Houston Chronicle Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==History== [[File:Houston Chronicle frontpage.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Front page of the first edition of the ''Houston Chronicle'', October 14, 1901]] From its inception, the practices and policies of the ''Houston Chronicle'' were shaped by strong-willed personalities who were the publishers. The history of the newspaper can be best understood when divided into the eras of these individuals. ===1901–1926: Marcellus E. Foster era=== The ''Houston Chronicle'' was founded in 1901 by a former reporter for the now-defunct ''[[Houston Post]]'', Marcellus E. Foster. Foster, who had been covering the [[Spindletop]] oil boom for the ''Post'', invested in Spindletop and took $30 of the return on that investment—at the time equivalent to a week's wages—and used it to fund the ''Chronicle''. The ''Chronicle''{{'}}s first edition was published on October 14, 1901, and sold for two cents per copy, at a time when most papers sold for five cents each. At the end of its first month in operation, the ''Chronicle'' had a circulation of 4,378—roughly one tenth of the population of Houston at the time.<ref name="tsha">[https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/eeh02 The Handbook of Texas Online.] ''Houston Chronicle''. Retrieved December 2, 2009.</ref> Within the first year of operation, the paper purchased and consolidated the ''Daily Herald''. In 1908, Foster asked Jesse H. Jones, a local businessman and prominent builder, to construct a new office and plant for the paper, "and offered [a] half-interest in the newspaper as a down payment, with twenty years to pay the remainder. Jones agreed, and the resulting Chronicle Building was one of the finest in the South."<ref name="tsha"/><ref>{{cite book |title=Jesse H. Jones, the Man and the Statesman |first=Bascom Nolly |last=Timmons |publisher=Greenwood Press |location=London |year=1956 |isbn=978-0-8371-7925-4 |page=77}}</ref> Under Foster, the paper's circulation grew from about 7,000 in 1901 to 75,000 on weekdays and 85,000 on Sundays by 1926. Foster continued to write columns under the pen name ''Mefo'', and drew much attention in the 1920s for his opposition to the [[Ku Klux Klan]] (KKK). He sold the rest of his interest to [[Jesse H. Jones]] on June 26, 1926, and promptly retired.<ref>Handbook of Texas Online. "[https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/ffo52 Foster, Marcellus Elliot (1870–1942)"]. Retrieved March 26, 2010.</ref> ===Goodfellows=== [[File:ChronicleBuildingHoustonTX1913.png|thumb|Illustration of the ''Houston Chronicle'' building, 1913<ref>Gonzales, J. R. "[http://blogs.chron.com/bayoucityhistory/2008/10/another_way_to_get_your_news_from_the_chronicle.html Another way to get your news from the ''Chronicle'']." ''Houston Chronicle''. October 14, 2008. Retrieved May 26, 2010. The image is not from the J. R. Gonzalez article, but the [http://blog.chron.com/bayoucityhistory/files/legacy/img246.jpg picture in the Gonzales article] depicts the same building that is seen in the illustration.</ref>]] In 1911, city editor George Kepple started Goodfellows.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/project_discovery/ |title=Home |website=Houston Chronicle}}</ref> On [[Christmas Eve]] 1911, Kepple passed a hat among the ''Chronicle''{{'}}s reporters to collect money to buy toys for a shoe-shine boy. Goodfellows continues today through donations made by the newspaper and its readers. It has grown into a citywide program that provides needy children between the ages of two and ten with toys during the [[Christmas and holiday season|winter holidays]]. In 2003, Goodfellows distributed almost 250,000 toys to more than 100,000 needy children in the [[Greater Houston]] area. ===1926–1956: Jesse H. Jones era=== In 1926, [[Jesse H. Jones]] became the sole owner of the paper. He had approached Foster about selling, and Foster had answered, "What will you give me?" Jones described the buyout of Foster as follows: {{blockquote|text=Wanting to be liberal with Foster if I bought him out, since he had created the paper and originally owned most of the stock, and had made a success of it, I thought for a while before answering and finally asked him how much he owed. He replied, "On real estate and everything about 200,000 dollars." I then said to him that I would give him 300,000 dollars in cash, having in mind that this would pay his debts and give him 100,000 spending money. In addition, I would give him a note for 500,000 secured by a mortgage on the Chronicle Building, the note to be payable (interest and principal) at the rate of 35,000 a year for thirty-five years, which I figured was about his expectancy. I would also pay him 20,000 dollars a year as editor of the paper and 6,000 dollars a year to continue writing the daily front-page column, "MEFO", on the condition that either of us could cancel the editorship and/or the MEFO-column contracts on six months' notice, and that, if I canceled both the column and the editorship, I would give him an additional 6,000 dollars a year for life. I considered the offer substantially more than the ''Chronicle'' was worth at the time. No sooner had I finished stating my proposition than he said, "I will take it", and the transaction was completed accordingly.