The Mercury News

For the Australian newspaper, see The Mercury (Hobart).

The Mercury News
The Newspaper of Silicon Valley[1]
The March 14, 2023, front page of The Mercury News
TypeDaily newspaper
FormatBroadsheet
Owner(s)Digital First Media (Alden Global Capital)
Founder(s)John C. Emerson et al.[2]
PublisherSharon Ryan[3]
EditorFrank Pine[3]
Managing editor
  • Bert Robinson (content)
  • Randall Keith (digital)
Opinion editorEd Clendaniel
FoundedJune 20, 1851; 173 years ago (1851-06-20) (as San Jose Weekly Visitor)
LanguageEnglish
Headquarters75 E. Santa Clara Street, Suite 1100
San Jose, California 95113
U.S.[4]
Circulation93,302 Daily
150,686 Sunday (as of 2022)[5]
ISSN0747-2099
OCLC number145122249
Websitemercurynews.com

The Mercury News (formerly San Jose Mercury News, often locally known as The Merc) is a morning daily newspaper published in San Jose, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is published by the Bay Area News Group, a subsidiary of Media News Group which in turn is controlled by Alden Global Capital, a vulture fund.[6][7] As of March 2013, it was the fifth largest daily newspaper in the United States, with a daily circulation of 611,194.[8][9] As of 2018, the paper has a circulation of 324,500 daily and 415,200 on Sundays.[10] As of 2021, this further declined. The Bay Area News Group no longer reports its circulation, but rather "readership". For 2021, they reported a "readership" of 312,700 adults daily.[11]

First published in 1851, the Mercury News is the last remaining English-language daily newspaper covering the Santa Clara Valley. It became the Mercury News in 1983 after a series of mergers. During much of the 20th century, it was owned by Knight Ridder. Because of its location in Silicon Valley, the Mercury News has covered many of the key events in the history of computing, and was a pioneer in delivering news online.[12] It was the first American newspaper to publish in three languages (English, Spanish, and Vietnamese).[13]

  1. ^ Herhold, Scott (January 17, 2014). "Rebranding of San Jose as 'Silicon Valley' goes too far". The Mercury News. Bay Area News Group. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Ridder Park welcome was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b "Contact Us". The Mercury News. Bay Area News Group. July 28, 2016. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  4. ^ Carey, Pete (June 12, 2014). "Mercury News announces move to downtown San Jose". San Jose Mercury News. MediaNews Group. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
  5. ^ "Bay Area News Group Market Book" (PDF). Dropbox. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
  6. ^ "Bay Area News Group". www.bayareanewsgroup.com. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
  7. ^ Folkenflik, David (May 21, 2021). "'Vulture' Fund Alden Global, Known For Slashing Newsrooms, Buys Tribune Papers". National Public Radio. Archived from the original on May 21, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  8. ^ "Top 25 U.S. Newspapers for March 2013". Alliance for Audited Media. Archived from the original on October 16, 2015. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
  9. ^ Carey, Pete (April 30, 2013). "Mercury News scores circulation gain". San Jose Mercury News. Bay Area News Group. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  10. ^ "Bay Area News Group". Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  11. ^ "San Francisco Bay Area News Company". BANG.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference Ridder Park history was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ "The Mercury News Changes Along with San Jose". 750 Ridder Park Drive. History San José.