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SoHo Weekly News

SoHo Weekly News

The SoHo Weekly News (SWN) was a weekly alternative newspaper founded by American music publicist Michael Goldstein and published in New York City from 1973 to 1982. Goldstein positioned the paper as a competitor to The Village Voice, an established alternative newspaper, but it struggled financially. SWN was acquired by Associated Newspaper Group in 1979 and ceased publication three years later after the company was unable to make it profitable.

The paper was known for its coverage of Manhattan's SoHo neighborhood as the area was becoming gentrified. Although the official editorial stance was anti-gentrification, one retrospective argued that its coverage of local culture and business contributed to the upward trend in property values. Its coverage of emerging music acts in local venues was particularly strong, including one of the first newspaper interviews with the punk rock band the Ramones.

Many of the staff went on to have distinguished careers after the paper shut down. Annie Flanders founded Details magazine while Kim Hastreiter and David Hershkovits started Paper.Bill Cunningham spent decades as a photojournalist for The New York Times,Allan Tannenbaum became known for his coverage of rock musicians, and Bruce Weber got his start photographing male fashion models with an influential SWN photo story showing an underwear-clad male model in erotic poses.