The ''Sligo Weekender'' is a weekly local newspaper published every Thursday in

Sligo Sligo ( ; ga, Sligeach , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of approximately 20,000 in 2016, it is the List of urban areas ...

County Sligo County Sligo ( , gle, Contae Shligigh) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the Border Region and is part of the province of Connacht. Sligo is the administrative capital and largest town in the county. Sligo County Council is the local ...

in Ireland. It contains news of interest to Sligo town and county along with the surrounding counties of Leitrim,

Roscommon Roscommon (; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60, N61 and N63 roads. The name Roscommon is derived from Coman mac Faelchon who built ...

, South

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...

and North

Mayo Mayo often refers to: * Mayonnaise, often shortened to "mayo" * Mayo Clinic, a medical center in Rochester, Minnesota, United States Mayo may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Mayo Peak, Marie Byrd Land Australia * Division of Mayo, an Aust ...

History

The newspaper was founded in 1983 by Brian McHugh, initially as an advertising-funded ' freesheet' with some local news. In 1996, McHugh sold the publication to

Thomas Crosbie Holdings Thomas Crosbie Holdings (TCH) was a family-owned media and publishing group based in Cork, Ireland. Its largest publication was once the ''Irish Examiner'', the third largest daily broadsheet newspaper in the Republic of Ireland. History and recei ...

(TCH), publisher of the ''

Irish Examiner The ''Irish Examiner'', formerly ''The Cork Examiner'' and then ''The Examiner'', is an Irish national daily newspaper which primarily circulates in the Munster region surrounding its base in Cork, though it is available throughout the country. ...

'' and other titles; he remained as editor. It became a paid-for newspaper in 2002. In December 2010, TCH sold the tabloid newspaper to Carrick-on-Shannon native Kevin Mitchell, who operated a printing company in

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 N ...

. In 2019, it was purchased from Mitchell by Dorothy Crean. Since its purchase by Crean, it is one of the few regional newspapers in Ireland that is locally owned.

Competition and circulation

As of 2007, the newspaper's competition included the ''

Sligo Champion ''The Sligo Champion'' is a weekly regional newspaper published every Tuesday in Sligo, Ireland. It was purchased by Independent News & Media (INM) in 2008. In a 2011 article in the ''Irish Independent'', also owned by INM, it was described as o ...

'' and '' Sligo Post''. According to circulation figures collated by the Audit Bureau of Circulations for late 2007, the Sligo Weekender then had a weekly circulation of approximately 7,900 copies.

Recognition

In 2004, the Sligo Weekender won a "community activity" award (for newspapers with circulations under 50,000) at the International Newspaper Marketing Awards. It also previously received an "award of excellence" at the European Newspaper Design Awards.

References

External links

* {{Newspapers in the Republic of Ireland, state=expanded 1983 establishments in Ireland Mass media in County Sligo Newspapers published in the Republic of Ireland Publications established in 1983

Sligo Weekender The ''Sligo Weekender'' is a weekly local newspaper published every Thursday in Sligo, County Sligo in Ireland. It contains news of interest to Sligo town and county along with the surrounding counties of County Leitrim, Leitrim, County Roscommo ...

Thomas Crosbie Holdings Weekly newspapers published in Ireland