The Bakersfield Californian
Encyclopedia
The Bakersfield Californian is the daily newspaper
serving Bakersfield, California
and surrounding Kern County in the state's San Joaquin Valley
.
The Californian is a direct descendant of the first paper published in the region, The Daily Courier in 1866. The Weekly Courier was published in the mining town of Havilah, California
, about 50 miles northeast of Bakersfield. The newspaper moved to Bakersfield in 1872 and changed the name to The Kern County Weekly Courier. In 1876, the Courier merged with The Southern Californian, another local newspaper, and became The Kern County Californian. The newspaper's name was changed to The Daily Californian in 1891. The Kern County superintendent of schools, Alfred Harrell, purchased the newspaper in 1897, and renamed it The Bakersfield Californian in 1907. For over 110 years, the newspaper has been in the control of the Harrell-Fritts family and is currently run by Virginia F. "Ginger" Moorhouse, who is the great-granddaughter of Alfred Harrell.
Prior to 1980, former Bakersfield Mayor
Mary K. Shell
worked as a reporter and columnist for The Californian.
, Mas, The Northwest Voice, and The Southwest Voice. Mas is a free, weekly magazine aimed at Bakersfield's large Hispanic
population. The Northwest Voice was a prototype for many hyper local news efforts and combines print with online publications, with an emphasis on traditional journalistic reporting. The staff of the Voice newspapers consists of only a few editors to look through all of the online submissions and decide which are to be printed.
for its coverage of the stabbing death of an assistant district attorney.
In 2008, the paper received an $837,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to develop Printcasting
, a technology for democratized magazine publishing.
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
serving Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield is a city near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in Kern County, California. It is roughly equidistant between Fresno and Los Angeles, to the north and south respectively....
and surrounding Kern County in the state's San Joaquin Valley
San Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley is the area of the Central Valley of California that lies south of the Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta in Stockton...
.
History
Havilah, California
Havilah is an unincorporated community in Kern County, California. It is located south-southeast of Miracle Hot Springs, at an elevation of 3136 feet ....
, about 50 miles northeast of Bakersfield. The newspaper moved to Bakersfield in 1872 and changed the name to The Kern County Weekly Courier. In 1876, the Courier merged with The Southern Californian, another local newspaper, and became The Kern County Californian. The newspaper's name was changed to The Daily Californian in 1891. The Kern County superintendent of schools, Alfred Harrell, purchased the newspaper in 1897, and renamed it The Bakersfield Californian in 1907. For over 110 years, the newspaper has been in the control of the Harrell-Fritts family and is currently run by Virginia F. "Ginger" Moorhouse, who is the great-granddaughter of Alfred Harrell.
Prior to 1980, former Bakersfield Mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
Mary K. Shell
Mary K. Shell
Mary Katherine Jaynes Shell, previously Mary Hosking, usually known as Mary K. Shell , is the first woman to have served as mayor of Bakersfield, California and only the second woman to have served on the Kern County Board of Supervisors...
worked as a reporter and columnist for The Californian.
Other publications
The Californian runs several other publications in Kern County including the Tehachapi NewsTehachapi News
Tehachapi News is the local source for news and events affecting the residents and businesses in Tehachapi, California. The newspaper is published every Wednesday and is available through home delivery and at rack locations throughout the area....
, Mas, The Northwest Voice, and The Southwest Voice. Mas is a free, weekly magazine aimed at Bakersfield's large Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
population. The Northwest Voice was a prototype for many hyper local news efforts and combines print with online publications, with an emphasis on traditional journalistic reporting. The staff of the Voice newspapers consists of only a few editors to look through all of the online submissions and decide which are to be printed.
Awards
In 2004, the paper received the Payne Award for Ethics in JournalismPayne Award for Ethics in Journalism
The Payne Awards for Ethics in Journalism were created at the University of Oregon's School of Journalism and Communications in 1999. In the words of the school's dean, Tim Gleason, the awards were created "to honor the journalist of integrity and character who reports with insight and clarity in...
for its coverage of the stabbing death of an assistant district attorney.
In 2008, the paper received an $837,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to develop Printcasting
Printcasting
Printcasting is a web site and self-publishing technology designed to let individuals and organizations create self-updating PDF magazines using content from participating blogs or news providers...
, a technology for democratized magazine publishing.