writing the article for reasons unrelated to the column. This action was widely derided in the Colorado media. In May, 2011 after gathering analytics, metrics and revenue data on their commenting platform investment, Swift reviewed the data and decided to remove the

user-generated content User-generated content (UGC), alternatively known as user-created content (UCC), is any form of content, such as images, videos, text, testimonials, and audio, that has been posted by users on online platforms such as social media, discussion f ...

(UGC) platform Pluck from all online newspapers owned by Swift Communications. The ability for readers to leave comments about articles was removed. Editors with Swift felt the inability of their content management software to restrict comments they did not approve of was impacting newsroom productivity and civil community conversation. Anthony Collebrusco from the ''Digital News Test Kitchen'' at

CU-Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University of Colorado syst ...

's School of Journalism & Mass Communication which is involved in researching a viable means of limiting the

pseudonymity A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

and unconditional

free speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been ...

of commenters on Swift's websites paraphrased Swift's policy as: In Fall of 2011, the Aspen Times re-enabled onymous commenting for users with an active

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

account. Swift Communications has been accused of stifling competition and setting artificially inflated ad rates by consolidating and closing small-town newspapers. Steve Lipsher, former editor of the ''Summit Daily News'' said in 2008 that "If you're an advertiser in places like Summit County, they're the only game in town" and in 2009, Swift-owned newspapers had 90% market share in

Eagle County Eagle County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 55,731. The county seat is the Town of Eagle and the most populous community is Edwards. The county is named for the Eagle River. Eagl ...

. Swift has also been criticized for over-charging for obituary listings.

Sale of the Company

On December 31, 2021, Swift Communications was acquired by

Ogden Newspapers Ogden Newspapers Inc. is a Wheeling, West Virginia based publisher of daily and weekly newspapers, magazines, telephone directories, and shoppers guides. The company was founded by H.C. Ogden in 1890, and is currently run by the family of his gra ...

, a

Wheeling, West Virginia Wheeling is a city in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Located almost entirely in Ohio County, of which it is the county seat, it lies along the Ohio River in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and also contains a tiny portion extending ...

-based publisher of daily and weekly newspapers, magazines, telephone directories, and shoppers guides throughout 18 states.

Media properties

*''Colorado Mountain News Media'' in

Gypsum, Colorado The Town of Gypsum is the home rule municipality that is the most populous municipality in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 8,040 at the 2020 United States Census, a +24.13% increase since the 2010 United States Cen ...

*Wasatch Mountain News Media in

Park City, Utah Park City is a city in Utah, United States. The vast majority is in Summit County, and it extends into Wasatch County. It is considered to be part of the Wasatch Back. The city is southeast of downtown Salt Lake City and from Salt Lake City' ...

*''The Fencepost Company'' in

Greeley, Colorado Greeley is the home rule municipality city that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Weld County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,795 at the 2020 United States Census, an increase of 17.12% since the 2010 ...

**''Acres USA'' in Austin, Texas **''Countryside Publications'' in

Medford, Wisconsin Medford is a city in Taylor County, in north-central Wisconsin, United States. The population was 4,349 at the 2020 census. The city is located mostly within the boundaries of the Town of Medford. It is the county seat of Taylor County. Histor ...

*''Nevada County Publishing Company'' in

Grass Valley, California Grass Valley is a city in Nevada County, California, United States. Situated at roughly in elevation in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, this northern Gold Country city is by car from Sacramento, from Sacramento I ...

Publications

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

*''Sierra Sun'' *''Tahoe.com'' *''

The Union The Union may refer to: Politics * The Union (Germany) or CDU/CSU, the partnership of the German political parties the Christian Democratic Union and the Christian Social Union * The Union (Italy), a former coalition of political parties in Ital ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

*''

Aspen Times ''The Aspen Times'' is an 11,500-circulation, 7-day-a-week newspaper in the ski resort town of Aspen, Colorado, United States, with a history dating back to 1881. History The Aspen Weekly Times' first issue was published April 23, 1881 when Asp ...

'' in

Aspen, Colorado Aspen is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 7,004 at the 2020 United States Census. Aspen is in a remote area of the Rocky Mounta ...

*''Craig Press'' in

Craig, Colorado Craig is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Moffat County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 9,060 at the 2020 United States Census. Craig is the principal city of the Craig, CO ...

*''Citizen Telegram'' in

Rifle, Colorado Rifle is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality in and the most populous community of Garfield County, Colorado, Garfield County, Colorado, United States. The population was 10,437 at the 2020 United S ...

*''Eagle Valley Enterprise'' in

Eagle, Colorado The Town of Eagle is the Statutory Town that is the county seat of Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 7,511 at the 2020 United States Census, a +15.41% increase since the 2010 United States Census. Eagle is the part o ...

*''Fence Post'' in

*''

Glenwood Springs Post Independent The ''Glenwood Springs Post Independent'' is a daily newspaper distributed in Garfield County, Colorado. The publication covers the municipalities of Glenwood Springs, Carbondale, New Castle, Silt, Rifle and Parachute. The ''Glenwood Sprin ...

'' in

Glenwood Springs, Colorado Glenwood Springs is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality that is the county seat of Garfield County, Colorado, Garfield County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 9,963 at the 2020 Uni ...

*''Sky-Hi News'' in

Granby, Colorado The Town of Granby is the Statutory Town that is the most populous municipality in Grand County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 2,079 at the 2020 United States Census. Granby is situated along U.S. Highway 40 in the Middle P ...

