The Village Voice, America’s most high profile "alternative" newspaper—and a platform for such writers as Jack Newfield, Wayne Barrett, Gary Giddins, Hilton Als and Ellen Willis—has killed its print publication.
Peter Barbey, who purchased the paper from Voice Media Group in 2015, said ending the print edition of the paper was necessary to secure its future.
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The Voice's website will remain intact, and Barbey says the publication "plans to maintain its iconic progressive brand with its digital platform and a variety of new editorial initiatives and a full slate of events that will include The Obie Awards and The Pride Awards."
Barbey is CEO at Reading Eagle Company, which owns the Reading Eagle newspaper and the WEEU 830 AM radio station, both based in Reading, Pennsylvania.
Launched in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher and Norman Mailer, the Voice has long been a force in New York's political and cultural scene. It has been distributed for free since 1996.
The end of the Voice’s print edition is the latest in a series of setbacks for the alternative newspaper business. Several notable alternative publications, including the Boston Phoenix, the San Francisco Bay Guardian and Philadelphia City Paper have folded in the last half-decade as they fell prey to decreasing revenue and circulation.
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