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Arkansas is a peculiar state for sure. For a start, if you’re out of state, you’re probably not pronouncing its name right. Arkansas’ magnificent mountains, vast forest regions and smaller urban communities will leave you in awe and offer you a more peaceful lifestyle closer to nature.
On the other hand, sports are not a selling point for the state who has no professional sports teams and scores very poorly in the health department with widespread obesity, smoking, and sedentary lifestyle among its residents.
Everybody knows some weird facts about Arkansas and its people, and while some are true, most is just unverified folklore from old times that have passed.
There is certainly a charm to Arkansas, but if you’re coming here to do business, you better get to know the local press. There is no shortage of printed and online newspapers with more than a dozen daily publications, and more than hundreds of periodicals.The majority are owned by several large media companies WEHCO Media, Gannett, and the Paxon Media Group.
Below, we’ve outlined the 10 most popular and read newspapers in Arkansas.
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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
- Serves: all Arkansas
- Publishes on: Sunday print, Daily digital
- Print circulation: 192,212 Daily; 284,494 Sunday (2008)
- Monthly web visits: 1.87M
- Founded in: 1819
- Current owner: WEHCO Media, Inc.
- Managing Editor: Eliza Hussman Gaines egaines@arkansasonline.com
The Democrat-Gazette is by far the biggest newspaper in Arkansas and the oldest along the Mississippi first published 17 years before the state was officially recognized.
The newspaper as you see it today is actually the merger of two newspapers the Democrat and the Arkansas Gazette. After fiercely battling to dominate the Arkansas news industry for 13 years, the Hussman family ultimately prevailed and pushed the Democrat ahead of the former leader. The Gannett corporation, which owned the Arkansas Gazette threw the towel and sold the newspaper to its opponent in 1991.
Today, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette exists in both a printed form produced in Little Rock, and online at https://www.arkansasonline.com/, where you can find 24/7 updates on all major news and topics.
In 2019, the paper successfully completed a digital conversion of it’s daily newspaper, providing its subscribers with new iPads and setting them up to receive an electronic version. Issues Monday through Saturday stopped printing, leaving Sunday the only physically printed edition.
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Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
- Serves: Fayetteville and Northwest Arkansas
- Publishes on: Daily
- Print circulation: 17,807
- Monthly web visits: 469.20K
- Founded in: 1860
- Current owner: Northwest Arkansas Newspapers
- Editor: Rusty Turner rturner@nwaonline.com
Northwest Arkansas Newspapers is a joint venture between WEHCO Media Inc. and Stephens Media, who consolidated all of their Northwest Arkansas newspapers, including the following:
- Northwest Arkansas Times
- Benton County Record
- Springdale Morning News
- Rogers Morning News
The resulting newspaper was named Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and printed in Lowell by WEHCO for distribution in Washington and Benton counties. You’ll also find it online at http://www.nwaonline.com, where close to one million people visit every month to read local news and information about their community.
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Arkansas Times
- Serves: all Arkansas
- Publishes on: Monthly
- Print circulation: <25,000 (estimate)
- Monthly web visits: 432.08K
- Founded in: 1974
- Current owner: Arkansas Times Limited Partnership
- Editor: Lindsay Millar lindseymillar@arktimes.com
When the Arkansas Gazette merged into the Democrat, it left a huge void for liberal views and opinions. With the Democrat, as well as it’s Northwestern counterpart leaning heavily to the right, Arkansas Times saw an opportunity to fill the gap left in the press industry.
For example, in 2018, the paper stood against anti-BDS laws and is currently suing the University of Arkansas – Pulaski Technical College, after it terminated its contract in relation to the publication’s stance on Israel.
The newspaper publishes online at http://www.arktimes.com
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Texarkana Gazette
- Serves: Four State Area, Arkansas, Texas
- Publishes on: Daily
- Print circulation: 25,000
- Monthly web visits: 410.06K
- Founded in: 1875
- Current owner: WEHCO Media Inc.
- Editor: Les Minor lminor@texarkanagazette.com
Texarkana Gazette is unique in that it’s split between the states of Texas and Arkansas. The paper issues some 25,000 copies daily to residents in more than 15 counties Miller, Little River, Hempstead, Nevada, Howard, Sevier, Pike and Columbia counties in Arkansas, as well as Bowie, Red River, Morris, Marion, Titus, and Cass counties in Texas. There is also some distribution in Oklahoma and Louisiana.
In 2010, the newspaper received the General Excellence award from the Arkansas Press Association, competing against the largest media companies in the state.
An online version can be accessed through http://www.texarkanagazette.com
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Southwest Times Record
- Serves: Fort Smith, Arkansas
- Publishes on: Daily
- Print circulation: 38,412 Daily, 43,461 Sunday (2015)
- Monthly web visits: 139.27K
- Founded in: 1884
- Current owner: Gannett
- Editor: John Lovett jlovett@swtimes.com
Southwest Times Record serves the second largest city in Arkansas Fort Smith along with more than 10 communities in western Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma. Some 300,000 residents rely on the Times Record for daily news and sports, entertainment, lifestyle and editorial content.
An Internet edition is published at http://www.swtimes.com
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The Sentinel-Record
- Serves: Hot Springs, Garland County, Arkansas
- Publishes on: Daily
- Print circulation: 10,000-25,000 (estimate)
- Monthly web visits: 120.83K
- Founded in: 1874
- Current owner: WEHCO Media Inc.
- Editor: Mark Gregory mark@hotsr.com
Apart from another classified advertising publication, Hot Springs only has one newspaper The Sentinel-Record. The paper serves the daily needs of more than 35,000 residents of the Spa City, as well as nearly 100,000 citizens of Garland County.
