The Chico News and Review recently announced it will no longer publish a monthly print edition. It will instead deliver all its content online.
Thursday, Jan. 11, will be the last time readers will see printed papers in newsstands.
CN&R Editor, Jason Cassidy, told NSPR it’s a question of economics.
“When COVID hit, like a lot of newspapers we shut down and just did some online stuff,” Cassidy said. “Three or four months later we came back in print, but monthly. We have struggled the whole time.”
He said the paper hoped advertising sales would gradually come back.
“They didn’t, and the publishers, the owners, decided that we’ll cease print publication, save on a lot of those costs,” he said.
No longer publishing a print paper is a decision he said will affect more than readers.
“Thankfully, most everybody who’s losing a job, it was a part-time gig. It takes a little bit of sting out of it, but I want to acknowledge that,” Cassidy said.
Going forward Cassidy and Ray Laager, who manages advertising, will be the only two permanent employees at the CN&R.
The paper will receive IT support from its partner, the Sacramento News and Review.
Cassidy said the CN&R will continue to focus on covering community events and local government.
The CN&R has been an important part of the local news and arts scene since 1977.
There were formerly three News and Reviews, which were located in Chico, Sacramento and Reno.
The Reno paper was sold in 2022, but Sacramento continues to publish a monthly online edition.
