The Dallas Morning News facts for kids
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Front page of the April 24, 2010 issue
The newspaper's offices in 2018
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| Type | Daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Owner(s) | DallasNews Corporation |
| Founder(s) | Alfred Horatio Belo |
| Founded | October 1, 1885 |
| Language | English |
| Headquarters | |
| Country | United States |
| Circulation | 69,694 print 63,000 digital-only (as of 2023) |
| Sister newspapers | Al Día |
| ISSN | 1553-846X |
| OCLC number | 1035116631 |
The Dallas Morning News is a daily newspaper that serves the Dallas–Fort Worth area in Texas. It was started on October 1, 1885, by Alfred Horatio Belo. He created it as a sister paper to the Galveston Daily News.
Today, The Dallas Morning News is one of the 20 largest newspapers in the United States. It has won many awards, including nine Pulitzer Prizes for its great reporting and photography. The newspaper's main office is located in downtown Dallas.
The History of The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Morning News began in 1885. It was a new paper created by Alfred Horatio Belo, who also owned the Galveston Daily News. In 1926, the Belo family sold most of the paper to George Dealey, who had been its publisher for a long time.
By the 1920s, The Dallas Morning News had become bigger than the Galveston Daily News. It was seen as a forward-thinking newspaper in Dallas and Texas. Even Adolph Ochs, who made The New York Times famous, said he learned a lot from The Dallas Morning News.
Standing Up to the Ku Klux Klan
During the 1920s, the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) was very powerful in Dallas. Many men in Dallas were members of the KKK. The Dallas Morning News bravely spoke out against the KKK. They did this through their news stories and opinion pieces. Because of this, the KKK threatened to stop buying the newspaper.
The Texas Almanac
In 1904, The Dallas Morning News started publishing the Texas Almanac. This book had been published off and on by the Galveston Daily News before. After more than 100 years, the Almanac was given to the Texas State Historical Association in 2008.
New Buildings and Growth
In the late 1940s, the Morning News built a new office. It included a newsroom and a printing plant. This new building was located on Houston and Young Streets in downtown Dallas.
A special part of the building's front has a quote carved into the stone. It says:
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BUILD THE NEWS UPON
THE ROCK OF TRUTH
AND RIGHTEOUSNESS
CONDUCT IT ALWAYS
UPON THE LINES OF
FAIRNESS AND INTEGRITY
ACKNOWLEDGE THE RIGHT
OF THE PEOPLE TO GET
FROM THE NEWSPAPER
BOTH SIDES OF EVERY
IMPORTANT QUESTION
G. B. DEALEY
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This building at 508 Young Street was home to the Morning News for about 60 years.
Becoming Dallas's Main Newspaper
In 1991, The Dallas Morning News became the only major newspaper in Dallas. This happened when the Dallas Times Herald closed down. The two papers had been competing for years, especially for advertising.
In 1986, William Dean Singleton bought the Times Herald. After trying to improve it, he sold it. Then, on December 8, 1991, Belo Corporation bought the Times Herald for $55 million. They closed the paper the very next day.
This was not the first time the Belo family had bought and closed a newspaper named The Herald in Dallas. In 1879, Alfred H. Belo wanted to start a sister paper in North Texas. When he could not buy the existing Herald, he sent George Bannerman Dealey to start a new paper. This new paper was the Morning News, which began on October 1, 1885. The Morning News had strong financial support and experienced journalists. Within a month and a half, it took over its older rival.
Other Publications and Partnerships
In 2003, The Dallas Morning News started a Spanish-language newspaper called Al Día. It was first sold for a price, but now it is given away for free. Al Día is published twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
From 2003 to 2011, The Dallas Morning News also published a smaller, tabloid-sized paper called Quick. It first offered quick summaries of general news. Later, it focused more on entertainment and lifestyle stories.
In late 2013, The Dallas Morning News stopped working with the TV station WFAA. They then started a new partnership with KXAS.
Newspaper's Viewpoint and Endorsements
Historically, the opinion section of the Morning News has been more conservative. This reflects how Texas has generally supported the Republican Party since the 1950s.
However, on September 7, 2016, the paper supported Hillary Clinton for president. This was the first time it had supported a Democrat for president since Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940. The day before, it published a strong opinion piece saying that Donald Trump was "not qualified to serve as president." This was the first time since 1964 that the paper did not support a Republican candidate.
Later, for the 2018 midterm elections, the Morning News again supported a Democratic candidate. This was Beto O'Rourke, who was running against Senator Ted Cruz.
Moving Headquarters
In late 2016, it was announced that The Dallas Morning News would move. They left their home of 68 years on Young Street. Their new location is a building on Commerce Street. This building used to be the Dallas Public Library's downtown branch.
The new Commerce Street office is much smaller. Reasons for the move included new technology and fewer staff. Also, the printing presses are no longer in the same building as the newsroom. Printing is now mostly done at a facility in Plano, north of Dallas. The move was completed by December 2017.
Recent Changes
In January 2019, some changes were announced. These included reducing staff and making the Business section smaller. Business news was then included in the Metro section on most days.
In February 2019, the suburban printing plant stopped some printing agreements. This affected 92 jobs. Other publications, like the Dallas Observer, had to find new printing partners.
DallasNews Corporation, which owns the paper, announced changes in 2023. They offered buyouts to reduce staff. In May 2024, the company said it would move its printing operation from Plano to a smaller place in Carrollton. This change is expected to save the company money each year. A new printing press will be bought for the new site and should be ready in 2025.
The "Bruh" Incident
On February 11, 2023, the Mayor of Dallas, Eric Johnson, posted on Twitter. He said local news media did not care about reporting on falling crime rates in Dallas. Reporters from The Dallas Morning News replied.
One reporter, Meghan Mangrum, tweeted, "Bruh, national news is always going to chase the trend. Cultivate relationships with quality local news partnerships." The mayor criticized her tweet. The newspaper's executive director, Katrice Hardy, asked Mangrum if she would use "bruh" with a white mayor. Mangrum, who is white, said yes. She explained that she used "bruh" often because of her background.
Mangrum was later let go from The Dallas Morning News. This was because her tweet went against the paper's social media rules. This happened around the same time she helped organize a protest for the Dallas NewsGuild-CWA union. The union then filed a complaint on her behalf.
Awards and Recognition
The Dallas Morning News has won many important awards for its journalism.
Pulitzer Prizes
- 1986: National Reporting (for stories about important national issues)
- 1989: Explanatory Journalism (for making complex topics easy to understand)
- 1991: Feature Photography (for interesting photos)
- 1992: Investigative Reporting (for deep research into important topics)
- 1993: Spot News Photography (for photos of breaking news)
- 1994: International Reporting (for stories about other countries)
- 2004: Breaking News Photography (for photos of breaking news)
- 2006: Breaking News Photography (for photos of breaking news)
- 2010: Editorial Writing (for well-written opinion pieces)
George Polk Awards
- 1990: Gayle Reaves, David Hanners, and David McLemore for regional reporting
- 1994: Olive Talley for education reporting
Overseas Press Club Awards
- 2001: Cheryl Diaz Meyer for photographic reporting from abroad
See also
- List of newspapers in Texas
- Fort Worth Star-Telegram
