End of an Era: San Diego Reader Ceases Print Publication After 52 Years

May 15, 2025

SAN DIEGO — After more than five decades as a staple in San Diego's media landscape, the San Diego Reader has ended its print publication, marking another casualty in the ongoing decline of local print journalism across the United States.

The alternative weekly newspaper published its final print edition on February 13, 2025, concluding a 52-year run that began when Jim Holman, then a 26-year-old graduate student, founded the publication in 1972 with an initial press run of 20,000 copies.

"It's kind of undeniable that we can't do print anymore," Holman told the Times of San Diego in February, noting that even his own children have abandoned print for digital content.

The Reader's new owner, longtime editor Matthew Lickona, who purchased the publication from Holman for just $1 around January 1, had initially hoped to maintain and even expand the print edition.

"When I bought it, it was with the express idea — I reassured our circulation manager, you know, day one, I want to not only maintain print, I want to invest more heavily in it," Lickona told KPBS. "I had some runway, I ran out of runway. And it's just not able to endure on that end of it."

The publication plans to continue as a digital-only outlet, laying off production staff and closing its Golden Hill office while maintaining its editorial presence online.

The Rise and Fall of a Local Institution

In its heyday, the San Diego Reader was a journalistic powerhouse, often publishing issues that ran to 200 pages – half of which consisted of classified advertisements. The publication once boasted a circulation as high as 160,000 copies in the late 1980s.

Known for its long-form literary journalism, investigative reporting, cultural commentary, and extensive entertainment listings, the Reader served as both a cultural touchstone and a watchdog in the San Diego community. It was the perch of revered film critic Duncan Shepherd for four decades and home to investigative journalists including Dorian Hargrove, Don Bauder, and Matt Potter.

However, like many print publications, the Reader had been struggling for years. Its press run was cut from 45,000 to 25,000 copies last summer, and its final print edition was just 40 pages – a far cry from its former heft.

The Economics of Declining Print Media

The Reader's fate reflects broader industry trends that have decimated local print journalism nationwide. According to research from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, the United States continues to lose newspapers at a rate of two per week, with more than 360 newspapers closing between late 2019 and May 2022.

The digital transformation of the media landscape has fundamentally altered the economic foundations that once sustained newspapers. Several key factors have driven this decline:

1. Shift in Consumer Preferences

Today's news consumers increasingly prefer digital formats over print. The convenience of accessing news on smartphones and computers has dramatically reduced demand for physical newspapers. This preference shift has been particularly pronounced among younger generations, creating a challenging demographic cliff for print publications.

2. Loss of Advertising Revenue

Perhaps the most devastating blow to print journalism has been the collapse of advertising revenue. Print advertising in U.S. newspapers plummeted from $46.2 billion in 2003 to just $14.3 billion in 2018, according to the Pew Research Center.

The migration of classified advertising to online platforms like Craigslist was particularly damaging. For publications like the Reader, classified ads had been both a major revenue source and a reader draw.

"Before the rise of Craigslist, which publishes classified ads mostly for free, the Reader printed page upon page of classifieds each week," reported the San Diego Union-Tribune. "They were free, but they brought in readers — and paid advertisers."

3. Digital Competition

Traditional newspapers now compete not only with each other but with countless online news sources, aggregators, and social media platforms – many of which provide content for free. This has fragmented audiences and further undermined the advertising value proposition of print publications.

4. Rising Production Costs

While digital publication costs are relatively low, printing and distributing physical newspapers remains expensive. As circulation numbers fall, the cost per copy rises, creating an unsustainable economic spiral.

The Community Impact

The decline of local newspapers like the Reader has consequences beyond nostalgic loss. Research shows that communities without strong local news organizations experience decreased voter participation, increased government corruption, and greater vulnerability to misinformation.

A 2022 report from Northwestern's Medill School found that approximately 70 million Americans – about one-fifth of the country's population – now live in areas with no local news organizations or just one local outlet at risk of closure.

"Recent research shows that, in communities without a strong print or digital news organization, voter participation declines and corruption increases," noted Penelope Muse Abernathy, a visiting professor at Northwestern. This vacuum contributes to "the spread of misinformation, political polarization and reduced trust in media."

The Future of Local Journalism

While the Reader will continue online, its transformation raises questions about the future viability of local journalism. Some media experts argue that direct government funding, tax incentives for nonprofit news organizations, and increased philanthropic support may be necessary to address what they see as a market failure in providing public interest journalism.

