Similkameen News Leader
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (February 2011) |
| Type | Weekly newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Tabloid |
| Publisher | W. George Elliott |
| Headquarters | Princeton, Similkameen Valley, British Columbia |
| Circulation | 800 |
| Website | www.thenewsleader.net/ |
The Similkameen News Leader is a local and independently owned weekly newspaper serving the Princeton and Keremeos areas of the Similkameen Valley in Southern British Columbia since 1997. The paper's focus is on local stories.
The News Leader
The Similkameen News Leader was established in 1997 by long-time Princeton residents Dawn Johnson and Sharon Johnson (her daughter). The first weekly issue of the News Leader, Volume 1 Number 1, was dated January 6, 1998.[1]
W. George Elliott, another long-time Princeton resident, purchased the News Leader from the Johnsons in 2004, taking over the day-to-day operation on February 1, 2004. He had previously been employed by the Johnsons as the Advertising Sales Manager for the News Leader, beginning in July 2000. Elliott formed his company, Bengel Publishing Inc., in December 2003 in order to purchase the paper from the Johnsons. [2] Dawn Johnson remains on the staff as a part-time reporter for her former employee. Page text.[3]
The News Leader began as an upstart newspaper. The first year was really tough. Dawn Johnson recalls, "We got two big breaks at the start. The first was the result of the hill above Ken Thomas' property on Tulameen Road. A 50-million-year-old fish fossil was discovered. It was a big fish and all of it was fossilized. It made news. The next big break came a couple of months later when a grapple loader stole the night deposit vault. Out of all of the time I owned the newspaper, the photo of the grapple loader on Bridge Street ranks up there as number one."[4]
Owner/Publisher W. George Elliott describes the focus of his weekly newspaper:
- "We believe in the importance of keeping our small-town paper focused on the local happenings in our small town, which continues to be our focus." [5]