The Cowles Company is an American diversified media company based in

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the most populous city in eastern Washington and the county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It lies along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south o ...

. The company owns and operates ''

The Spokesman-Review ''The Spokesman-Review'' is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Spokane, Washington, the city's sole remaining daily publication. It has the third-highest readership among daily newspapers in the state, with most of its readership base in ...

'' in Spokane, founded in 1894, and owned the ''

Spokane Daily Chronicle The ''Spokane Daily Chronicle'' is a daily digital newspaper in Spokane, Washington. It was founded as a weekly paper in 1881 and grew into an afternoon daily, competing with ''The Spokesman-Review'', which was formed from the merger of two com ...

'' until it was shut down in 1992. Built by William H. Cowles, the publishing business eventually constructed striking buildings in downtown Spokane for both papers. The Chronicle Building was eventually converted into offices and then residential. The company also owned several other papers and operates Inland Empire Paper Company,

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

stations, and interests in real estate,

insurance Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to protect ...

marketing Marketing is the act of acquiring, satisfying and retaining customers. It is one of the primary components of Business administration, business management and commerce. Marketing is usually conducted by the seller, typically a retailer or ma ...

and

financial Finance refers to monetary resources and to the study and Academic discipline, discipline of money, currency, assets and Liability (financial accounting), liabilities. As a subject of study, is a field of Business administration, Business Admin ...

services. William Stacey Cowles, the publisher of ''The Spokesman-Review'', is the great-grandson of the company's founder, William H. Cowles, and the fourth generation of the Cowles family to run the paper. His sister, Elizabeth A. Cowles, is chairwoman of the parent company. Rob Curley is the editor.

History

William H. Cowles came to Spokane at age 24 to be the business manager of the ''Spokesman'', which was founded less than two years before, and excelled at local news coverage. He had experience as a police reporter for the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' and was the son of the ''Tribune'' treasurer, Alfred Cowles Sr. He soon bought the ''Spokesman'' from his partners. In 1893, he bought a rival paper, the ''Review'', and merged the two papers into ''The Spokesman-Review''. He acquired the ''Spokane Chronicle'' in 1897. According to ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' in 1952, he was a "determined man" who had an artificial leg yet walked two miles to the office each day. Cowles set the ''Chronicle'' on a course to be independent, and ''The Spokesman-Review'' to support Republican Party causes. ''Time'' magazine related the paper's success gaining lowered rates for freight carried to the Northwest United States and an improved park system and that helped the region. Increasing its reputation for comprehensive local news and by opposing "gambling, liquor and prostitution", ''The Spokesman-Review'' gained popularity. The paper's opposition to building the

Grand Coulee Dam Grand Coulee Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, built to produce hydroelectric power and provide irrigation water. Constructed between 1933 and 1942, Grand Coulee originally had two powerhous ...

was not quite so universally applauded and when it opposed the

New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...

and the Fair Deal, it so disturbed President of the United States

Harry Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...

that he declared the Spokesman-Review to be one of the "two worst" newspapers in the United States. The Scripps League's ''Press'' closed in 1939, making Cowles the only newspaper publisher in Spokane. Cowles created four weeklies, the ''Idaho Farmer'', ''Washington Farmer'', ''Oregon Farmer'' and ''Utah Farmer''. Cowles died in 1946. When William H. Cowles Jr. succeeded his father as publisher, James Bracken received much more news and editorial control as managing editor. William H. Cowles III succeed his father as publisher. The original Review Building, designed by Seaton & Ferris in 1891 in a style closest to Richardson Romanesque, is ten stories with a tower that reaches . In 1975, it was listed in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

Television

Cowles' television operations are centered around the two NBC affiliates in eastern Washington. The flagship is

KHQ-TV KHQ-TV (channel 6) is a television station in Spokane, Washington, United States, affiliated with NBC. It is the flagship (broadcasting), flagship and namesake of the KHQ Television Group, a subsidiary of the locally based Cowles Company, whic ...

in Spokane, which was founded by Cowles as Washington's second television station. Cowles also owns KNDO in Yakima and its Tri-Cities semi-satellite

KNDU KNDO (channel 23) is a television station in Yakima, Washington, United States, affiliated with NBC. It is owned by the Spokane-based Cowles Company as part of the KHQ Television Group. KNDO's studios are located on West Yakima Avenue in downtown ...

(licensed to Richland). As of September 2007, Cowles planned to acquire two CBS affiliate television stations for US$41 million from

Newport Television Newport Television, LLC was a television station holding company founded by Providence Equity Partners and Sandy DiPasquale in 2007 to acquire the television stations owned by Clear Channel Communications. History In September 2007, Newport a ...

, one of the holding companies formed by Providence Equity Partners when Providence planned to acquire the television stations owned by

Clear Channel Communications iHeartMedia, Inc., or CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc., formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc., a company founded by ...

. They are

KCOY-TV KCOY-TV (channel 12) is a television station licensed to Santa Maria, California, United States, serving the Central Coast of California as an affiliate of Telemundo and The CW. It is owned by VistaWest Media, LLC, which maintains a shared se ...

in Santa Barbara- Santa Maria-

San Luis Obispo, California ; ; ; Chumashan languages, Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly halfway betwee ...

and KION-TV in

Monterey, California Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, California, Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a popu ...

. KION carries

The CW The CW Network, LLC (commonly referred to as The CW or simply CW) is an American commercial broadcast television network which is controlled by Nexstar Media Group through a 75% ownership interest. The network's name is derived from the firs ...

on a separate digital channel. Cowles would also have a management agreement with KCBA, the Fox affiliate serving Salinas, Monterey and

Santa Cruz, California Santa Cruz (Spanish language, Spanish for "Holy Cross") is the largest city and the county seat of Santa Cruz County, California, Santa Cruz County, in Northern California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city population ...

