San Diego Reader

Founder Jim Holman, a navy veteran, worked for the Chicago Reader before starting up in San Diego. The initial press run of the San Diego Reader was 20,000 copies that cost $400 to print.{{Cite web |last=Popescu |first=Roxana |date=2025-02-19 |title=‘A cultural shift you can’t deny’: San Diego Reader ceases printing and goes fully digital |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2025/02/18/a-cultural-shift-you-cant-deny-san-diego-reader-ceases-printing-and-goes-fully-digital/ |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=San Diego Union-Tribune |language=en-US}} In 1989, it was printing 131,000 copies a week and in 2015, the circulation was 90,000. In 1988, the Reader moved into a former restaurant in Little Italy and moved to offices in Golden Hill in 2012.{{Cite web |last=Showley |first=Rowley |date=2012-05-31 |title=San Diego Reader moving to Golden Hill |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/business/growth-development/sdut-san-diego-reader-moving-golden-hill-2012may31-story.html |access-date=2023-03-21 |website=San Diego Union-Tribune |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Showley |first=Roger |date=2012-07-24 |title=Reader owner completes purchase for newspaper office |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/business/growth-development/sdut-reader-owner-completes-purchase-newspaper-office-2012jul24-story.html |access-date=2023-03-21 |website=San Diego Union-Tribune |language=en-US}}

In a 1989 story about the paper, the Los Angeles Times wrote that it had developed a reputation as being "liberal", and contrasted that to Holman's morality-driven rules for the paper, such as refusing to publish advertisements promoting abortion services and prohibiting personal advertisements seeking homosexual relationships (later modified to prohibit all personal ads).{{Cite web |last=Brass |first=Kevin |date=1989-05-18 |title=Off the Wall With Reader Publisher |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-05-18-vw-390-story.html |access-date=2023-03-21 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}} He also runs the anti-abortion California Catholic Daily website from the same offices.{{Cite web |last=Davis |first=Kelly |date=2011-12-21 |title=Jim Holman's quest to amend California's abortion law |url=https://www.sdcitybeat.com/sandiego/article-9968-jim-holmans-quest-to-amend-californias-abortion-law.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324234429/https://www.sdcitybeat.com/sandiego/article-9968-jim-holmans-quest-to-amend-californias-abortion-law.html |archive-date=2012-03-24 |access-date=2023-03-21 |website=San Diego City Beat}}{{Cite web |last=Grace |first=Jeff |title=Contact Us |url=https://www.cal-catholic.com/contact-us/ |access-date=2023-03-21 |website=California Catholic Daily |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2012-04-14 |title=Reader owner bankrolls pro-life Democrat |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/politics/sdut-reader-owner-bankrolls-pro-life-democrat-2012apr13-story.html |access-date=2023-03-21 |website=San Diego Union-Tribune |language=en-US}}

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, 30 employees agreed to take pay cuts equivalent to half of their pay.{{Cite web |last=Dotinga |first=Randy |date=2020-04-08 |title=Local Media's Crucible: News Consumption Is Up, But Revenue Is Way Down |url=http://voiceofsandiego.org/2020/04/08/local-medias-crucible-news-consumption-is-up-but-revenue-is-way-down/ |access-date=2023-03-21 |website=Voice of San Diego |language=en-US}}

In February 2024, Jim Holman announced that the Reader has a new owner/editor Matt Lickona, who bought the paper for one dollar,{{Cite web |last=Wallace |first=Anthony |last2=Castillo |first2=Carlos |last3=Dixon Evans |first3=Julia |date=2025-02-20 |title=San Diego Reader ends print edition after 52 years |url=https://www.kpbs.org/news/arts-culture/2025/02/19/san-diego-reader-ends-print-edition-after-52-years |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=KPBS Public Media |language=en}} and that print publication would be shutting down. The online version of the paper will continue.{{Cite web |last=Stone |first=Ken |date=2025-02-16 |title=San Diego Reader Ends 52-Year Print Run, But Will Keep the Alt-Press Faith Online |url=https://timesofsandiego.com/business/2025/02/15/san-diego-reader-ends-52-year-print-run-but-will-keep-the-alt-press-faith-online/ |access-date=2025-02-16 |website=Times of San Diego |language=en-US}}

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• [https://web.archive.org/web/20250216135536/https://www.sandiegoreader.com/about/ San Diego Reader History]

Category:Weekly newspapers published in California

Category:Newspapers published in San Diego

Category:Alternative weekly newspapers published in the United States

Category:Companies based in San Diego

Category:Newspapers established in 1972

Category:1972 establishments in California