Post by Atticus Pizzaballa on Jan 4, 2024 10:52:49 GMT -5
Daily Sentinel designated as Utica’s official newspaper
UTICA — The Daily Sentinel has been designated as Utica’s official newspaper, nearly two years after expanding their coverage into the city and across the Mohawk Valley.
During the first official meeting of the newly sworn-in Utica Common Council held on Wednesday, the city councilors met to determine appointments and designations, and to adopt the rules of order:
• Melissa Sciortino was appointed city clerk.
• Joseph Betar was appointed president pro-tempore.
• The Daily Sentinel was appointed the official newspaper.
• Anthony J. Garramone was appointed special counsel to the Common Council.
• Democrat Robert Burmaster and Republican Mark Williamson were appointed majority and minority leaders, respectively.
As the Daily Sentinel rebranded and expanded their news coverage area in 2022, the newspaper entered a market primarily dominated by the Observer-Dispatch, who held the designation of the city’s official newspaper for decades. In the roughly two years since covering Utica news, the Sentinel has increased its subscriber count and surpassed the Observer-Dispatch in overall subscribers.
Since the Sentinel’s expansion, city councilors have kept their eyes on the newspaper, as legislation to rescind the Observer-Dispatch as the city’s official newspaper and to replace them with the Daily Sentinel was submitted to the council last year by First District Councilor Katie Aiello — citing a greater amount of local news coverage coming from the Daily Sentinel in comparison to the Observer-Dispatch.
Officials with Gannett, the parent company that owns the Observer-Dispatch, swiftly responded to the legislation to rescind their designation, arguing that it was not legal for the council to replace them with the Sentinel and stated that the Sentinel did not fit the “daily” circulation description with their schedule of publishing printed content from Tuesdays to Saturdays. City and Sentinel officials noted that the Sentinel’s circulation fit the daily description, while Sentinel officials also touted their strong online presence and page views, reaching over 1 million per month.
The legislation ended up staying in committee and ultimately dissolving, allowing the newly-sworn-in council to take the designation up for a vote.
On Wednesday, the Utica Common Council voted unanimously to designate the Daily Sentinel as the official newspaper, which will now hold the title for the next two years.
The designation comes just shy of three weeks after the Daily Sentinel was named the Greater Utica Chamber of Commerce's Business of the Year. The timing of both designations is something that Bradley Waters, president and publisher of the Daily Sentinel, noted to be "very special" to the newspaper's nearly 200-year legacy.
“This shows that we are making a difference, and we hope to support Utica and the greater Utica area as we’ve supported Rome for the last 160 years,” Waters said.
“The support we’ve been receiving in the greater Utica area, in the form of our readers, school districts, and local politics, has shown that we are making the right decision in supporting local journalism all throughout Oneida, Madison and Herkimer counties,” Waters added.
As Utica’s official newspaper, the Daily Sentinel will begin receiving and publishing all legal notices from the city.
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www.romesentinel.com/news/daily-sentinel-designated-as-utica-s-official-newspaper/article_f363ecee-a9ab-11ee-bcbd-ab08e4c5f8ba.html
Goof for the Council starting out on the right foot
