COMMUNITY NEWS
The Los Alamos Monitor has announced that it will publish its last edition on Sunday, Aug. 30, the same day KRSN AM1490 radio will go silent.
The announcement on the Monitor website reads as follows:
After more than 57 years in print, the Los Alamos Monitor will publish its last edition on Sunday, Aug. 30. The decision was shared with staff on Friday by officials at the headquarters of Landmark Community Newspapers, which has owned the newspaper since 1979.
Monitor staff will continue to print a sister newspaper, The Las Vegas Optic, until a buyer is found for the Monitor building on DP Road. Landmark Community Newspapers President Mike Abernathy said the company would consider selling the newspaper as well. Interested parties can contact him at (502) 513-1143.
“We are proud of the hard work our staff has put into producing a quality newspaper over the years,” Abernathy said, “even in the most difficult of times. Unfortunately, their efforts were not enough to overcome the economic challenges we faced.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has further strained an already struggling business and industry that has faced significant revenue challenges for a number of years. Like many newspapers, the Monitor has suffered from disruptive innovation, general economic conditions and now a pandemic with no end in sight. During that time, community support for the newspaper has greatly diminished, thanks in part to an unusual decision by local government to send its legal advertising to a free newspaper competitor at an apparent higher cost to taxpayers.
The newspaper’s first edition was published on March 7, 1963, in rented offices above a jewelry store, using typewriters and typesetters, equipment now considered obsolete. The weekly eventually evolved into a daily, moved to its current location and was equipped with a press.
As circumstances required, publication frequency was reduced to three times a week, and then in March of this year to twice weekly. At its peak, the Monitor employed more than 25. Today, that number matches its original full-time staff of four.
The Monitor is the only paid circulation newspaper serving Los Alamos County. If you would like a refund for the unused portion of your subscription payment, please send an email to lacirculation@lamonitor.com or call 502-633-4334 (please include your name, address and subscriber account number). Alternatively, any remaining funds associated with your subscription will be used to support local journalism in communities like yours. Requests for refunds need to be received by Sept 18, 2020.
The decision to close the Monitor comes on the heels of the news that community radio station KRSN AM 1490 will sign off for good on the same day.
Editor’s note: The Los Alamos Reporter wishes the staff of the Los Alamos Monitor all the best in the future and thanks them for many years of dedication to providing news for the community through thick and thin.