Moose Jaw Times-Herald shuts its doors after 128 years

Thursday is the first day in 128 years the city of Moose Jaw hasn’t had a newspaper.

The Moose Jaw Times-Herald published its last edition on Wednesday.

Star News Publishing, which owned the paper, revealed in November that it would be shutting down both the paper’s print and online editions.

CJME Green Zone member Darrell Davis got his first daily newspaper job at the Times-Herald.

“It was a perfect-sized market to learn your trade, or you could stay there, and a lot of people stayed and made careers there. It’s a great city and this just takes a bit of a chip away from it.”

Davis said it’s always sad when a community loses its newspaper.

“Sure there are other media, I understand that, but you always had the newspaper to supply the deeper context to a story.”

Sarath Peiris started as an intern at the Times-Herald in 1982 and eventually worked his way up to City Editor, before moving on to the Saskatoon Star Phoenix.

He said, more than anything, he’ll remember the friendships.

“You had people thrown together from around the country, and you didn’t really know anybody in the immediate town around you, and you found some really, really strong friendships that continue, I think, for the rest of your life.”

Rob Clark worked as the Times-Herald’s publisher for a number of years. He told CHAB in Moose Jaw that he believes a lack of corporate vision, combined with changes in technology contributed to the closure.

“Corporations come in here and buy up these papers and took whatever profit out of them and didn’t reinvest in them a whole lot … and then online and technology was the final demise.”

Twenty-five people lost their jobs as a result of the closure.

—With files from Discover Moose Jaw