''The Seattle Times'' is a daily newspaper serving
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, Washington, United States. It was founded in 1891 and has been owned by the Blethen family since 1896. ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in
Washington state
Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...
and the
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...
region.
The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company is a privately owned publisher of daily and weekly newspapers in the U.S. state of Washington. Founded in Seattle, Washington in 1896, the company is now in its fourth and fifth generations of ownership by the Blethen fa ...
, which is owned by the Blethen family, holds 50.5% of the paper.
McClatchy
The McClatchy Company, commonly referred to as simply McClatchy, is an American publishing company incorporated under Delaware's General Corporation Law and based in Sacramento, California. It operates 29 daily newspapers in fourteen states and ...
company owns 49.5% of the paper. ''The Seattle Times'' had a longstanding rivalry with the ''
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
The ''Seattle Post-Intelligencer'' (popularly known as the ''Seattle P-I'', the ''Post-Intelligencer'', or simply the ''P-I'') is an online newspaper and former print newspaper based in Seattle, Washington, United States.
The newspaper was foun ...
'' newspaper until the latter ceased publication in 2009.
Copies are sold at $2 daily in King & adjacent counties (except Island, Thurston & other WA counties, $2.5) or $3 Sundays/Thanksgiving Day (except Island, Thurston & other WA counties, $4). Prices are higher outside Washington state.
History
''The Seattle Times'' originated as the ''Seattle Press-Times'', a four-page newspaper founded in 1891 with a daily
circulation of 3,500, which
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
teacher and attorney
Alden J. Blethen
Alden J. Blethen (December 27, 1845 – July 12, 1915) was a teacher and attorney, who was editor-in-chief of the ''Seattle Daily Times'' from August 10, 1896 Boswell 1994, p. 96 until his death. He written referred to as Colonel Blethen.
B ...
bought in 1896.
Renamed the ''Seattle Daily Times'', it doubled its circulation within half a year. By 1915, circulation stood at 70,000.
The newspaper moved to the
Times Square Building
The Times Square Building, formerly the Times Building, is a registered landmark building in Seattle, Washington. It was completed in 1916 and housed editorial operations of the ''Seattle Times'' newspaper, which was housed there until 1930. Loca ...
at 5th Avenue and Olive Way in 1915. It built a new headquarters, the
Seattle Times Building
The Seattle Times Building is the former headquarters of ''The Seattle Times'', located in Seattle, Washington, United States. The three-story building was occupied by the newspaper from 1931 to 2011, replacing the Times Square Building. It was ...
, north of Denny Way in 1930. The paper moved to its current headquarters at 1000 Denny Way in 2011. In 1966 the publication changed to its current name of ''The Seattle Times''.
''The Seattle Times'' switched from afternoon delivery to mornings on March 6, 2000, citing that the move would help them avoid the fate of other defunct afternoon newspapers. This placed the ''Times'' in direct competition with its
Joint Operating Agreement
The Newspaper Preservation Act of 1970 was an Act of the United States Congress, signed by President Richard Nixon, authorizing the formation of joint operating agreements among competing newspaper operations within the same media market area. It ...
(JOA) partner, the morning ''
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
The ''Seattle Post-Intelligencer'' (popularly known as the ''Seattle P-I'', the ''Post-Intelligencer'', or simply the ''P-I'') is an online newspaper and former print newspaper based in Seattle, Washington, United States.
The newspaper was foun ...
''. Nine years later, the ''Post-Intelligencer'' became an online-only publication.
The ''Times'' is one of the few remaining major city dailies in the United States independently operated and owned by a local family (the Blethens). The Seattle Times Company, while owning and operating the ''Times'', also owns three other papers in
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
, and formerly owned several newspapers in
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
that were sold to
MaineToday Media
MaineToday Media is a privately owned publisher of daily and weekly newspapers in the U.S. state of Maine, based in the state's largest city, Portland. It includes the ''Portland Press Herald'' and ''Maine Sunday Telegram'', the state's largest ...
.
