| Type | Dailynewspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Owner(s) | HD Media Co., LLC |
| Publisher | Doug Reynolds |
| Founded | 1909 |
| Headquarters | 5192 Braley Road Huntington, West Virginia, United States |
| Circulation | 25,684 Daily 27,828 Sunday (as of March 2013)[1] |
| Website | herald-dispatch |
The Herald-Dispatch is a non-dailynewspaper that servesHuntington, West Virginia, and neighboring communities in southernOhio and easternKentucky. It is currently owned by HD Media Co. LLC.[2] It currently publishes Tuesdays-Saturdays, with the Saturday edition dated "Weekend", with updates on its website on Sundays and Mondays.
The Herald-Dispatch was founded in 1909 when two Huntington newspapers, theHerald and theDispatch, merged.[3] In 1927, the newspaper became a part of the Huntington Publishing Company, operated by Joseph Harvey Long, the owner of theHuntington Advertiser. The company was operated by the Long family until 1971, when it was sold to theHonolulu Star Bulletin and then to Gannett ten months later.[3] Its companion afternoon paper, theHuntington Advertiser, ceased as a separate publication in 1979. Prior to theHuntington Advertiser's demise, the combined Sunday newspaper was referred to as theHerald-Advertiser, correctly depicted in the movieWe Are Marshall. Today, it also publishes thePutnam Herald and theLawrence Herald, more localized editions ofThe Herald-Dispatch servingPutnam County, West Virginia andLawrence County, Ohio, respectively.
For the six-month period ending March 31, 2005, the total average paid circulation was 29,098 for the daily edition and 35,552 for the Sunday edition. On May 8, 2007, the newspaper was sold toGatehouse Media,[3] then toChampion Industries on June 29.[4] Then on May 23, 2009, Champion Industries, which owned the paper at that time, revealed that it was in default of a $70 million loan fromFifth Third Bank and the previous owners, and eliminated 24 positions, representing about 15% of its workforce. In October 2011, they laid off additional employees. In 2013, Champion Industries soldThe Herald-Dispatch to local politician, Douglas Reynolds, the son of Champion's chief executive.[2]
In 2014,The Herald-Dispatch parent company HD Media acquired theWayne County News inWayne, West Virginia.[5] In 2015, the newspaper ceased printing itself, contracting the operation to theCharleston Gazette-Mail and laid off its production staff. The newspaper is now printed in Charleston and trucked 50 miles to Huntington for distribution.
In 2017,HD Media acquired theLogan Banner,Williamson Daily News, theCoal Valley News inMadison andThe Pineville Independent Herald inPineville fromCivitas Media.[6] On March 8, 2018, HD Media, the Herald-Dispatch's holding company, was declared the successful bid in the auction for theCharleston Gazette-Mail after the paper had declared bankruptcy.[7]
On July 16, 2023, the newspaper announced the elimination of its Sunday print edition. Instead, a combined weekend edition would be sent out on Saturday starting Aug. 5.[8][9]
