An icon is gone.
The last Del Rio News Heralds are distributed, waiting to be picked up and then, a paper that has been printed since 1884 will be no more.
In cost cutting measures, the paper has gone from 6 days a week, to five to two days a week to extinction.
Tuesday morning, executives from Southern Newspapers, a corporation that owns about a dozen mid-sized Texas newspapers shut the paper’s doors to help kick off the holiday season.
Corporate staffers met with the advertising manager, business manager and a senior reporter and gave them the hard news.
Next, the rest of the staff was called in and told they would soon be unemployed.
The entire staff had been informed that there was a meeting via email Monday, Nov. 16, 2020. When employees showed up, after many had worked from home, they were informed it would be their last meeting in the building, most needed to have their belongings out of the building by 5 p.m.
Southern Newspapers released the following quote in a story about how nice they were Tuesday afternoon.
“Retiring the Del Rio News-Herald this week is an incredibly difficult decision, one made only after long and deep consideration,” said Leonard Woolsey, President of Southern Newspapers Inc., which owns the News-Herald. “Del Rio is an essential and vibrant community in both Texas’ past and future.”
He added the following. “Closing this newspaper is not what we wanted to do,” he said. “However, with the current economic conditions and the trends we can see, we can no longer continue to serve the community at the level we feel it deserves.”
In its release on the News Herald website, the company wrote, “Southern Newspapers Inc. will provide compensation packages to Del Rio News-Herald employees, in gratitude for their service,” they wrote.
“They did what the law requires,” one staffer messaged 830 Times staff. “Nothing more.”
Southern Newspapers owns a number of papers throughout Texas.
When the 830Times saluted the amazing staff that has worked hard in Del Rio Tuesday morning, readers had a number of responses on Facebook, ranging from sadness to glee to anger.
“So sad,” wrote Laura Trevino.
“This is heartbreaking. They do a great job, I’m so sorry to hear this,” said KENS 5 reporter Vanessa Croix.
One person said they really weren’t surprised.
“So, with mismanagement, low pay, non-creatives writing, corporate overlords get to dismantle a newspaper that’s over 100 years old. Could have had them working at home to save overhead, tried some better branding, marketing, community outreach, etc, but that would mean actually restructuring everything to try and have some success as a focal point for the community. That’s work, they only want easy money machines that line their pockets, they don’t care about the community, the paper, the people, or actually creating. A massive company owns a tiny newspaper, and they struggle to keep the lights on. How can they send money to the big boss at the filthy greedy Southern Newspapers?” said Havok Son, probably a fake name on Facebook but strong insights that indicate they were a former employee.
To see all the responses, click here.
Follow www.830Times.com on Facebook to see news and the future of printed publications.
