The Little Paper That Couldn't

Mike Paulus |

Sad news today about Altoona’s great little newspaper/website The Altoona Star. After about four years of running, it’s closed down – as of this week. There was a great group of employees and freelancers working over there. Another victim of the crappy economy, no doubt. From the L-T …

  • The Star tried converting to paid subscriptions in November in an effort to reach profitability, but apparently the results weren't enough to save the paper, said [Editor Emily] Thierfelder, who joined the staff last January when Dye took over as publisher and the publication underwent a major redesign.
  • "Reader response has been overwhelmingly positive, which is why this whole thing is so hard," she said. "I've been taking calls all day from people who can't believe it's true and appreciate what we do so much."

As small town papers go, the Altoona Star was pretty cool and fresh-looking. And in particular, their efforts on the web were terrific – fast and clean. We’ll miss it.