The Vancouver Voice

The Vancouver Voice was an alternative newspaper serving Clark County and Southwest Washington in the United States, with a focus on the area's largest city, Vancouver. It ceased publication with volume 5, issue 13 of August 19, 2011.

The Vancouver Voice
August 2007 cover, with a caricature of Vancouver mayor Royce Pollard
TypeAlternative monthly
FormatTabloid
Owner(s)News-Register Publishing Company[1]
PublisherOregon Lithoprint, Inc., Guy Everingham
EditorOssie Bladine
FoundedOctober 2006
LanguageEnglish
HeadquartersVancouver, Washington
Circulation13,000
Websitevanvoice.com

History

In early 2006, The Vanguard, a previous two-year-old alternative publication for Vancouver, folded. Several of the staff and writers involved with The Vanguard came together soon after its demise to continue the nascent tradition of an alternative periodical for the rapidly expanding population of Clark County.[2] Former Vanguard columnist and Willamette Week Screen editor James Walling joined with longtime cohort Eric A. Johnson and soon-to-be production manager Melissa Wolf to found The Vancouver Voice.[2]

In the summer of 2007, the publication became embroiled in some of the controversy surrounding the Camas, Washington mayoral race after publishing a vitriolic letter from one of its readers that attacked the character of candidate and former city councilwoman Liz Pike. Pike responded by sending a letter of complaint from her attorney to the paper and the writer of the letter (who is unaffiliated with the paper's staff).[3] Walling declined to acquiesce to Pike's complaint. In the general election, Pike was defeated by Paul Dennis, earning only 25 percent of the vote.[4]

In September 2010, Voice freelancer Marcus Griffith was the first journalist to question what was initially reported as a local acid attack.[5] The incident which later was revealed to be a hoax,[6] and resulted in felony theft charges related to funds gathered for the alleged victim. Griffith posted his initial investigation on the website of the paper. This resulted in The Voice being labeled "Satan's paper" by religious groups sympathetic to the perpetrator of the hoax.[5]

In 2011, the paper's Oregon-based owners offered if for sale, after having purchased it in 2008 from Vancouver resident James Walling.[7] After three years the paper was folded by Oregon Lithoprint Incorporated, citing "general economic malaise in the region, and specific challenges to the newspaper industry."[8]

Content and focus

The Voice featured content in the vein of most traditional alternative weekly periodicals, though more serious journalistic coverage of crimes and similar incidents has occurred.[5][6] Past cover stories have included conflicting development models in the area (high density mixed use versus urban sprawl), and the tenth anniversary of Vancouver School of Arts and Academics.[2]

gollark: There are static languages which are not Go.
gollark: Go has all these special cases.
gollark: Lisp is at least regular and easy to comprehend.
gollark: Also, you can't snippet every case nicely.
gollark: Are another bodge.

References
  1. "The News-Register, McMinnville OR, chooses APT's new remote access circulation modules". advpubtech.com.
  2. "Alternative voice wants to be heard". The Oregonian. December 4, 2006.
  3. Baker, Dean (August 5, 2007). "Hopefuls sling mud and money in spicy Camas mayoral race". The Columbian. Pike's former co-chair of the Camas Wine Art Music Festival, Amy Parent, also complained that Pike improperly took over management of the event. Parent wrote a scathing letter to The Vancouver Voice newspaper in Vancouver, criticizing Pike, calling her names and provoking a complaint from Pike's attorney.
  4. http://www.clark.wa.gov/elections/results/2007/2007GeneralResults.pdf
  5. "Marcus Griffith: The reporter who first called B.S. on the Bethany Storro acid attack". Willamette Week. September 22, 2010. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
  6. "Parent's apologize over daughter's acid attack hoax". NBC News. 2010-09-17. Media analyses, including a posting in The Vancouver Voice, questioned why in her photograph acid burns were absent from her face along her hairline, eyes or lips and none were reported on her neck, shoulders or hair or inside her nose or mouth. The Vancouver Voice also had reported that homeless witnesses claimed Storro was alone when she fell to the ground screaming.
  7. Joner, Cami. "Vancouver Voice newspaper up for sale". The Columbian.
  8. Bladine, Jeb (August 19, 2011), "Guest Commentary: Quite a Ride For This Publication: Owners of The Voice Let Go After Three Enjoyable, Challenging Years", The Vancouver Voice, 5 (13): 4
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