The McClatchy Company
The McClatchy Company, commonly referred to as simply McClatchy, is an American publishing company incorporated under Delaware's General Corporation Law and based in Sacramento, California. It operates 29 daily newspapers in fourteen states and ...
owns 49.5 percent of voting common stock in the Seattle Times Company, formerly held by
Knight Ridder
Knight Ridder was an American media company, specializing in newspaper and Internet publishing. Until it was bought by McClatchy on June 27, 2006, it was the second largest newspaper publisher in the United States, with 32 daily newspaper brand ...
until 2006.
Awards
The ''Times'' reporting has received 11
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...
s,
most recently in 2020 for National Reporting of the
Boeing 737 MAX
The Boeing 737 MAX is the fourth generation of the Boeing 737, a narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA), a division of American company Boeing. It succeeds the Boeing 737 Next Generation (NG ...
crashes by reporters Dominic Gates, Mike Baker, Steve Miletich and Lewis Kamb. It has an international reputation for its investigative journalism, in particular. In April 2012, investigative reporters Michael Berens and Ken Armstrong won the
Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting
The Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting has been awarded since 1953, under one name or another, for a distinguished example of investigative reporting by an individual or team, presented as a single article or series in a U.S. news publicat ...
for a series documenting more than 2,000 deaths caused by the state of Washington's use of
methadone
Methadone, sold under the brand names Dolophine and Methadose among others, is a synthetic opioid agonist used for chronic pain and also for opioid dependence. It is used to treat chronic pain, and it is also used to treat addiction to heroin ...
as a recommended painkiller in state-supported care. In April 2010, the ''Times'' staff won the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting for its coverage, in print and online, of the
shooting deaths of four police officers in a
Lakewood coffee house and the 40-hour manhunt for the suspect. A tenth Pulitzer Prize was awarded in 2015 for breaking news coverage of the
Oso mudslide
A major landslide occurred east of Oso, Washington, United States, on March 22, 2014, at 10:37 a.m. local time. A portion of an unstable hill collapsed, sending mud and debris to the south across the North Fork of the Stillaguamish River, e ...
.
''Times'' photographer Jerry Gay won the 1975
Spot News Photography prize for "
Lull in the Battle", an image of firefighters resting after fighting a house fire. In 1982 reporter
Paul Henderson
Paul Garnet Henderson, (born January 28, 1943) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. A left winger, Henderson played 13 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Detroit Red Wings, Toronto Maple Leafs and Atlanta Flam ...
won the
Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting
The Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting has been awarded since 1953, under one name or another, for a distinguished example of investigative reporting by an individual or team, presented as a single article or series in a U.S. news publicat ...
for his coverage of the case of
Steve Titus. Titus had been wrongfully convicted of rape, and in a series of articles Henderson challenged the circumstantial evidence in the case, convincing the judge to reverse Titus' conviction.
Controversies
Headline controversy
In February 2002, ''The Seattle Times'' ran a subheadline "American outshines Kwan,
Slutskaya in skating surprise" after
Sarah Hughes
Sarah Elizabeth Hughes (born May 2, 1985) is a former American competitive figure skater. She is the 2002 Olympic Champion and the 2001 World bronze medalist in ladies' singles.
Personal life
Hughes was born in Great Neck, New York, a subur ...
won the gold medal at the
2002 Olympics
The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Salt Lake 2002 ( arp, Niico'ooowu' 2002; Gosiute dialect, Gosiute Shoshoni: ''Tit'-so-pi 2002''; nv, Sooléí 2002; Shoshoni language, Shoshoni: ''Soó ...
. Many Asian Americans felt insulted by the headline because
Michelle Kwan
Michelle Wingshan Kwan (born July 7, 1980) is a retired competitive figure skater and diplomat serving as United States Ambassador to Belize. In figure skating Kwan is a two-time Olympic medalist (silver in 1998, bronze in 2002), a five-time W ...
is also American.
Asian American community leaders criticized the subheadline as perpetuating a stereotype that people of color can never be truly American.
The incident echoed a similar incident that happened with an
MSNBC
MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and political ...
article during the
Winter games
''Winter Games'' is a sports video game developed by Epyx (and released in Europe by U.S. Gold), based on sports featured in the Winter Olympic Games.
A snow-and-ice themed follow-up to the highly successful '' Summer Games'', ''Winter Games'' ...
in 1998,
which was reported on by ''Times''.
