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The Colorado Statesman

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Colorado Statesman
TypeWeekly newspaper
Founded1889[1]
Ceased publication2017
CityDenver
CountryUnited States
Websitewww.coloradostatesman.com
www.coloradopolitics.com

The Colorado Statesman was a weekly political newspaper published in Denver and was one of the oldest continuously published newspapers in Colorado.[1] The Statesman covered the Colorado General Assembly, state government, public policy issues, campaigns and elections, the state’s political parties, and the people and personalities behind them.[2] It was formerly known as the Denver Democrat and The Colorado Democrat.[3] The paper was succeeded to the name, Colorado Politics in 2017.

History

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It was founded in 1889.[1][self-published source?] In the newspapers early history it became part of the Denver Democrat newspaper; followed by a name change to The Colorado Democrat in the mid-1950s; and by 1977 it was renamed The Colorado Statesman.[3]

In the 1970s, the paper was owned by Cheryl Meyer and Walt Kinderman, who had hired Jody Hope Strogoff as a reporter.[3] In 1980, Bob Sweeney bought the paper.[3] In 1984, Sweeney sold the paper to Strogoff.[3] By 1990, Larry Mizel, a wealthy, politically connected GOP donor became a partial owner.[3][4]

Strogoff told Columbia Journalism Review that the newspaper at that time "became non-partisan and found that in a politically divided state like Colorado, the power players all along the political spectrum, as well as bureaucrats, like the Stateman’s coverage."[5] Strogoff stepped down as publisher on February 22, 2015, following a 35-year career. Former Colorado State Representative Jared Wright, the newspaper's contract cartoonist, assumed the publisher's role. Former state Rep. Gerald Kopel, "Mr. Colorado Legislature," wrote a weekly column in the newspaper from 1992 until his death in 2012.[6]

On February 4, 2016, the newspaper placed the bulk of its online content behind a paywall, restricting its access primarily to paid subscribers only.[7] In June 2017, the paper announced that it had merged with Clarity Media Corporation's Coloradopolitics.com. The branding associated with the Statesman was abandoned in favor of the Coloradopolitics.com brand.[8]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "About - The Colorado Statesman". Archived from the original on March 21, 2016. Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  2. ^ "The Colorado Statesman - Colorado Media". Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Hutchins, Corey (August 25, 2017). "The Colorado Statesman turns a page. Now it's called Colorado Politics". The Colorado Independent. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  4. ^ Salzman, Jason (July 1, 2016). "Trump Co-Host Owns Colorado Statesman Newspaper". The Huffington Post. Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  5. ^ "Colorado politics, covered". Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  6. ^ "Former Colorado lawmaker Gerald Kopel remembered for love of state – The Denver Post". Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  7. ^ Salzman, Jason (February 8, 2016). "Colorado Political Newspaper Now Requires Subscription for Most Content". The Huffington Post. Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  8. ^ Westergaard, Neil (June 1, 2017). "Anschutz adds to media holdings, buys another Colorado newspaper". Denver Business Journal. Retrieved June 8, 2017.
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