Pressing On: Two Family-Owned Newspapers in the 21st Century

by John C. Hughes

Pressing On traces the history of two exceptional family-owned newspapers, The Seattle Times and The Wenatchee World. Owned and managed by the Blethen family since 1896, The Times track record of public-service journalism places it in the first-rank of American nine Pulitzer Prizes, including the breaking-news award in 2010 for coverage of the Lakewood police officer shootings. The Woods family has owned and managed the Wenatchee paper since 1907. Its front-page slogan is a Published in the Apple Capital of the World and the Buckle of the Power Belt of the Great Northwest. Rufus Woods, the legendary grandfather of the present publisher, led the push to create the Grand Coulee Dam. Few daily newspapers of any size can match The World for its sense of community. With full-color printing, Websites and intuitive smartphone and tablet apps, The Times and The World are reinventing themselves to stay relevant in the Internet age. Their readers have access to high-quality journalism that provides context from salmon survival to the plight of circus elephants, plus breaking news about landslides, wildfires, high-school sports and the Seattle Seahawks.

370 pages, Paperback

First published January 30, 2015

About the author

A lifelong resident of Grays Harbor on Washington State's Pacific coast, John C. Hughes has written widely about Northwest history. While attending the University of Puget Sound in the 1960's he found a mentor and friend in Northwest historian Murray Morgan. An Air Force veteran, Hughes also attended the University of Maryland, with a major in English Literature. He joined The Daily World in Aberdeen as a reporter and photographer in 1966 and moved through the chairs to managing editor 10 years later. Hughes became the newspaper's editor and publisher in 2003. He received the "Distinguished Service to Journalism" award of the Western Washington Chapter of the Society of Professional Jouranlists in 2004. He also received a C.B. Blethen Memorial Award for distinguished investigative reporting. Hughes is a trustee of the Washington State Historical Society and former president of Allied Daily Newspapers of Washington.

Reviews

[Andy Perdue · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a third-generation Washington newspaperman, I'm fascinated with the industry's history. This is a tremendous effort to peek inside two of the state's oldest newspapers and the families who run them.

I worked at the Wenatchee World as a college reporting intern in 1987 and am currently a freelance columnist for The Seattle Times. Reading "Pressing On" leaves me a little more pleased with my association with both newspapers - however slight.

I think those who enjoy learning more about the newspaper industry or regional history will enjoy reading "Pressing On."

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

#113 of 120 books pledged to read during 2018

[Diane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this for an article I was writing for the Friends of the Library Newsletter, and I only read the second half of the book that was about the Wenatchee World newspaper. Much of the information was a rehash of the story of Rufus Woods. I enjoyed the information about his sister-in-law Eva Greenslit Anderson who earned a PhD in 1937 and went to become a state Representative. I also liked the (small amount) of information about the presses and upgrades to new equipment.