SF Weekly

Infobox Newspaper
name = SF Weekly


caption =
type = Alternative weekly
format = Tabloid
foundation = mid-1980s
ceased publication =
price =
owners = Village Voice Media
publisher = Josh Fromson
editor = Tom Walsh
language =
circulation = 100,546 [cite web |url=http://aan.org/alternative/Aan/ViewCompany?oid=oid%3A36 |title=SF Weekly |accessdate=2007-02-21 |publisher=Association of Alternative Newsweeklies ]
headquarters = 185 Berry
Lobby 4, Suite 3800
San Francisco, CA 94107
USA
ISSN =
website = [http://www.sfweekly.com/ sfweekly.com]

The "SF Weekly" is a free alternative weekly newspaper in San Francisco, California. The newspaper, distributed throughout the San Francisco Bay Area every Wednesday, is published by Village Voice Media, a 16-paper alt weekly newspaper chain that also includes the New York City "Village Voice" and the Los Angeles, California "LA Weekly." Founded locally in the mid 1980s and bought by Village Voice Media (then New Times Media) in 1995, the SF Weekly has garnered many notable national journalism awardsFact|date=September 2007 and enjoys mixed reviews by the Bay Area community. The paper sponsors the annual SF Weekly Music Awards, also known as the Wammies.

;Editorial SlantThe SF Weekly is politically independent, and encourages its writers to form and support educated opinions about the topics upon which they report. Contrarianism and questioning of political dogma is openly encouraged. The paper combines columns critical of both the left and right, emphasizing investigative reportage, long-form, narrative feature writing, and comprehensive arts and entertainment coverage.

;Major sections
* News: includes local, regional and sometimes statewide short and long news stories
* Arts and Entertainment: includes a weekly calendar, city events listings, a music section with a weekly music column, several music features, show previews, and CD reviews. Also includes a bi-monthly Books and Arts section, a food column, DVD reviews, theater reviews, the nightlife column Bouncer, as well as the syndicated sex advice column Savage Love, and astrology chart Free Will Astrology.
* Online Offerings: the Snitch news blog and the All Shook Down music and arts blog. Both offer daily news, day-after live show reviews, and mp3s for download.

;Awards
Association of Alternative Newsweeklies awards:
* 2004: Investigative Reporting: (Above 50,000) 1st Place (tie): "Death, Maiming, Money, and Muni" by Peter Byrne, SF Weekly
* 2004: News Story: (Above 50,000) 1st Place: Lisa Davis, SF Weekly
* 2002: Investigative Reporting: (Above 54,000) 1st Place: "Fallout" by Lisa Davis and John Mecklin, SF Weekly

;InternshipsThe paper trains anywhere from 1-5 up and coming reporters per academic quarter, but interns must receive academic credit for their work.

Controversies

;Armenian Genocide
* With an October 30, 2007 Op-Ed blog entitled "SF's Needs to Kill Its Armenian Genocide Resolution", Benjamin Wachs stirred controversy due to remarks deemed to be extremely offensive by descendants of survivors of the genocide by pondering what gift would most appropriate for his girlfriend to celebrate Armenian Genocide Day. [http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2007/10/sfs_needs_to_kill_its_armenian.php] The Weekly's former web editor David Downs responded by musing "If there was a genocide, then why is there so many left of you around to bitch?" [http://blogs.sfweekly.com/shookdown/2007/11/your_friday_morning_preparty_b.php]

;Ethics
* The "SF Weekly" was the subject of ethical controversy in Jan., 2006, when a column about the AVN porn awards misidentified the event's location and honorees. The paper's editor had apparently altered a column about a different event from years ago. [http://www.sfbg.com/40/17/news_porn.html] [http://www.sfist.com/archives/2006/01/18/did_the_sf_weekly_scapegoat_harmon_leon.php] ;Lawsuit
* The San Francisco Bay Guardian, another free alternative weekly newspaper distributed every Wednesday in the SF Bay Area, sued the SF Weekly in civil court, alleging that it tried to put the Bay Guardian out of business by selling ads below cost. The Guardian won the suit in March, 2008, and was granted a $15.9 million award, including an injunction and punitive damages, in May, 2008. [cite news|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/05/20/BAUO10PNGQ.DTL|title=Judge raises damages in case against SF Weekly|author=Meredith May|date=May 20, 2008|publisher=San Francisco Chronicle|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/05/20/BAUO10PNGQ.DTL]

;CriticismReviewerscite web |url= http://www.yelp.com/topic/san-francisco-bay-guardian-or-sf-weekly |title=Discussion: Bay Guardian or SF Weekly? |work= Yelp.com |quote= ] on Yelp.com criticized:
* the erratic quality of news coverage
* ownership by Village Voice Media LLC., based out of Phoenix, Arizona
* the paper's promotional partnership with Bill Graham Presents
* allegations of a poor work environment for ad salespeople.

References

External links

* [http://www.sfweekly.com sfweekly.com] , official website, with freely searchable archive going back to 1995
* [http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/ The Snitch] , official daily news blog
* [http://blogs.sfweekly.com/shookdown/ All Shook Down] , official daily music and art blog
* [http://blogs.sfweekly.com/foodie/ SF Foodie] , official food and restaurants blog
* [http://www.sfweekly.com/php/specialreports/index.php?report_id=602723 Bruce Brugmann Library] , official library of articles and court documents regarding Bruce Brugmann and the ongoing legal dispute between "SF Weekly" and the "San Francisco Bay Guardian"