City: St. Louis, MO

Category: Media

Telephone: (314) 340-8000

Address: 900 North Tucker Boulevard

Description: Even though the various Suburban Journals are owned by the same company that owns the Post-Dispatch, the regionalized newspapers see themselves as a separate—but equal—news source for readers throughout the area. The Post-Dispatch won’t run any feature story that was first covered by one of the Journals, and vice versa. The Journals have separate staffs and run many of the same headline stories, but usually include stories of interest to their particular neighborhood or area of the county. In addition to obituaries, birth, anniversary, wedding, and engagement announcements, each Journal runs an extensive number of community calendars, providing a place for groups to publicize their fund-raising events. There are 25 editions (and 9 editorial locations) for the family of Suburban Journals, with each one focusing on local news and feature stories. The Journals run stories about community government, school boards, neighborhood associations, community organizations, and the myriad chambers of commerce, along with coverage of news from local police and fire departments. The news focuses on local people, including community leaders, teachers, and small-business owners. The pro teams are largely ignored, but there is exhaustive coverage of high school, junior high, middle school, and elementary school athletes. In 2009, the Suburban Journals began charging a $20 annual subscription fee for the papers, which previously were free and landed on your doorstep each week whether you asked for it or not. Circulation numbers for the freebies were estimated at 500,000 per week.