*''

Steamboat Pilot & Today The ''Steamboat Pilot & Today'' is an American newspaper serving Routt County, Colorado and owned by Swift Communications. The ''Steamboat Pilot & Today'' is a free tabloid published daily. As of 2011, ''The Pilot & Today'' has been named the t ...

'' in

Steamboat Springs, Colorado The City of Steamboat Springs is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Routt County, Colorado, United States. Steamboat Springs is the principal city of the Steamboat Springs, CO Micropolitan Sta ...

*''Snowmass Sun'' in

Snowmass Village, Colorado Snowmass Village is a home rule municipality in Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The population was 2,826 at the 2010 census. A popular winter resort location for skiing and snowboarding, the town is well known as the location of the Sno ...

*''Summit Daily News'' in

Frisco, Colorado Frisco is a home rule municipality located in Summit County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 2,913 at the 2020 United States Census. Frisco is a part of the Breckenridge, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area. It is a popular town amo ...

*''

Vail Daily ''The Vail Daily'' is a newspaper in Eagle County, Colorado. Its primary digital platform is VailDaily.com, and it also publishes a 15,000-circulation, free-distribution newspaper seven days a week. The newspaper covers the Colorado communities o ...

'' in

Vail, Colorado Vail is a home rule municipality in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The population of the town was 4,835 in 2020. Home to Vail Ski Resort, the largest ski mountain in Colorado, the town is known for its hotels, dining, and for the num ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

*''Nebraska Fence Post''

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

*''Tahoe Daily Tribune''

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

*''Farmer & Rancher Exchange'' *''Tri-State Livestock News''

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

*''

Park Record The ''Park Record'' is a twice-weekly newspaper published in Park City, Utah. It was founded in 1880 as the ''Park Mining Record'', edited by James Shupback. After two editorial changes, Sam Raddon, formerly with the ''Salt Lake Tribune ''The ...

Newspaper sales, closures & cutbacks

In late 2008, Colorado Mountain News Media, a subsidiary of Swift, reduced their staff by 20% through attrition, retirement &

layoff A layoff or downsizing is the temporary suspension or permanent termination of employment of an employee or, more commonly, a group of employees (collective layoff) for business reasons, such as personnel management or downsizing (reducing the ...

s, shuttering numerous small town papers. Swift has consolidated many newspapers and closed many others: *''Summit County Journal'' in

(no longer published) *''Leadville Chronicle'' in

Leadville, Colorado The City of Leadville is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Statutory city, statutory city that is the county seat, the most populous community, and the only List of municipalities in Colorado, incorporated municipality in Lake County, Colorad ...

(no longer published) *''Northern Colorado Tribune'' (no longer published) *''La Tribuna'' in

(no longer published) was named "best weekly in the country" in 2006 but was merged with the now defunct ''Greeley Now'' newspaper for not being "economically viable" in early 2008. *''Windsor Tribune'' in

Windsor, Colorado Windsor is a home rule municipality in Larimer and Weld counties in the U.S. state of Colorado. According to the 2020 census, the population of the town was 32,716. Windsor is located in the Northern Colorado region. History In 1873, a settl ...

(no longer published) *''Grand Junction Free Press'' in

Grand Junction, Colorado Grand Junction is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Mesa County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 65,560 at the 2020 United States Census, making Grand Junction the 17th mos ...

(no longer published) *''Vail Trail'' in

(no longer published) *''Valley Journal'' in

Carbondale, Colorado The Town of Carbondale is a home rule municipality located in Garfield County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 6,434 at the 2020 United States Census. Carbondale is a part of the Glenwood Springs, CO Micropolitan Statistical Ar ...

(no longer published) *''Fort Collins Now'' (formerly ''Fort Collins Weekly'') in

Fort Collins, Colorado Fort Collins is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Larimer County, Colorado Larimer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 359 ...

(no longer published) *''Middle Park Times'' in

Kremmling, Colorado The Town of Kremmling is a Statutory Town in Grand County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 1444 at the 2010 United States Census. The town sits along the upper Colorado River in the lower arid section of Middle Park between B ...

(no longer published) *''Tahoe World'' in

Lake Tahoe, California Lake Tahoe (; was, Dáʔaw, meaning "the lake") is a freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the United States. Lying at , it straddles the state line between California and Nevada, west of Carson City. Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake ...

(no longer published) *''

The News-Review ''The News-Review'' is a five-day-a-week community newspaper published in Roseburg, Oregon, United States. The circulation area covers most of Douglas County including Canyonville, Glide, Myrtle Creek, Oakland, Roseburg, Sutherlin, and Wi ...

'' in

Roseburg, Oregon Roseburg is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is in the Umpqua River, Umpqua River Valley in southern Oregon and is the county seat and most populous city of Douglas County, Oregon, Douglas County. Founded in 1851, the population was 23,683 a ...

was sold to Lotus Media Group in 2015. *The

Nevada Appeal The ''Nevada Appeal'' is a twice-weekly newspaper published in Carson City, Nevada, by Pacific Publishing Company. The paper has sister publications across northern Nevada: *''Lahontan Valley News'' & Fallon Eagle Standard (Fallon, Nevada) *''N ...

, the Lahontan Valley News, The Record-Courier and Northern Nevada Business View were sold to Pacific Publishing Company in 2019. *''Greeley Tribune'' was sold to MediaNews Group (MNG) in 2020.

References

External links

Swift Communications
(official website) {{Swift Communications Newspaper companies of the United States Companies based in Reno, Nevada

History

Swift decisions draw industry attention

Sale of the Company

Media properties

Publications

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

Newspaper sales, closures & cutbacks

See also

References

External links