As a small-town Alberta newspaper shuts down, others fight to stay alive

Brendan Coulter · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 31, 2025 4:08 PM EDT | Last Updated: 31 minutes ago

After covering elections and issues astir Coronation, Alta., for much than a century, the East Central Alberta Review published its last variation past week.

The paper launched in 1911 — the archetypal contented came retired months earlier Coronation was incorporated.

By its 114th twelvemonth delivering the news, the insubstantial reached 26,000 homes crossed much than 90 communities eastbound of Red Deer, according to steadfast and proprietor Joyce Webster. 

"I've been present 44 years, putting the paper out. So it's astir apt going to beryllium a small spot of a spread successful my life," she said connected the Calgary Eyeopener past Tuesday. 

"It is bittersweet due to the fact that the assemblage is not going to beryllium capable to get accusation from their section assembly meetings or the transgression beat." 

Webster said she's acceptable to discontinue and tried to merchantability the newspaper but couldn't find a buyer. 

"So overmuch of the advertising, unfortunately, has gone to societal media," she said. 

The last nail successful the coffin for the East Central Alberta Review, Webster added, was a alteration to Canada Post's advertizing message policy. 

Last year, the postal work stopped delivering newspapers with commercialized inserts, similar flyers advertizing section businesses, to Canadians signed up for the Consumers' Choice program, which allows radical to opt retired of receiving advertizing mail, according to Canada Post. 

"When that happened, it virtually took different $24,000 disconnected the bottommost of my bottommost line. So it wasn't virtually feasible to continue," said Webster.

Dozens of different Alberta quality outlets unopen down

From 2008 to past month, 62 quality outlets closed successful Alberta, according to the Local News Research Project, tally by a radical of Canadian journalism researchers.

During that aforesaid time, 23 caller outlets opened successful the province.

Across the country, 529 section quality outlets closed successful 351 communities.

"The organizations look to beryllium nether a large woody of strain," said Tyler Nagel, a journalism teacher astatine SAIT and PhD candidate, adding galore assemblage papers are facing a crisp simplification successful advertisement revenue. 

"Similarly, successful galore towns, they're seeing a simplification successful readership arsenic aging populations proceed to diminish and young radical look to beryllium either little funny successful the quality or, successful immoderate cases, moving retired of the communities."

Nagel compares nonrecreational section journalists to section occurrence departments: some spell to enactment erstwhile disasters onslaught oregon problems surface.

"When an important contented faces a community, having that nonsubjective nonrecreational root of accusation that tin propulsion backmost against claims being made connected societal media oregon acceptable the grounds consecutive for a community. That's truly important for everyone who lives there," helium said. 

Newspapers successful Claresholm, Three Hills look challenges

The Three Hills Capital has been printing section quality since 1916. Meanwhile, the Claresholm Local Press is looking guardant to its 100th day adjacent year.

Both person faced immense challenges adapting to the changing advertizing environment. 

"You're ever competing with societal media," Rob Vogt, exertion of the Claresholm Local Press, said connected the Eyeopener past Thursday. "Everybody has a level now. Everybody tin fundamentally people their ain newspaper."

General Motors was a large root of advertisement gross for Three Hills Capital, earlier the car institution closed its dealerships successful Three Hills and the surrounding area, according to steadfast Tim Shearlaw.

"All of a sudden, General Motors decided that it was implicit for tiny dealerships," helium said connected the Eyeopener.  

"We mislaid thousands of dollars successful that respect. And, of course, a gully to the community, due to the fact that successful a agrarian community, a car dealership is an anchor."

Despite the challenges, some newspapers program to proceed publishing agelong into the future.

"We survived the pandemic and we've seen an summation successful the past mates of years," said Shearlaw. "We're a household operation, and we proceed to enactment retired a merchandise that we're precise arrogant of."

"We've survived everything, you know. That includes the Depression and the 2 satellite wars," said Vogt. "I deliberation we're going to support connected going arsenic agelong arsenic we can."

The East Central Alberta Review officially closed its doors connected Monday.