Connecticut Post
Encyclopedia
The Connecticut Post is a daily newspaper
located in Bridgeport, Connecticut
. It serves the greater Bridgeport area, Fairfield County
, and the Lower Naugatuck Valley
. Municipalities in the Post's circulation area include Bridgeport
, Ansonia
,
Derby
, Easton
, Fairfield
, Milford
, Monroe
, Orange
, Oxford
, Redding
, Seymour
, Shelton
, Stratford
, Trumbull
, Weston
, and Westport
. The newspaper is owned and operated by the Hearst Corporation
, a multinational
corporate media conglomerate
with $4 billion in revenues.
The publisher is Robert Laska. The most recent editor, James H. Smith, departed abruptly on June 26, 2008. No reason was given to staff, but Smith later attributed his departure to "mutual agreement." Smith had attempted to take the newspaper in a different direction, stressing slice-of-life style features and enterprise and investigative work while downplaying court/police coverage. In recent years he has avoided layoffs despite economic pressures, opting instead to offer buyouts and drastically cut the freelance budget.
The Posts coverage area presents problems as Bridgeport, Connecticut's largest city, is a poor and mostly minority area, while the surrounding eastern Fairfield County
and western New Haven County
area is affluent and mostly white. Consequently, while the Post does provide solid coverage of Bridgeport, most of the paper is composed of local stories regarding the surrounding towns.
The newspaper was formerly the morning Bridgeport Telegram and evening Bridgeport Post before consolidating into a morning publication. The Bridgeport Telegram ran from at least 1908 to 1929 and again from 1938 to 1990.
The Post was formerly owned by Thomson Corporation
, a national newspaper chain. In 2000, Thomson agreed to sell the Post for $205 million to MediaNews Group
, based in Denver, Colorado
, which also owns newspapers in Massachusetts
and New Hampshire
.
On August 8, 2008 the Hearst Corporation acquired the Connecticut Post (Bridgeport, Conn.) and www.ConnPost.com, including seven non-daily newspapers, from MediaNews Group, Inc. and assumed management control of three additional daily newspapers in Fairfield County
, Conn., including The Advocate (Stamford)
, Greenwich Time
(Greenwich), and The News-Times (Danbury), which had been managed for Hearst by MediaNews had managed under a management agreement that began in April 2007.
In 2010, the Connecticut Post launched a complete re-design which included a new font and re-designed Connecticut Post header
Some significant stories the Post has broken include former Bridgeport Mayor Joseph Ganim's bribery scandal and former Bridgeport Mayor John Fabrizi's admission of using cocaine
.
In 2008, under Smith's leadership, the Connecticut Post received its first Newspaper of the Year Award from the New England Newspaper Association.
Comedian and actor Richard Belzer
, a Bridgeport native, was a paperboy and later a staff reporter for the Post, before pursuing his career as an entertainer.
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
located in Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Located in Fairfield County, the city had an estimated population of 144,229 at the 2010 United States Census and is the core of the Greater Bridgeport area...
. It serves the greater Bridgeport area, Fairfield County
Fairfield County, Connecticut
Fairfield County is a county located in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The county population is 916,829 according to the 2010 Census. There are currently 1,465 people per square mile in the county. It is the most populous county in the State of Connecticut and contains...
, and the Lower Naugatuck Valley
Lower Naugatuck Valley
The Lower Naugatuck Valley, also known as "The Valley", is a geographic area located around the southern part of the Naugatuck River. The area consists of the municipalities of Seymour, Derby, Ansonia, and Shelton , and is governed by the Valley Council of Governments...
. Municipalities in the Post's circulation area include Bridgeport
Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Located in Fairfield County, the city had an estimated population of 144,229 at the 2010 United States Census and is the core of the Greater Bridgeport area...
, Ansonia
Ansonia, Connecticut
Ansonia is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, on the Naugatuck River, immediately north of Derby and about northwest of New Haven. The population was 19,249 at the 2010 census. The ZIP code for Ansonia is 06401. The city is serviced by the Metro North railroad...
,
Derby
Derby, Connecticut
Derby is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 12,391 at the 2000 census. With of land area, Derby is Connecticut's smallest municipality.The city has a Metro-North railroad station called Derby – Shelton.-History:...
, Easton
Easton, Connecticut
Easton is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 7,490 at the 2010 census. Easton contains the historic district of Aspetuck....
, Fairfield
Fairfield, Connecticut
Fairfield is a town located in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is bordered by the towns of Bridgeport, Trumbull, Easton, Redding and Westport along the Gold Coast of Connecticut. As of the 2010 census, the town had a population of 59,404...
, Milford
Milford, Connecticut
Milford is a coastal city in southwestern New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, located between Bridgeport and New Haven. The population was 52,759 at the 2010 census...
, Monroe
Monroe, Connecticut
Monroe is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 19,479 at the 2010 census. The current first selectman is Steve Vavrek....
, Orange
Orange, Connecticut
Orange is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 13,233 at the 2000 census. A 2007 Census Bureau estimate puts the population at 13,813. The town is governed by a Board of Selectmen.-History:...
, Oxford
Oxford, Connecticut
Oxford is a town located in western New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 12,272 at the 2010 Census. There are several areas in Oxford: Quaker Farms, Riverside and Oxford Center. Oxford belongs to the Naugatuck Valley Economic Development Region and the Central...
, Redding
Redding, Connecticut
Mark Twain, a resident of the town in his old age, contributed the first books for a public library which was eventually named after him.-Government:...
, Seymour
Seymour, Connecticut
Seymour is a town located in western New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The town was named for Governor Thomas H. Seymour. The population was 15,454 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...
