The history of the News-Press is inextricably linked to the history of Santa Barbara and the region. Our story begins with E.B. Boust, who first published the Santa Barbara Post on May 30, 1868. Spanish was still the official language of public record in Santa Barbara, and was not supplanted by English until two years later.
This makes the News-Press the second-oldest newspaper in Southern California (after the Bakersfield Californian), the second-oldest on the Central Coast (after the Santa Cruz Sentinel) and more venerable, we’ll be sure to note, than either the Los Angeles Times or the San Diego Union-Tribune.
The paper was renamed the Santa Barbara Press and published under several variations on the theme–Press, Daily Press, Weekly Press, etc.–until settling on Morning Press in 1887. In 1932, publisher T.M. Storke brought the paper under common ownership with his own Santa Barbara Daily News before consolidating them as the News-Press in 1938.
These first 60 years of the paper’s life were marked by frequent name and ownership changes, repeated Wild West-style altercations and sometimes dubious reporting. By contrast, the next 60 years and three owners saw the News-Press develop into a trusted community institution, gain recognition as one of the best small town papers in the country and ultimately achieve journalism’s highest honor, a 1962 Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing.
Under the leadership of owner-publisher T.M. Storke, the paper evolved from a respectable Western broadsheet to a cornerstone of community life. From Rincon Point to Guadalupe —and often far beyond — no undertaking was too large and no event too small for the newspapers’ multitude of diligent reporters. Though it was a for-profit venture, the paper nonetheless operated in a public trust capacity for its community. Editorial direction followed a simple platform, printed in every edition, every day:
- Keep the news clean and fair.
- Play no favorites, never mix business and editorial policy.
- Do not let the news columns reflect editorial comment.
- Publish the news that is public property without fear or favor to friend or foe.
- Accept no charity and ask no favors.
- Give “value received” for every dollar you take in.
- Make the paper show a profit if you can, but above profit keep it clean, fearless, and fair.
Storke and the News-Press would play a central role in advocating for developments that now define our region, among them the establishment of the University of California, Santa Barbara, the Santa Barbara harbor and breakwater, the Santa Barbara Airport, Cachuma Reservoir and the Santa Barbara Post Office.
The Storke era culminated in the News-Press’ 1962 Pulitzer Prize, which recognized the paper for its exposé of the far-right John Birch Society’s baseless accusations that various public officials had been compromised by a communist conspiracy.
In 1964, Storke sold the publication to Philadelphia Bulletin owner Robert McLean, and stipulated it be kept operationally independent from McLean’s other newspaper holdings. McLean’s nephew, Stuart S. Taylor took over as publisher, thereby ensuring the continued success of the paper and developing such local names as writers Dick Smith (for which our Dick Smith Wilderness is named) and legendary local historian Walker Tompkins.
The New York Times purchased the paper in 1985, furthering the strong journalistic legacy established by the prior two owners and investing in the modernization of the enterprise. The News-Press was regularly cited among the finest examples of local journalism in the country, and with this came a virtuous cycle of world-class reporters and a highly engaged readership whose trials and triumphs were reflected in the News-Press’ daily pages.
In 2000, The New York Times sold the News-Press, then one of its only California properties, to a recent transplant to Santa Barbara, Wendy McCaw. In 2002, she hired Jerry Roberts as editor in chief. Roberts, former managing editor of the San Francisco Chronicle, led a newsroom revival as the paper’s reporters and editors racked up numerous state awards and national citations.
But in summer 2006, the News-Press’ 60+ year run of high-minded leadership ran out. The News-Press’ owner, who traditionally exercised control over the newspaper’s opinion pages, for the first time began to interfere in news decisions. The “wall” between opinion and news was a longstanding pillar in American journalism.
Just as lawyers are bound by the American Bar Association’s Model Rules of Professional Conduct, editors and reporters long looked to the Society of American Journalists’ Code of Ethics as a road map for trustworthy, principled and credible journalism practice. This intrusion into the independence of the newsroom ultimately precipitated the collapse of the paper as over 100 staff were either fired or resigned in the following 12 months.
Understanding that the spirit of the News-Press no longer resided within its historic De la Guerra Plaza headquarters, but with the reporters who had been forced out, the Santa Barbara community overwhelmingly backed the journalists. The saga garnered global attention as mass protests, a grassroots newspaper boycott and decades-long legal battles ensued.
The paper’s owner continued to publish the News-Press, a shell of its former self, until finally placing it in bankruptcy in 2023.
Rather than writing the papers’ final obituary, however, a group of locals rallied once more to save the cherished community institution by purchasing its assets and irreplaceable historic archives out of bankruptcy.
So began the redemption arc of a people and a place. The News-Press and our community are indebted to Ben Romo and Jason Yardi, among many others, who stepped up to purchase the paper’s crucial assets on extraordinarily short notice, snatching it from the jaws of an exploitative foreign bidder.
There are few community newspapers given this kind of second chance and even fewer with the storied legacy of our own.
At its best, the News-Press has served as an indispensable part of the critical information infrastructure of our community: comprehensive daily coverage, deeply researched investigations, emergency information source during local tragedy and public celebrant of local success.
When the institution faltered, the community backed its journalists. And, for nearly 20 years, the community fought for the paper’s soul. Now the onus is on us, the News-Press team, to regain community trust and make good on the promise of the News-Press name. This trust must be earned and we promise to work every day to do just that.
It’s been a long way back, but with your support, the best is yet to come.