''The Fresno Bee'' is a three-times a week
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 ...
serving
Fresno, California
Fresno (; ) is a city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County, California, Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley (California), Central Valley region. It covers a ...
, and surrounding counties in that
U.S. state's central
San Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley ( ; Spanish language in California, Spanish: ''Valle de San Joaquín'') is the southern half of California's Central Valley (California), Central Valley. Famed as a major breadbasket, the San Joaquin Valley is an importa ...
. It is owned by
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 ...
and ranks fourth in circulation among the company's newspapers.
It is currently headquartered in the Bitwise 41 building at 2721 Ventura Street.
History
''The Fresno Bee'' was founded in 1922 by the McClatchy brothers
Charles Kenny (C. K.) and Valentine Stuart (V. S.), sons of ''
The Sacramento Bee
''The Sacramento Bee'' is a daily newspaper published in Sacramento, California, in the United States. Since its foundation in 1857, ''The Bee'' has become the largest newspaper in Sacramento, the fifth largest newspaper in California, and the 2 ...
''
's second editor
James McClatchy
James McClatchy (1824–1883) was an Irish-born American newspaper editor. He was the second editor of '' The Sacramento Bee'', which grew into The McClatchy Company, taking over just days after the newspaper began publication as ''The Daily Bee ...
. C. K.'s only son Carlos McClatchy became ''The Fresno Bee''
's first editor. The two Central Valley newspapers, closely linked by family ownership and editorial philosophy, formed the core of what later grew into
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 ...
. In 1932, the McClatchys purchased an older Fresno newspaper, ''The Republican''. ''The Fresno Republican'' had been founded in 1876, by
Dr. Chester A. Rowell and a group of investors that included inventor and entrepreneur
Frank Dusy. In 1932, ''The Fresno Bee'' took over the subscription lists of ''The Fresno Republican'' and merged the newspapers.
''The Fresno Bee'' began publishing the Spanish newspaper ''
Vida en el Valle'' in 1990. The paper launched its website in 1996; in November 2005, the paper integrated its online operations into the paper's other departments.
In 2004, ''The Fresno Bee'' purchased the ''Sierra Star'' in
Oakhurst.
Since 2017, the paper's relationship with their hometown representative
Devin Nunes
Devin Gerald Nunes (; born October 1, 1973) is an American businessman and politician who serves as the Chair of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board since January 20, 2025, and as chief executive officer of the Trump Media & Technolog ...
has deteriorated. Nunes took issue with several op-eds the paper had published on his handling of
Russian interference in the 2016 elections. Nunes responded by airing TV ads attacking the paper and mailing constituents a 40-page glossy pamphlet solely focused on attacking The Bee's reputation.
Originally founded at the historic
Fresno Bee Building, it has moved throughout
Downtown Fresno
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in American English, American and Canadian English to refer to a city's sometimes Commerce, commercial, Culture, cultural and often the historical, Politics, political, and geographic heart. It is often syn ...
over the years. In March 2020, ''The Fresno Bee'' moved from their headquarters of nearly 40 years at 1626 E Street to
Bitwise 41
In computer programming, a bitwise operation operates on a bit string, a bit array or a binary numeral (considered as a bit string) at the level of its individual bits. It is a fast and simple action, basic to the higher-level arithmetic opera ...
at 2721 Ventura St., Fresno, CA 93721 owned by
Bitwise Industries.
In July 2024, the newspaper announced it will reduce its print days to three a week: Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
See also
References
External links
*
1922 establishments in California
Daily newspapers published in California
Mass media in Fresno County, California
Mass media in Fresno, California
McClatchy publications
Newspapers published in California
Newspapers established in 1922
San Joaquin Valley
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