, and would acquire two low power stations, KKFX-CA, also Fox in

and the

Telemundo Telemundo (; formerly NetSpan) is an American Spanish-language terrestrial television network owned by NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, a division of NBCUniversal, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of Comcast. It provides content ...

affiliate KMUV-LP in Monterey. The deal closed on May 7, 2008. On September 20, 2013,

News-Press & Gazette Company The News-Press & Gazette Company (NPG) is an American media company based in St. Joseph, Missouri, wholly owned and operated by the Bradley family. It is presided by Brian Bradley and David R. Bradley, with Hank Bradley (retired), Eric Bradley, ...

announced that it would purchase

Monterey Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a population of 30,218 in the 2020 census. The city was fou ...

stations, KION-TV and KMUV-LP, as well as

San Luis Obispo ; ; ; Chumashan languages, Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly halfway betwee ...

station KKFX-CA. NPG will also take over some of the operations of Santa Maria sister station

, which Cowles will retain, under a shared services agreement (as NPG's holdings in the area already include

KEYT-TV KEYT-TV (channel 3) is a television station licensed to Santa Barbara, California, United States, serving the Central Coast of California as an affiliate of ABC, CBS, and MyNetworkTV. It is owned by the News-Press & Gazette Company (NPG) alo ...

in Santa Barbara). The existing LMA for KCBA was terminated on December 1, 2013, as that station's operations were assumed by

Entravision Communications Entravision Communications Corporation is an American media company based in Santa Monica, California. Entravision primarily caters to the Spanish language in the United States, Spanish-speaking Hispanic and Latino Americans, Hispanic community ...

through a joint sales agreement (the license was retained by Seal Rock Broadcasters). On September 30, 2013, Cowles announced that it would acquire Max Media's Montana television station cluster for $18 million. The sale was finalized on November 29. In October 2022, Cowles introduced the standardized branding ''NonStop Local'' for all of its stations' news programming, as part of an effort to promote them as multi-platform news sources.

Current

(**) - ''indicates a station built and signed on by Cowles''.

Cowles Montana Media Company

KHQ, Incorporated

Former

Other affiliations

* Basic Financial Solutions * Citizens Realty * Inland Empire Paper Company * '' Spokane Journal of Business'' * River Park Square * Nickels Worth Publications * Northwest Farmer-Stockman * Print Marketing Concepts * ''

'' ** ''

'' *

SWX Right Now SWX Right Now (Sports and Weather Right Now) is a regional digital subchannel network broadcasting professional, college sports, college and high school sports, and automated weather and news on Cowles Company-owned stations throughout Eastern W ...

Cowles family

The Cowles family of Spokane is descended from Elizabeth (1827–1910) and Sarah Hutchinson (1837–1884) of

Cayuga County, New York Cayuga County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 76,248. Its county seat and largest city is Auburn. The county was named for the Cayuga people, one of the Native American tribes in the I ...

. The two sisters married two brothers, Alfred Cowles Sr. and Edwin Cowles of

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

. Edwin published the '' Cleveland Leader'' and Alfred moved to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

where he purchased one third of the ''

''. and Feminist and educator

Betsy Mix Cowles Betsy Mix Cowles (February 9, 1810 – July 25, 1876) was an early leader in the United States abolitionist movement. She was an active and influential Ohio-based reformer, and was a noted feminist and an educator. She counted among her friends ...

was Alfred and Edwin's paternal aunt. Edwin's sons Alfred and Eugene were chemists and metallurgists who invented and operated electric arc smelters to extract aluminum.

Alfred Cowles Alfred Cowles III (September 15, 1891 – December 28, 1984) was an American economist, businessman, and founder of the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics, an influential research institute which advanced the field of econometrics in t ...

, 3rd—the grandson of Alfred Sr.—founded the

Cowles Commission for Research in Economics The Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics is an economic research institute at Yale University. History It was created as the Cowles Commission for Research in Economics at Colorado Springs in 1932 by businessman and economist Alfred Cow ...

following the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

. Distantly related, the Cowles family of Spokane are about sixth cousins of the family of Gardner Cowles Sr. of

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

and

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

who owned

Cowles Media Company Cowles Media Company ( ) (1935–1998) was a newspaper, magazine and information publishing company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the United States. The company operated Cowles Business Media, Cowles Creative Publishing, and Cowles Ent ...

. Both Cowles publishing families are descendants of Hannah Bushoup (c.1613-1683) of

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

and John Cowles (1598–1675) of

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. Alfred Cowles and Sarah Frances Hutchinson had four children: Edwin (1861–1861), Alfred Jr. (1865–1939), Sarah Frances (1862–1920), and William Hutchinson (1866–1947). William married Harriet Bowen Cheney, and became a newspaper publisher in

. William is also the grandfather of William H. Cowles III.

Gallery

File:Alfred Cowles Sr-Tribune Co.jpg, Alfred Cowles Sr. of the ''

'', father of William H. Cowles File:Edwin-Cowles-small.jpg, Edwin Cowles of the '' Cleveland Leader'', brother of Alfred Cowles. Sr.

Notes

References

External links

Cowles Company

Company Overview of Cowles Company
{{Authority control American companies established in 1894 Companies based in Spokane, Washington Manufacturing companies based in Washington (state) Mass media companies of the United States Television broadcasting companies of the United States 1894 establishments in Washington (state)