, Shelton
Shelton, Connecticut
Shelton is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 39,559 at the 2010 census.-Origins:Shelton was settled by the English as part of the town of Stratford, Connecticut, in 1639...
, Stratford
Stratford, Connecticut
Stratford is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, located on Long Island Sound at the mouth of the Housatonic River. It was founded by Puritans in 1639....
, Trumbull
Trumbull, Connecticut
Trumbull, a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut in the New England region of the United States, is bordered by the towns of Monroe, Shelton, Stratford, Bridgeport, Fairfield and Easton along Connecticut's Gold Coast. The population was 36,018 according to the 2010 census.Family Circle magazine...
, Weston
Weston, Connecticut
Weston is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut. The population was 10,179 at the 2010 census. The town is served by Route 57 and Route 53, both of which run through the town center. About 19% of the town's workforce commutes to New York City, about to the southwest.Like many towns in...
, and Westport
Westport, Connecticut
-Neighborhoods:* Saugatuck – around the Westport railroad station near the southwestern corner of the town – a built-up area with some restaurants, stores and offices....
. The newspaper is owned and operated by the Hearst Corporation
Hearst Corporation
The Hearst Corporation is an American media conglomerate based in the Hearst Tower, Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. Founded by William Randolph Hearst as an owner of newspapers, the company's holdings now include a wide variety of media...
, a multinational
Multinational corporation
A multi national corporation or enterprise , is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation...
corporate media conglomerate
Media conglomerate
A media conglomerate, media group or media institution is a company that owns large numbers of companies in various mass media such as television, radio, publishing, movies, and the Internet...
with $4 billion in revenues.
The Post
The paper has a weekday circulation of 53,866, a Saturday circulation of 41,768, and a Sunday circulation of 80,840 according to the Audit Bureau of Circulation, behind the Hartford Courant (264,539) and the New Haven Register (89,022). The paper competes directly with the Register in Stratford, Milford, and portions of the Lower Naugatuck Valley.The publisher is Robert Laska. The most recent editor, James H. Smith, departed abruptly on June 26, 2008. No reason was given to staff, but Smith later attributed his departure to "mutual agreement." Smith had attempted to take the newspaper in a different direction, stressing slice-of-life style features and enterprise and investigative work while downplaying court/police coverage. In recent years he has avoided layoffs despite economic pressures, opting instead to offer buyouts and drastically cut the freelance budget.
The Posts coverage area presents problems as Bridgeport, Connecticut's largest city, is a poor and mostly minority area, while the surrounding eastern Fairfield County
Fairfield County, Connecticut
Fairfield County is a county located in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The county population is 916,829 according to the 2010 Census. There are currently 1,465 people per square mile in the county. It is the most populous county in the State of Connecticut and contains...
and western New Haven County
New Haven County, Connecticut
New Haven County is a county located in the south central part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. As of the 2010 Census, the county population is 862,477 making it the third most populated county in Connecticut. There are 1,340 people per square mile...
area is affluent and mostly white. Consequently, while the Post does provide solid coverage of Bridgeport, most of the paper is composed of local stories regarding the surrounding towns.
History
The Post was formerly owned by Thomson Corporation
Thomson Corporation
The Thomson Corporation was one of the world's largest information companies.Thomson was active in financial services, healthcare sectors, law, science & technology research, and tax & accounting sectors...
, a national newspaper chain. In 2000, Thomson agreed to sell the Post for $205 million to MediaNews Group
MediaNews Group
MediaNews Group, based in Denver, Colorado, is one of the largest newspaper companies in the United States. It is privately owned and operates 56 daily newspapers in 12 states, with combined daily and Sunday circulation of approximately 2.4 million and 2.7 million, respectively...
, based in Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
, which also owns newspapers in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
and New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
.
On August 8, 2008 the Hearst Corporation acquired the Connecticut Post (Bridgeport, Conn.) and www.ConnPost.com, including seven non-daily newspapers, from MediaNews Group, Inc. and assumed management control of three additional daily newspapers in Fairfield County
Fairfield County, Connecticut
Fairfield County is a county located in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The county population is 916,829 according to the 2010 Census. There are currently 1,465 people per square mile in the county. It is the most populous county in the State of Connecticut and contains...
, Conn., including The Advocate (Stamford)
The Advocate (Stamford)
The Advocate is a seven-day daily newspaper based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA. The paper shares a publisher and editor with the Greenwich Time; both are owned and operated by the Hearst Corporation, a multinational corporate media conglomerate with $4 billion in revenues.The Advocate circulates...
, Greenwich Time
Greenwich Time (newspaper)
Greenwich Time is a daily newspaper based in Greenwich, Connecticut, USA. The paper shares an editor and publisher with The Advocate of nearby Stamford, Connecticut...
(Greenwich), and The News-Times (Danbury), which had been managed for Hearst by MediaNews had managed under a management agreement that began in April 2007.
In 2010, the Connecticut Post launched a complete re-design which included a new font and re-designed Connecticut Post header
Some significant stories the Post has broken include former Bridgeport Mayor Joseph Ganim's bribery scandal and former Bridgeport Mayor John Fabrizi's admission of using cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
.
In 2008, under Smith's leadership, the Connecticut Post received its first Newspaper of the Year Award from the New England Newspaper Association.
Comedian and actor Richard Belzer
Richard Belzer
Richard Jay Belzer is an American stand-up comedian, author, and actor. He is perhaps best known for his role as John Munch, which he has portrayed as a regular cast member on the NBC police drama series Homicide: Life on the Street and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, as well as in guest...
, a Bridgeport native, was a paperboy and later a staff reporter for the Post, before pursuing his career as an entertainer.