The Independent (East Hampton)

The Independent is a local website, formerly a newspaper, published in East Hampton, New York by Schneps Media.[1]

The Independent
EVERYTHING EAST END
Owner(s)Schneps Media
PublisherJames J. Mackin, Jessica Mackin-Cipro
EditorRick Murphy, Jessica Mackin-Cipro
Managing editorBridget LeRoy
News editorStephen J. Kotz, Rick Murphy
Director of InteractiveTy Wenzel
LanguageEnglish, Spanish
Ceased publication2020 (2020) (print)
Headquarters74 Montauk Highway

Suite 19

East Hampton, NY 11937
CityEast Hampton, NY
CountryUnited States
Circulation20,000
OCLC number38838851
Websitehttps://indyeastend.com/
Free online archiveshttp://www.indyarchives.com/

History

The Independent was founded by James J. Mackin, President; Bridget LeRoy, Vice President; Lee Minetree, Treasurer; and Jodi Della Femina, Secretary.[1] The first issue (vol.1, no.1) of the newspaper was released on September 1, 1993.[2] The paper, originally named The East Hampton Independent, was renamed The Independent when they expanded to cover the entire East End.[1] The paper is owned by East Hampton Media, previously known as The East Hampton Independent News Co.[1]

In 2005, the Independent acquired the Traveler Watchman. The Traveler Watchman is a newspaper from North Fork, Long Island, dating back to the 1800s.[1]

Ultimately, Jerry Della Femia became a partner and was the majority owner of the paper until 2017.[1] Jerry Della Femina is the father of daughter and co-founder of The Independent, Jodi Della Femina.[3] On Wednesday April 19, 2017, the paper was sold to billionaire investor Ronald O. Perelman.[4] Perelman, a resident of East Hampton himself, wanted to support and generously fund the paper's initial mission.[5] In an article for Patch East Hampton he stated "As the paper's new owner, I am absolutely committed to supporting The Independent's mission with a continued focus on covering local news and events while enhancing and expanding the paper's focus and coverage of the vibrant local arts, culture, dining, social scene and real estate." [5]

Coverage

Every Wednesday, The Independent publishes coverage of local news and events on the entire East End.[6] The print version of the paper is divided into several sections.[1] In addition to the expected sections such as news & opinion, it includes several unique sections such as Indy Style which discusses latest trends, store openings and designers and Indy Snaps which highlights photography from all aspects of East End life.[1]

The website is divided into five sections, news & opinion, arts, real estate, sports & health and the 2019 camps guide.[7] The categories are then further divided into subsections encompassing the most important parts of each section. For example, the news & opinion header is separated into six sections, such as police[8] and obituary.[9] Within the sports section & health section of the paper, there is an entire subdivision focused on high school sports within the town.[7] While The Independent covers all high school sports teams on the East End, they often cover sports within Pierson Middle-High School.[10] One unique section of the newspaper that runs in the spring and summer months is the 2019 Camps Guide.[11] The Camps Guide describes children's summer camps throughout the New York Area such as Future Stars Camp[12] and the Art Farm.[13] The article contains a directory of camps with extensive summaries in addition to providing links and contact information for each camp.[11]

In addition to the paper's online presence,The Independent has an online archive section of 767 copies online going back more than ten years.[14]

Merger and sale

On June 9, 2020, The Independent announced that it would be merging with competitor Dan's Papers to form a new media entity, Dan's Independent Media.[15] While the merger was attributable partly due to falling advertising sales at the two publications as a result of COVID-19, discussions regarding the merger reportedly began in February 2020, prior to the major economic effects of the Coronavirus recession. After the merger, The Independent became online-only[15] In September 2020, Dan's Independent Media was acquired by Schneps Media.[16]

Awards

At the 2018 New York Press Association Better Newspaper Contest Awards held in Albany, NY, The Independent won 21 awards.[17] It won five first-place awards and nearly a dozen other awards; it additionally was awarded six honorable mentions.[17]

The most prestigious award in the design category of the better newspaper contest is the Richard L. Stein Award for Overall Design Excellence.[17] Although The Independent didn't receive this award, they received a significant honorable mention for the overall design and appearance of the entry provided.[17] In addition to awards for individual contributors as well as presentation and design, editors Jessica Mackin-Cipro and Bridget LeRoy received awards for their writing.[17]

See also

References
  1. Mackin-Cipro, Jessica. E-mail interview. 26 Apr. 2019.
  2. National Endowment for the Humanities. "The East Hampton independent". Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  3. Kelly, Keith J. (2017-04-18). "Della Famina to sell Hamptons newspaper to billionaire investor". New York Post. Retrieved 2019-04-26.
  4. "Independent Newspaper Has New Owner". www.27east.com. Retrieved 2019-04-26.
  5. "Billionaire Ron Perelman Buys Hamptons Newspaper From Adman Jerry Della Femina". East Hampton, NY Patch. 2017-04-20. Retrieved 2019-04-26.
  6. "About Us". The Independent. Retrieved 2019-04-16.
  7. "Home". The Independent. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
  8. "Police Archives". The Independent. Retrieved 2019-04-16.
  9. "Obituary Archives". The Independent. Retrieved 2019-04-16.
  10. "High School Sports Archives". The Independent. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
  11. "2019 Camps Guide". The Independent. Retrieved 2019-04-16.
  12. "Home » Future Stars Day Camps". www.futurestarscamps.com. Retrieved 2019-04-16.
  13. "The Art Farm Hamptons | The Art Farm NYC | Summer Camp | Birthday Parties | Sports Camp | Play Group and More!". www.theartfarms.org. Retrieved 2019-04-16.
  14. "The Independent Newspaper". Issuu. Retrieved 2019-04-16.
  15. Kelly, Keith J. (2020-06-10). "Hamptons newspapers The Independent, Dan's Papers to merge". New York Post. Retrieved 2020-06-27.
  16. Kelly, Keith J. (2020-09-03). "Dan's Papers, quirky East End publication, acquired by Schneps Media". New York Post. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  17. "The Independent Wins At NYPA". The Independent. 2019-04-09. Retrieved 2019-04-16.
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