Others believe new business models will emerge through innovation and adaptation. Digital-only publications with lower overhead costs, nonprofit news organizations, and hybrid models combining foundation funding with commercial revenue streams represent potential paths forward.

For the San Diego Reader, the immediate future involves maintaining its online presence with a smaller staff of freelancers led by Lickona.

"If we get down to that number, it's got to end, but it will not end unless we get there," Lickona told KPBS, expressing his commitment to continuing the Reader's legacy in digital form. "It's very much what I love and what I will do if I possibly can."

As for the physical archives containing nearly every issue published during the Reader's 52-year history, Lickona is in discussions with institutions including the San Diego History Center and local university libraries to preserve this chronicle of San Diego life for future generations.

The final chapter of the San Diego Reader's print edition may have closed, but the ongoing story of local journalism continues to unfold in the digital age.

Sources and Citations

San Diego Reader Closure Sources

1. Times of San Diego. (2025, February 15). San Diego Reader Ends 52-Year Print Run, But Will Keep the Alt-Press Faith Online. https://timesofsandiego.com/business/2025/02/15/san-diego-reader-ends-52-year-print-run-but-will-keep-the-alt-press-faith-online/
2. San Diego Union-Tribune. (2025, February 18). 'A cultural shift you can't deny': San Diego Reader ceases printing and goes fully digital. https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2025/02/18/a-cultural-shift-you-cant-deny-san-diego-reader-ceases-printing-and-goes-fully-digital/
3. SanDiegoVille. (2025, February). San Diego Reader Ceases Print Operations After More Than Five Decades As Top Alternative News Source. https://www.sandiegoville.com/2025/02/san-diego-reader-ceases-print.html
4. KPBS Public Media. (2025, February 19). San Diego Reader ends print edition after 52 years. https://www.kpbs.org/news/arts-culture/2025/02/19/san-diego-reader-ends-print-edition-after-52-years
5. The Coast News Group. (2025, February 19). San Diego Reader ends print edition after 52 years. https://thecoastnews.com/san-diego-reader-ends-print-edition-after-52-years/
6. Wikipedia. (2025, February 21). San Diego Reader. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego_Reader
7. MediaPost. (2025, February 21). 'San Diego Reader' Says Goodbye To Print. https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/403595/san-diego-reader-says-goodbye-to-print.html?edition=137499

Local Journalism Economic Challenges Sources

8. U.S. Government Accountability Office. (2022). Local Journalism: Innovative Business Approaches and Targeted Policies May Help Local News Media Adapt to Digital Transformation. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-22-105405
9. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. (2013, December). This Law of Economics Shows Why Print Journalism Is Doomed. https://carnegieendowment.org/posts/2013/12/this-law-of-economics-shows-why-print-journalism-is-doomed?lang=en&center=global
10. Wikipedia. (2025, April). Decline of newspapers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decline_of_newspapers
11. Harvard Business Review. (2020, March 12). Journalism's Market Failure Is a Crisis for Democracy. https://hbr.org/2020/03/journalisms-market-failure-is-a-crisis-for-democracy
12. Batta, H., Ekeanyanwu, N., & Batta, N. W. (2017). The Economics of Decline in the Media Industry: Survival Strategies of American Print Media Firms and Implications for a Diminishing Print Media Industry in Nigeria. ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/326228070_The_Economics_of_Decline_in_the_Media_Industry_Survival_Strategies_of_American_Print_Media_Firms_and_Implications_for_a_Diminishing_Print_Media_Industry_in_Nigeria
13. Central Washington University Observer. (n.d.). The decline of local newspapers: How journalism is affected. https://cwuobserver.com/25448/news/the-decline-of-local-newspapers-how-journalism-is-affected/
14. Independent Institute. (2025, January 22). Is the Decline of Newspapers a Market Failure?. https://www.independent.org/news/article.asp?id=2904
15. Northwestern University. (2022, June). As newspapers close, struggling communities are hit hardest by the decline in local journalism. https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2022/06/newspapers-close-decline-in-local-journalism/
16. Crichton, D., Christel, B., Shidham, A., Valderrama, A., & Karmel, J. (n.d.). Economics of Journalism | Journalism in the Digital Age. Stanford University. https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/cs181/projects/2010-11/Journalism/indexcdf1.html?page_id=10

 

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