Newspaper image via flickr user Jon S under a Creative Commons license, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

A local newspaper is celebrating its 140th anniversary with an operational change that goes back to its pioneer roots.

The Hanford Sentinel is transitioning from printing five daily editions per week to one weekly paper “that doesn’t run out before your breakfast does,” according to the story announcing the change.

The Sentinel  — with a circulation of 1,200-1,500 papers — will now publish on Wednesdays, offering 20 pages of local news, events, community voices, sports and more.

The last daily paper was distributed on Wednesday, with a previous printing schedule of five dailies Tuesday through Saturday.

The Sentinel has seen a number of owners since brothers Frank and David Dodge founded the paper as a weekly starting Feb. 4, 1886. In 2020, then owner Lee Enterprises  — the nation’s third largest newspaper chain — sold it to Santa Maria News Media, Inc., whose portfolio includes the Bakersfield Californian and Porterville Recorder.

The Sentinel is printed in Santa Maria.

Parker Bowman, editor and lifestyle reporter at The Sentinel, said reader response to the change has been overwhelmingly positive, despite initial concerns about pushback.

“Everybody I have talked to seems kind of excited about it, which is a little bit surprising, perhaps,” Bowman said. “I’ve talked to people who’ve been reading it for 70 years.”

Bowman said the shift also allows the paper to refocus on local reporting, creating a more sustainable product for readers. He added that the move stems from a combination of financial reasons and reader comments that the paper has shrunk over the years.

“We wanted to consolidate everything into one paper, make it bigger, make it more of an event to get,” Bowman said. 

He added that the goal is to prioritize local coverage over national stories.

“We want to really jettison some of that and focus on what’s important, which is local news, local issues, regional issues,” Bowman said.

The Sentinel will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony marking the anniversary on Feb. 4 at noon at 421 E. 6th St. in Hanford.