- Northwest Florida Daily News
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The Northwest Florida Daily News is a daily newspaper published in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. It was founded in 1946 and is one of 65 newspapers owned by Freedom Communications. According to Ulrich's Periodical Directory, its paid circulation is 38,122 daily and 49,086 Sunday.
In 1957, Hunter S Thompson, then an airman at Eglin Air Force Base, wrote a sports column under a pseudonym for the News.
History
A group of local businessmen met on Jan. 9, 1946, to organize a weekly newspaper for Okaloosa County's southern region. They gathered at a downtown Fort Walton bar which had the only available meeting room. Present were Clyde Meigs, Fred McCaully, Paul Roberts, Ray Folmar, R.L. Odom, Howard Gill, L. Ferrin, George Klosterman, Lee Courter, Frank Bizelle, Braden Ball, W.R. Cummings, DeWitt Lamb (the first editor), Andy Anderson, Leon Bishop, Toopey Work, Bill Williams and Bill Folb.[1]
Perry Publications, a group of about 30 papers, began publication of the Playground News Feb. 7, 1946. The first issue contained 24 pages, about 65 percent of which was paid display advertising. The paper was sold to Freedom Newspapers, Inc., now Freedom Communications, on July 1, 1969.[2]
Over its history, the paper has gone by three names:
- Playground News Feb. 7, 1946 - Sept. 30, 1975
- Playground Daily News Oct. 1, 1975 - Feb. 29, 1988
- Northwest Florida Daily News Mar. 1, 1988–present[3]
Due to the close ties between the Fort Walton Beach community and Eglin Air Force Base, the Playground/Northwest Florida News supplanted the Okaloosa News-Journal, published in Crestview, Florida, as the county paper of record.
Hunter S. Thompson wrote a sports column for the Northwest Florida Daily News (then called the Playground News) while stationed at nearby Eglin Air Force Base. Thompson landed the job in early February 1957. Hired by Publisher Wayne Bell, Thompson wrote under the pseudonyms Thorne Stockton and Cubley Cohn.[4]
References
External links
- Northwest Florida Daily News official site
- Official mobile site
- Freedom Communications subsidiary profile of the Northwest Florida Daily News
Freedom Communications Newspapers The Alton Telegraph · Appeal-Democrat · The Brownsville Herald · Clovis News Journal · The Colorado Springs Gazette · Daily Press · Desert Dispatch · The Destin Log · The Star · The Gaston Gazette · The Havelock News · Hesperia Star · The Jacksonville Daily News · Jacksonville Journal-Courier · Jones Post · The Kinston Free Press · The Lima News · Lucerne Valley Leader · Mid Valley Town Crier · The News Herald · Northwest Florida Daily News · Odessa American · The Orange County Register · Portales News-Tribune · Porterville Recorder · The Quay County · Sedalia Democrat · The Seymour Tribune · The Shelby Star · Sun Journal · The Texas Monitor · The Times-News · The Topsail Advertiser · Valley Morning Star · The Walton Sun · Yuma SunTelevision stations2 1Also a subaffiliate of The CW Television Network.
2Freedom's entire television division is being acquired by Sinclair Broadcast Group pending Federal Communications Commission approval.Categories:- Newspapers published in Florida
- Publications established in 1946
- Freedom Communications
- Okaloosa County, Florida
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