The newspaper's Executive Editor at the time of the controversy, Mike Fancher, issued an apology in the aftermath of the controversial headline.
Election controversy
On October 17, 2012, the publishers of ''The Seattle Times'' launched advertising campaigns in support of
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
gubernatorial candidate Rob McKenna
Robert Marion McKenna (born October 1, 1962) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 17th attorney general of Washington from 2005 to 2013 after serving on the Metropolitan King County Council from 1996 to 2005. A member of the R ...
and a
state referendum to legalize
same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...
. The newspaper's management said the ads were aimed at "demonstrating how effective advertising with ''The Times'' can be." The advertisements in favor of McKenna represent an
$80,000 independent expenditure, making the newspaper the third largest contributor to his campaign. More than 100 staffers signed a letter of protest sent to ''Seattle Times'' publisher Frank Blethen, calling it an "unprecedented act".
The Joint Operating Agreement
From 1983 to 2009, the ''Times'' and Seattle's other major paper, the
Hearst-owned ''Seattle Post-Intelligencer'', were run under a "
Joint Operating Agreement
The Newspaper Preservation Act of 1970 was an Act of the United States Congress, signed by President Richard Nixon, authorizing the formation of joint operating agreements among competing newspaper operations within the same media market area. It ...
" (JOA) whereby advertising, production, marketing, and circulation were controlled by the ''Times'' for both papers.
The two papers maintained their own identities with separate news and editorial departments.
The ''Times'' announced its intention to cancel the JOA in 2003, citing a
clause
In language, a clause is a constituent that comprises a semantic predicand (expressed or not) and a semantic predicate. A typical clause consists of a subject and a syntactic predicate, the latter typically a verb phrase composed of a verb with ...
in the JOA contract that three consecutive years of losses allowed it to pull out of the agreement. Hearst sued, arguing that a ''
force majeure
In contract law, (from Law French: 'overwhelming force', ) is a common clause in contracts which essentially frees both parties from liability or obligation when an extraordinary event or circumstance beyond the control of the parties, such ...
clause'' prevented the ''Times'' from claiming losses as reason to end the JOA when they result from extraordinary events (in this case, a seven-week strike by members of the Newspaper Guild). While a district judge ruled in Hearst's favor, the ''Times'' won on appeal, including a unanimous decision from the
Washington State Supreme Court
The Washington Supreme Court is the highest court in the judiciary of the U.S. state of Washington. The court is composed of a chief justice and eight associate justices. Members of the court are elected to six-year terms. Justices must retire ...
on June 30, 2005. Hearst continued to argue that the ''Times'' fabricated its loss in 2002. The two papers announced an end to their dispute on April 16, 2007.
The JOA was terminated when the ''Post-Intelligencer'' ceased publication; its final printed edition was March 17, 2009.
Content
''The Times'' contains different sections every day. Each daily edition includes Main News & Business, a NW section for the day, Sports, and any other sections listed below.
Friday: NW Autos; Weekend Plus
Saturday: NW Homes
Sunday: Business; ShopNW; NW Jobs; NW Arts & Life; NW Traveler; Pacific NW Magazine
''Pacific NW'' is a glossy magazine published every week and inserted in the Sunday edition.
Delivery and page width
For decades, the
broadsheet
A broadsheet is the largest newspaper format and is characterized by long Vertical and horizontal, vertical pages, typically of . Other common newspaper formats include the smaller Berliner (format), Berliner and Tabloid (newspaper format), ta ...
page width of the ''Times'' was , printed from a 54-inch web, the four-page width of a roll of
newsprint
Newsprint is a low-cost, non-archival paper consisting mainly of wood pulp and most commonly used to print newspapers and other publications and advertising material. Invented in 1844 by Charles Fenerty of Nova Scotia, Canada, it usually has an ...
. Following changing industry standards, the width of the page was reduced in 2005 by , to , now a 50-inch web standard. In February 2009, the web size was further reduced to 46 inches, which narrowed the page by another inch to in width.
"Seattle Times making move to 46-inch web"
News and Tech.com, February 2008
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seattle Times, The
Companies based in Seattle
Newspapers published in Seattle
Publications established in 1891
Pulitzer Prize-winning newspapers
Daily newspapers published in the United States
1891 establishments in Washington (state)