You can also find The Sentinel-Record online at http://www.hotsr.com
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Log Cabin Democrat
- Serves: Conway, Faulkner County, Arkansas
- Publishes on: Daily
- Print circulation: <10,000 (estimate)
- Monthly web visits: 114.30K
- Founded in: 1879
- Current owner: Paxton Media Group
- Editor: editorial@thecabin.net
The Log Cabin publishes issues Tuesday to Sunday and serves as the news and information hub for more than 110,000 citizens of Faulkner County. Way early in 1997, the Log Cabin unveiled it’s digital publication at https://www.thecabin.net/
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Baxter Bulletin
- Serves: Mountain Home, Baxter County, Arkansas
- Publishes on: Daily
- Print circulation: 8,878 (2013)
- Monthly web visits: 71.43K
- Founded in: 1901
- Current owner: Gannett
- News Director: Sonny Elliott rlelliott@mtnhome.gannett.com
The Baxter County has been served by the Bulletin since 1901, establishing itself as the main news source for the region. The publication also maintains a general interest magazine called Living Well Magazine dedicated to the communities in the Ozark Mountain Region.
You can find a digital version published at http://www.baxterbulletin.com and updated every day of the week.
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Jonesboro Sun
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- Serves: Jonesboro, Arkansas
- Publishes on: Daily, except saturday
- Print circulation:10,000 (estimate)
- Monthly web visits: 67.98K
- Founded in: 1901
- Current owner: Paxton Media Group
- Editor: Chris Wessel Chris Wessel
Jonesboro Sun serves more than 80,000 citizens of Jonesboro and seven counties throughout Arkansas. The newspaper was founded and operated by theTroutt family for more than 100 years, before selling to the Paxton Media Group.
An online version is accessible at http://www.jonesborosun.com
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Pine Bluff Commercial
- Serves: Pine Bluff, Arkansas
- Publishes on: Daily
- Print circulation: <10,000 (estimate)
- Monthly web visits: 50K
- Founded in: 1881
- Current owner: WEHCO Media Inc.
- Managing Editor: Byron Tate btate@pbcommercial.com
Pine Bluff Commercial is the daily newspaper of Pine Bluff and Jefferson County, serving nearly 80,000 people.
In 2019, the owner at the time, Gannett shut down the printing press in Pine Bluff and outsourced production of the Commercial elsewhere. In 2020, the newspaper was bought out by WEHCO Media Inc and the process to digitalize it, following the model of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette began.
Today, the Pine Bluff Commercial lives as part of the Democrat-Gazette and can be found at https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/pb/news/
More Newspapers in Arkansas
If you’re looking for more printed publications in Arkansas, don’t look further than the Arkansas Press Association. Below, you’ll find a comprehensive list of newspaper members of the APA.
Daily Newspapers in Arkansas
- Batesville Daily Guard
- The Saline Courier
- Northwest Arkansas Democrat- Gazette
- Camden News
- Log Cabin Democrat
- El Dorado News-Times
- Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
- Times-Herald
- Times Record
- Harrison Daily Times
- The Sentinel-Record
- The Sun
- Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
- Banner-News
- Malvern Daily Record
- The Baxter Bulletin
- Paragould Daily Press
- Pine Bluff Commercial
- Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
- The Courier
- The Daily Citizen
- Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
- Texarkana Gazette
Weekly and Semi-Weekly Newspapers in Arkansas
- Courier-News
- The Leader
- The Herald-Leader
- Press Argus-Courier
- Evening Times
- The Standard
- Arkadelphia Dispatch
- The Beebe News
- The Weekly Vista
- Carroll County News Midweek
- Carroll County News Weekend
- Booneville Democrat
- Monroe County Herald
- The Leader
- White River Current
- Charleston Express
- Villager Journal
- Johnson County Graphic
- Van Buren County Democrat
- Clay County Courier
- Ashley County News Observer
- Yell County Record
- Post Dispatch
- De Queen Bee
- DeWitt Era-Enterprise
- Dumas Clarion
- England Democrat
- Eudora Enterprise
- Lake Area Weekly
- Washington County Enterprise-Leader
- The Mountaineer Echo
- Fordyce News-Advocate
- Glenwood Herald
- Westside Eagle Observer
- Ashley County Ledger
- South Arkansas Sun
- Spring River Chronicle
- Grand Prairie Herald
- The Sun Times
- The Helena World
- Pacesetting Times
- Hot Springs Village Voice
- Madison County Record
- Newton County Times
- Chicot County Spectator
- Arkansas Business
- The Daily Record
- The Citizen
- Courier-Index
- Marshall Mountain Wave
- Woodruff County Monitor-Leader-Advocate
- McGehee-Dermott Times-News
- The Melbourne Times
- The Mena Star
- Advance Monticellonian
- Conway County Petit Jean Country Headlight
- Montgomery County News
- Stone County Leader
- Murfreesboro Diamond
- Nashville News-Leader
- The Newport Independent
- Osceola Times
- Ozark Spectator
- Paris Express
- Pea Ridge Times
- Perry County Petit Jean Country Headlight
- Clay County Times Democrat
- Pocahontas Star Herald
- Cleveland County Herald
- The News
- Sheridan Headlight
- Lafayette County Press
- Lincoln American
- Lincoln Ledger
- Poinsett County Democrat Tribune
- Waldron News
- The Times Dispatch
- Eagle Democrat
- Wynne Progress
- Lovely County Citizen
Monthly Newspapers in Arkansas
- The Arkansas Times
- The Atkins Chronicle