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The Sudbury Star

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THE STAR

The Sudbury Star has been a proud member of Greater Sudbury for over 100 years, first publishing on January 11, 1909. With that paper, it became the first daily newspaper between Toronto and the North Pole to roll off the presses.
We pride ourselves on being the leader of local news and information across the region, and the most respected way for businesses to reach the residents of each distinct community. The Sudbury Star services a 250-mile radius. We have readers as far west as Blind River, as far east as Sturgeon Falls, in Gogama to the north and Britt to the south.
We publish six days a week with The Sudbury Star and also with www.thesudburystar.com leading the way in newspaper websites in the north averaging over 2,000,000 page views monthly, our reach continues to grow.
As the only daily newspaper in the region, The Sudbury Star contributes a great deal to the city. Some of the Star’s sponsored events include Northern Lights Festival Boréal, Cinefest, Sudbury Wolves, Sudbury Symphony Orchestra, The Dragon Boat Festival and many, many more. In fact the Star supported more than 100 local events and organizations like the Sudbury Food Bank, over the years. Year after year, we continue to be leaders in the delivery of news and information, as well as helping make our community as strong and vibrant as ever.

The Sudbury Star Story

Past..

The Sudbury Star has been keeping Northern Ontario informed since. January 11,1909, when the first daily newspaper between Toronto and the North Pole rolled off the presses, as The Daily Northern Star. Six months later into its operation, William Edge Mason, a printing foreman in The Star''s mechanical department set out to save the paper from financial difficulties. He found 10 prominent men who each contributed $3,000 to keep the paper alive. They were Charles McCrea, Larry O''Connor, J.A. Mulligan, S.E. Wright, George E. Burroughs, J.H. Clary, Joseph Morin, "Dolph" Morin, Louis Laforest and Thomas Clemow. A reorganization took place and within one month, The Daily Northern Star was back on the streets. In early 1910, Mason again called upon his backers for more support and on April 2, 1910 the "Sudbury Star" cut back publication from six days a week to two days a week and bade farewell to its first editor and publisher, George J. Ashworth. Lean times continued for the newspaper, now under the sole management of W.E. Mason Equipment and run by Bill Mason himself and three others. Competition was fierce and the publication consisted of a mere four pages, with eight pages on Saturdays. The plant first occupied parts of the Burroughs Block, then established itself in the Grand Opera House (now the Empire block), followed by a move to a location across the street known as the Morin building (which was later to become the Star Restaurant). The First World War removed all doubt about The Sudbury Star''s future as it grew rapidly with the nickel industry. The old Elgin Street quarters and the weekly newspaper equipment were now inadequate. Bill Mason found what he believed would be a permanent site for The Sudbury Star to grow, the Gagne Block at the corner of Frood Road (then Monck Street) and Elm Street. The building was remodeled at a cost of $10,000 to house a 24-page Hoe rotary press operated for 26 years, starting February 2, 1921. With the growth of the Nickel Belt, The Star became a trice-weekly publication as of September 1935. With the outbreak of the Second World War, it returned to daily status in September 1939. The corner of Frood and Elm remained its home through the years, until 1961 when the present building on MacKenzie Street was opened. A new press, brought in from Montreal and assembled over a period of 12 months, was still in operation up until June 1999, when a new 10-Unit Goss Urbanite press was installed. Although Bill Mason had purchased the MacKenzie Street site many years prior to the final move, he never got to see the newspaper in its newest location. Mr. Mason died June 22,1948, and ownership of The Star was vested immediately in the W.E. Mason Estate, with proceeds from the business going to the Mason Foundation for charitable purposes. J.R. Meakes, who had been managing the business under Mason''s proprietorship, continued as publisher and general manager. In 1950, Meakes purchased the newspaper from the Mason Estate. A new company, The Sudbury Daily Star Limited, was set up with George Miller, Q.C., as president and trustee of the new company. Judicial approval was sought for the transaction and was granted by Mr. Justice R.I. Fergusson of the Supreme Court of Ontario in February 1951. With Miller