''City Pages'' was an

alternative newspaper An alternative newspaper is a type of newspaper that eschews comprehensive coverage of general news in favor of stylized reporting, opinionated reviews and columns, investigations into edgy topics and magazine-style feature stories highlighting ...

serving the Minneapolis–St. Paul metropolitan area. It featured

news News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different Media (communication), media: word of mouth, printing, Mail, postal systems, broadcasting, Telecommunications, electronic communication, or through the te ...

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

and

restaurant A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery (commerce), food delivery services. Restaurants ...

reviews and

music criticism '' The Oxford Companion to Music'' defines music criticism as "the intellectual activity of formulating judgments on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres". In this sense, it is a branch of m ...

, available free every Wednesday. It ceased publication in 2020 due to a decline in ads and revenue related to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

History

On August 1, 1979, publishers Tom Bartel and Kristin Henning debuted ''Sweet Potato'', a monthly newspaper focused on the

Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in stat ...

music scene. The first issue featured pop band

The Cars The Cars were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1976. Emerging from the New wave music, new wave Subculture, scene in the late 1970s, they consisted of Ric Ocasek (rhythm guitar), Benjamin Orr (bass guitar), Elliot Easton (l ...

on the cover. In October 1980, ''Sweet Potato'' went biweekly. On December 3, 1981, the newspaper went weekly and was renamed ''City Pages''. ''City Pages'' competed for readership with the ''Twin Cities Reader'' until 1997, when Stern Publishing purchased ''City Pages'' in March and the ''Twin Cities Reader'' the following day, shuttering it immediately. Bartel and Henning left ''City Pages'' in the fall of 1997. Tom Bartel's brother Mark was named publisher after Bartel and Henning's departure. ''City Pages'' was one of seven alternative weeklies owned by Stern, including the ''

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Ma ...

''. On October 24, 2005, New Times Media announced a deal to acquire Village Voice Media, creating a chain of 17 (now 16) free weekly newspapers around the country with a combined circulation of 1.8 million and controlling a quarter of the weekly circulation of alternative weekly newspapers in North America. After the deal's completion, New Times took the Village Voice Media name. In September 2012,

Village Voice Media Village Voice Media or VVM is a newspaper company. It began in 1970 as a weekly alternative newspaper in Phoenix, Arizona. The company, founded by Michael Lacey (editor) and Jim Larkin (publisher), was then known as New Times Inc. (NTI) and the ...

executives Scott Tobias, Christine Brennan and Jeff Mars bought Village Voice Media's papers and associated web properties from its founders and formed

Voice Media Group Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, Voice Media Group (VMG) is a privately held diversified media and technology company dedicated to serving advertisers, business owners and readers nationwide. VMG delivers innovative marketing solutions and dynam ...

. Web editor Jeff Shaw, food columnist Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl, staff writers Jonathan Kaminsky and Jeff Severns Guntzel, among others, left in 2008. On May 6, 2015, ''City Pages'' was sold to Star Tribune Media Co., publisher of the Minneapolis daily newspaper of the

same name ''Same Name'' is an American reality television series in which an average person swaps lives with a celebrity of the same first and last name. It premiered on July 24, 2011 on CBS. The series received low ratings, and CBS pulled it after four-ep ...

. Following the sale, Star Tribune Media Co. ceased publication of its competing publication, ''Vita.mn''. On October 28, 2020, owner Star Tribune Media Co. said it would cease publication of ''City Pages'' immediately. The company said it could no longer sustain the newspaper after the

coronavirus outbreak The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

forced closings and downsizings of the events, nightclubs, bars and restaurants that were its chief advertisers and financial base.

Notable employees

Diablo Cody Brook Maurio (previously Busey-Hunt; ''née'' Busey; born June 14, 1978), known professionally by the pen name Diablo Cody, is an American writer and producer. She gained recognition for her candid blog and subsequent memoir, ''Candy Girl: A Year ...

– screenwriter, producer, author, journalist *

Will Hermes Will Hermes (born December 27, 1960, in Jamaica, Queens, New York City) is an American author, broadcaster, journalist and critic who has written extensively about popular music. He is a longtime contributor to ''Rolling Stone'' and to National P ...

– music journalist *

Jessica Hopper Jessica Hopper (born September 5, 1976) is an American writer. She published '' The First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic,'' a compilation of her essays, reported pieces, zines, and reviews, in May 2015. In 2018, she publis ...

– music journalist * Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl – food critic

Criticism

The publication has been criticized by

Minneapolis City Council The Minneapolis City Council is the Legislature, legislative branch of the city of Minneapolis in Minnesota, United States. Comprising 13 members, the council holds the authority to create and modify laws, policies, and ordinances that govern the ...

member Alondra Cano, who called a story about her "racist" and "sexist." In her 2015 memoir, musician

Carrie Brownstein Carrie Rachel Brownstein (born September 27, 1974) is an American musician, actress, writer, director, and comedian. She first came to prominence as a member of the band Excuse 17 before forming the rock trio Sleater-Kinney. During a long hiatu ...

asserted

sexism Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but primarily affects women and girls. It has been linked to gender roles and stereotypes, and may include the belief that one sex or gender is int ...

in the paper's music coverage in the '90s, citing ''City Pages'' among "a representative sample of journalism about

Sleater-Kinney Sleater-Kinney ( ) is an American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington, in 1994. The band's lineup features Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar) and Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), following the departure of longtime member Janet We ...

. Most of these articles are actually trying to be complementary — the authors just fell into common traps and assumptions." In a 2016 interview with

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...

, musician

Har Mar Superstar Sean Tillmann-Hauser (born February 6, 1978) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. He has performed and released studio albums as Sean Na Na and as a member of hardcore band Calvin Krime, but is best known for his work under the name Har M ...

criticized the paper for "trivializing my art by mentioning that I'm overweight and bald for no reason," saying the paper exhibited "really horrible writing and I guess bitter people."

References

External links

*, live links to archive providers {{Minnesota Newspapers Defunct newspapers published in Minnesota Alternative weekly newspapers published in the United States Newspapers established in 1979 1979 establishments in Minnesota 2020 disestablishments in Minnesota Publications disestablished in 2020

History

Notable employees

Criticism

See also

References

External links