Everything about San Jose Mercury News totally explained
The
San Jose Mercury News is the major daily
newspaper in
San Jose, California and
Silicon Valley. The paper is owned by
MediaNews Group. Its headquarters and printing plant are located in North San Jose next to the
Nimitz Freeway (Interstate 880).
In the late 1990s, as Silicon Valley and the
Mercury News soared in national prominence, then-owner
Knight Ridder moved its headquarters from
Miami to an office tower in downtown San Jose to be closer to its rising star.
History
The
San Jose Mercury was founded in 1851 as the
San Jose Weekly Visitor, while the
San Jose News was founded in 1883. In 1942 the
Mercury purchased the
News and continued publishing both newspapers, with the
Mercury as the morning paper and the
News as the evening paper. In 1983 the papers were merged into the
San Jose Mercury News, with morning and afternoon editions. Eventually the less-popular afternoon edition was dropped, so at present the newspaper publishes only as a morning paper.
The paper says that the name "Mercury" refers to the importance of the
mercury industry during the
California Gold Rush, when the city's New Almaden Mines (now
Almaden Quicksilver County Park) were the largest producer of mercury in
North America. The name has a dual meaning, as
Mercury is the Roman messenger of the gods as well as the god of commerce and thieves, known for his swiftness, and the name
Mercury is commonly used for newspapers without the quicksilver association.
Because of its location in Silicon Valley, the
Mercury News has covered many of the key events in the history of computing.
In August 1996, the newspaper published
Gary Webb's "Dark Alliance", a series of investigative articles linking the
CIA to
Nicaraguan contras organizing the distribution of
cocaine into United States. While first enthusiastic about the story, eight months later the executive editor would claim the story was faulty, in a letter to readers in which he stated: "I believe that we fell short at every step of our process."
Corporate ownership
On
March 13,
2006,
The McClatchy Company announced their agreement to purchase Knight Ridder, the United States' second largest chain of daily newspapers and owner of the
Mercury News. McClatchy decided that it would be expedient to explore the immediate resale of the
Mercury News.
(External Link
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On
April 26,
2006, it was announced that
Denver-based
MediaNews Group would buy the
Mercury News.
(External Link) However, on
June 12,
2006, federal regulators from the U.S.
Department of Justice asked for more time to review the purchase, citing possible anti-trust concerns over MediaNews' ownership of other newspapers in the region. Although approval by regulators and completion of MediaNews' acquisition was announced on
August 2,
2006, a lawsuit claiming antitrust violations by MediaNews and the
Hearst Corporation had also been filed in July 2006. The suit, which sought to undo the purchase of both the
Mercury News and the
Contra Costa Times, was scheduled to go to trial on
April 30,
2007. While extending until that date a preliminary injunction which prevented collaboration of local distribution and national advertising sales by the two media conglomerates, U.S. District Judge Susan Illston on
December 19,
2006 expressed doubt over the legality of the purchase.
(External Link) On
April 25,
2007, days before the trial was scheduled to begin, the parties reached a settlement in which MediaNews preserved its acquisitions.
(External Link)
Awards
The newspaper has earned several awards, including two
Pulitzer Prizes, one in 1986 for reporting regarding political corruption in the
Ferdinand Marcos administration in the
Philippines, and one in 1989 for their comprehensive coverage of the
Loma Prieta earthquake. The Mercury News was also named one of the five best-designed newspapers in the world by the
Society for News Design for work done in 2001.
Coverage
Much of the paper's local coverage is concentrated on Silicon Valley, the Peninsula, the southern portion of the East Bay, and
Santa Cruz. Therefore, it's most widely available in those areas, as well as
San Francisco.
Pricing
For some time, the normal cost of a paper purchased Monday-Saturday was 35 cents (25 cents in some areas and
$1.00 everywhere on Sundays). In 2005 the price was increased to 50 cents. (The price of the Sunday paper remains at $1.00). The price increase came at a time of falling revenues and was an effort to increase those revenues.
Further Information
Get more info on 'San Jose Mercury News'.
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