as president and J.R. Meakes as publisher and general manager, The Sudbury Star entered a new phase in its history. Because of a rapid expansion, it became apparent in 1955 that the newspaper would require a huge infusion of new capital for the plant and a new building to meet its needs. The owners saw that these needs could run beyond their resources and offers to purchase The Star were considered from several sources. In August 1955, ownership of The Sudbury Daily Star passed to Thomson Newspaper Ltd. In a statement from Ken Thomson, president of the company and son of Roy Thomson who founded his communications empire in Northern Ontario, the autonomy of the newspaper was relegated directly to the local publisher and staff. Jim Meakes retired in 1975. He died February 11, 1997, of injuries received in a traffic accident. Following the Meakes retirement, John Friesen was appointed publisher. He held the position until the fall of 1981 when he retired and Don R. Herron assumed the office. In 1986, Maurice H. Switzer took the reins as publisher and general manager of The Sudbury Star until his promotion in early 1992 to the Winnipeg Free Press. Jon C. Butler became the seventh publisher and general manager of the operation, following a tenure as publisher in Cambridge, Timmins and Elliot Lake. He was appointed Group Publisher of Central Canada in late 1994. In September of 1995, Ken Seguin became the eighth publisher of The Sudbury Star. He joined Thomson Newspapers in 1968 and worked in circulation at a number of newspapers and as a circulation consultant until he was appointed publisher of the Elliot Lake Standard in 1989. In 1990, he was appointed publisher of Farming Today until his move to publisher in Chatham in 1992. The Sudbury Star was purchased by Osprey Media LP on July 31, 2001. On July 28, 2003, Osprey Media LP appointed Dan Johnson as publisher and general manager of The Sudbury Star. Johnson joins The Star after serving three years as publisher of the Timmins Daily Press. Before that, Johnson was director of advertising for six years at the St. John's Telegram and advertising manager for three years at the Corner Brook Western Star. In 2004, Johnson moved on to become Osprey Media's regional manager for northeastern Ontario, and publisher of the North Bay Nugget. David Kilgour, formerly of the Nugget, moved to Sudbury to take his place at the helm of The Sudbury Star. David joined the Osprey team in 2002 as the North Bay Nugget's Director of Marketing and Business Development. His role expanded to include labour relations, regional advertising, and corporate marketing initiatives such as the Digital Edition and Osprey Wheels.com. David's career in media and communications started with freelancing stints and contract work at the Globe and Mail, the London Free Press, and the Hamilton Spectator. Career stability came in the form of a staff writer's position at Marketing Magazine in Toronto. From there, his career focus turned to communications where he eventually ended up as Managing Director of a small advertising firm in his hometown of North Bay. On May 31, 2007, Quebecor Media Group, which publishes The Sun chain of Newspapers, purchased Osprey Media.

Present...

Bruce Cowan was appointed publisher of The Sudbury Star in October 2009. Before his latest move, Bruce was publisher of the Timmins Daily Press for six years, and has spent most of his newspaper career in Northern Ontario. Bruce worked at The Tribune in Welland and The Star in Sault Ste. Marie before moving to North Bay, where he started as a reporter for The Nugget and eventually became its managing editor in his 18 years at the newspaper. The Sudbury Star publishes special sections and stand-alones such as the Real Estate Guide, TV Listings, and special business anniversary publications. The Star's website is one of the fastest growing and efficient news breaking media websites in Northern Ontario averaging over 2,000,000 page views each and every month while engaging readers. As the only daily community newspaper in the region, The Sudbury Star contributes a great to deal to the city. The Star sponsors many cultural and athletic events throughout the city year after year and dedicates special attention to the needs of a wide array of local charities and their needs. The Sudbury Star is committed to education through the Newspaper in Education program (NIE), high school bursary program and Laurentian University and Cambrian College journalism scholarships.

Future...

It is an exciting opportunity for the newspaper to grow as part of a nationwide chain of large urban papers, smaller community dailies and a stable of weekly newspapers, offering many opportunities.

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