The ''Akron Beacon Journal'' is a morning

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

Akron, Ohio Akron () is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Ohio, fifth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 190,469 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Akron metr ...

, United States. Owned by

Gannett Gannett Co., Inc. ( ) is an American mass media holding company headquartered in New York City. It is the largest U.S. newspaper publisher as measured by total daily circulation. It owns the national newspaper ''USA Today'', as well as several ...

, it is the sole daily newspaper in Akron and is distributed throughout

Northeast Ohio Northeast Ohio is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that comprises the northeastern counties of the U.S. state of Ohio. Definitions of the region consist of 16 to 23 counties between the southern shore of Lake Erie and the foothills ...

. The paper's coverage focuses on local news. The Beacon Journal has won four

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

s: in 1968, 1971, 1987 and 1994.

History

The paper was founded with the 1897 merger of the ''Summit Beacon,'' first published in 1839, and the ''Akron Evening Journal,'' founded in 1896. In 1903, the ''Beacon Journal'' was purchased by Charles Landon Knight. His son John S. Knight inherited the paper, in 1933, on Charles' death. The ''Beacon Journal'' under Knight was the original and flagship newspaper of Knight Newspaper Company, later called

Knight Ridder Knight Ridder was an American media company, specializing in newspaper and Internet publishing. It was bought by McClatchy on June 27, 2006, allowing the latter to become the second largest newspaper publisher in the United States at the time ...

The McClatchy Company McClatchy Media Company, or simply McClatchy and MCC, is an American publishing company incorporated under Delaware's General Corporation Law. Originally based in Sacramento, California, United States, and known as The McClatchy Company, it b ...

bought Knight Ridder in June 2006 with intentions of selling 12 Knight Ridder newspapers. On August 2, 2006, McClatchy sold the ''Beacon Journal'' to

Black Press Black Press Group Ltd. (BPG) is a Canadian commercial printer and newspaper publisher founded in 1975 by David Holmes Black. Based in Surrey, British Columbia, it was previously owned by the publisher of ''Toronto Star'' ( Torstar, 19.35%) and B ...

. In 2018,

GateHouse Media GateHouse Media Inc. was an American publisher of locally based print and digital media. It published 144 daily newspapers, 684 community publications, and over 569 local-market websites in 38 states. Its parent company, New Media Investment Group ...

bought the newspaper. On November 11, 2013, the ''Akron Beacon Journal'' printed its last paper in-house. It subsequently used the presses at '' The Repository'' in Canton, Ohio, also owned by GateHouse. it was using the presses at ''

The Plain Dealer ''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio; it is a major national newspaper. In the fall of 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily an ...

'' in Cleveland. The ''Akron Beacon Journal'' is Summit County's oldest continuously operating business.

Notable journalists

* Herman Fetzer: better known as "Jake Falstaff" to the Akron Beacon Journal, Akron Times and Cleveland Press readers, worked as suburban reporter for the Akron Times, where in 1920 he began his column ''Pippins and Cheese,'' taking its title and his pen name from

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's Merry Wives of Windsor. While working at the Akron Beacon Journal, his desk sat adjacent to that of writer Josephine Van De Grift, columnist of ''Demi-Tasse and Mrs. Grundy.''. * Sheldon Ocker: Covered the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

for the ''Beacon Journal.'' Received the 2018 J. G. Taylor Spink Award; inducted him into the

National Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United St ...

. * Terry Pluto: recognized as NSSA Ohio Sportswriter of the year multiple times. Wrote more than 20 books, mostly about

sports. * Josephine Van De Grift, early 20th century newspaperwoman with the

Newspaper Enterprise Association The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) is an editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States and established in 1902. The oldest syndicate still in operation, the NEA was originally a secondary new ...

and daily columnist for the ''Akron Beacon Journal'' with ''Demi-Tasse and Mrs. Grundy''.

Awards

The paper has won four

s: * 1968

Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing The Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing is one of the fourteen American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Journalism. It has been awarded since 1917 for distinguished editorial writing, the test of excellence being clearness of style, ...

( John S. Knight) for

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

weekly notebook columns * 1971 Pulitzer Prize for General Local Reporting for coverage of

Kent State Shootings The Kent State shootings (also known as the Kent State massacre or May 4 massacre"These would be the first of many probes into what soon became known as the Kent State Massacre. Like the Boston Massacre almost exactly two hundred years before (Ma ...

* 1987 Pulitzer Prize for General News Reporting for coverage of potential Goodyear takeover: "The Goodyear War" * 1994 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for race relations series: "A Question of Color"

References

External links

McClatchy to Sell the Akron Beacon Journal to Black Press Ltd. (news release)

Search Akron Beacon Journal Archive
{{Authority control Daily newspapers published in the United States Newspapers published in Ohio Pulitzer Prize–winning newspapers Mass media in Akron, Ohio 1839 establishments in Ohio Black Press newspapers Newspapers established in 1839 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service winners Gannett publications