It’s time to bid farewell — and say thank you
EDITOR’S NOTE: McClatchy, which owns this newspaper, will emerge from bankruptcy, likely on Sept. 4. It will be owned by Chatham Asset Management. The following column represents a farewell to readers from the departing McClatchy chairman.
Five generations of McClatchys have run this local media company since the founding of its first newspaper in Sacramento 163 years ago. That’s a long run for any business, especially a family-run enterprise.
But that streak will end soon when Chatham Asset Management takes control and I step down from my position as chairman of the board along with my three cousins, Molly Maloney Evangelisti, Brown McClatchy Maloney and William McClatchy.
While the McClatchy family has run the business since 1857, our story begins even earlier with a 17-year-old boy leaving his home in what is now Northern Ireland and sailing to New York. The year was 1841 and that boy was my great, great grandfather James McClatchy.
James McClatchy’s journey represents more than the chronicles of an adventurous, industrious emigrant who embodied the American dream. It encompasses the ambitions of a growing nation and the blossoming of an industry that would become one of the great pillars of our democracy.
A few years after landing in New York, James became a correspondent for the New York Tribune, which was published and edited by the legendary Horace Greeley. Greeley famously exclaimed, “Go West, young man,” which is exactly what young James did in 1849.
He wound up in Sacramento, in the heart of the Gold Rush, a dusty dot of a town. James did not strike gold but he found something even more valuable — his life’s work as a newspaper owner, editor and publisher. In doing so, he laid the foundation for a great newspaper empire that has endured to this day.
He helped launch The Sacramento Bee in 1857 guided by a goal stated in the newspaper’s first editorial, “The object of this paper is not only independence, but permanence,” and soon became the editor and owner. James’s passion for journalism has been part of the company’s DNA ever since. He saw the news profession as more than a business. For him, and many others who have followed in his footsteps in McClatchy newsrooms, journalism was a calling. That passion runs deep throughout every corner of the company, and it’s one of the reasons why McClatchy newsrooms have been awarded 54 Pulitzer Prizes, the highest honor in journalism.
James used The Sacramento Bee as a platform to promote his passion for environmentalism and abolitionism. After his death in 1883, his son Charles Kenny, continued to support environmentalism as well as defend the First Amendment and the importance of a free press. The third generation of McClatchys embarked on the company’s first plans for expansion, with James’s grandson Carlos overseeing the launch of The Fresno Bee and the purchase of The Modesto Bee (then called the Modesto News-Herald).
Eleanor McClatchy took over in 1936, when female CEOs were a rarity, especially for a media company. Anyone who thought this was just a passive caretaker’s role until a more suitable male leader emerged was mistaken. Eleanor directed this company for four decades, diversifying McClatchy into radio and television.
In 1978, Eleanor’s final contribution was to name her nephew and my father, C.K. McClatchy, to run the company. One of C.K.’s first acts was to bring in his brother James, my uncle, who applied his impassioned commitment to the crucial role of independent local journalism.
My father put the company on a path to modernize our newsrooms and increase the focus on investigative journalism. He implemented a strategy of growth with the purchase of the Anchorage Daily News and The News Tribune of Tacoma, Washington, and set us toward becoming a public company to support even more acquisitions and become one of the largest newspaper chains in the country.
Our success was due to more than the grit, determination and foresight of my McClatchy forebears. It was achieved through the collective efforts of thousands of devoted colleagues, including the journalists, editors, pressmen, carriers, advertising sales teams, and marketers. Our board members demonstrated commitment and service, as did our business leaders, including Erwin Potts, Gary Pruitt and Craig Forman.
We are proud of the company the new owners of McClatchy will inherit. Our 2,800 people are not only deeply committed to independent journalism in the public interest, they also have the skills to continue the company’s digital transformation.
Finally, I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to you, our readers, viewers and listeners from all over the country. We always valued the time you spent with us. You have chosen to pick up the paper or access it on your digital device, invite us into your home and let us tell the stories that need to be told. It has been an honor to be part of your lives and the fabric of your communities.
For the McClatchy family, the journey that James began ends soon. But the vital journey for the McClatchy news organization continues. We don’t know the stories that are yet to be told. But if the past is any guide, those stories will be driven by the same dedication to strong, independent local journalism — journalism that is essential to your communities — that has served the interests of readers and democracy for more than a century-and-a-half.
Kevin McClatchy is chairman of the board of the McClatchy Co.
This story was originally published August 30, 2020 at 7:00 AM with the headline "It’s time to bid farewell — and say thank you."