|sign=|source=pp. 121–122 of ''Jesse H. Jones: The Man and the Statesman'' by [[Bascom N. Timmons]], copyright 1956 Henry Holt and Company}} In 1937, Jesse H. Jones transferred ownership of the paper to the newly established [[Houston Endowment Inc.]] Jones retained the title of publisher until his death in 1956. According to the ''[[Handbook of Texas]]'' online, the ''Chronicle'' generally represented very conservative political views during the 1950s: <blockquote>... the ''Chronicle'' generally represented the very conservative political interests of the Houston business establishment. As such, it eschewed controversial political topics, such as integration or the impacts of rapid economic growth on life in the city. It did not perform investigative journalism. This resulted in a stodgy newspaper that failed to capture the interests of newcomers to the city. By 1959, circulation of the rival ''Houston Post'' had pulled ahead of the ''Chronicle''.<ref name="tsha"/></blockquote> Jones, a lifelong [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]] who organized the [[Democratic National Convention]] to be in Houston in 1928, and who spent long years in public service first under the [[Wilson administration]], helping to found the Red Cross during World War I, and later famously under the Roosevelt administration, described the paper's mission in these terms: <blockquote>I regard the publication of a newspaper as a distinct public trust, and one not to be treated lightly or abused for selfish purposes or to gratify selfish whims. A great daily newspaper can remain a power for good only so long as it is uninfluenced by unworthy motives, and unbought by the desire for gain. A newspaper which can be neither bought nor bullied is the greatest asset of a city or state. Naturally, a newspaper makes mistakes in judgment, as it does in type; but, so long as errors are honestly made, they are not serious when general results are considered. The success or failure of a particular issue is of little consequence compared with the all-important principle of a fearless and honest newspaper. This I intend the ''Chronicle'' shall always be, a newspaper for all the people, democratic in fact and in principle, standing for the greatest good to the greatest number, championing and defending what it believes to be right, and condemning and opposing what it believes to be wrong. Such have always been the policies of the ''Chronicle'' and to such it is now rededicated."<ref>Jesse H. Jones, ''The Man and the Statesman'', pp. 122–123</ref></blockquote> Under Jones' watch, the ''Chronicle'' bought [[KTRH]], one of Houston's oldest radio stations, in 1937. In 1954, Jones led a syndicate that signed on Houston's third television station, [[KTRK-TV]]. ===1956–1965: John T. Jones era=== The board of Houston Endowment named John T. Jones, nephew of Jesse H. Jones, as editor of the ''Chronicle''. Houston Endowment president, J. Howard Creekmore, was named publisher. In 1961, John T. Jones hired [[William P. Steven]] as editor. Steven had previously been editor of the ''[[Tulsa Tribune]]'' and the ''[[Minneapolis Star Tribune]]'', and credited with turning around the declining readership of both papers. One of his innovations was the creation of a regular help column called "Watchem", where ordinary citizens could voice their complaints. The ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'' later called this column a pioneer and prototype of the modern newspaper "Action Line".<ref name="ChiTrib">Heise, Kenan. "W. P. Steven, Ex-newspaper Executive." ''[[Chicago Tribune]]''. August 11, 1991. Retrieved October 5, 2011.[http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1991-08-11/news/9103270877_1_william-p-steven-houston-chronicle-city-editor]</ref> Steven's progressive political philosophy soon created conflict with the very conservative views of the Houston Endowment board, especially when he editorially supported the election of [[Lyndon B. Johnson]], the Democratic candidate for president. However, more than political philosophy was involved: Robert A. Caro revealed in his biography of Johnson that written assurance of this support from John T. Jones had been the price demanded by Johnson in January 1964 in return for approval of the merger of Houston's National Bank of Commerce, in which Jones had a financial interest, with another Houston bank, the Texas National.{{sfn|Caro|2012|pages=523–527}} In 1964, the ''Chronicle'' purchased the assets of its evening newspaper competitor, the ''Houston Press'',<ref name="tsha"/> becoming the only evening newspaper in the city. By then, the ''Chronicle'' had a circulation of 254,000—the largest of any paper in Texas. The ''Atlantic Monthly'' credited the growth to the changes instigated by Steven.<ref name = "Atlantic">Bagdikian, Ben H. [https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1969/12/houston-apos-s-shackled-press/6926/ theatlantic.com "Houston's Shackled Press"]. ''Atlantic Monthly''. August 1966. Retrieved March 25, 2010.</ref> In the summer of 1965, Jones decided to buy a local television station that was already owned by the Houston Endowment. He resigned from the Houston Endowment board to avoid a conflict of interest, though he remained as publisher of the ''Chronicle''. On September 2, 1965, Jones made a late-night visit to the Steven home, where he broke the news that the Endowment board had ordered him to dismiss Steven. Jones had to comply. On September 3, the paper published a story announcing that Everett Collier was now the new editor.<ref name = "Atlantic" /> No mention was made of Steven or the Houston Endowment board. ''Houston Post'' staff wrote an article about the change, but top management killed it. Only two weekly papers in Houston mentioned it: ''Forward Times'' (which targeted the African-American community) and the ''Houston Tribune'' (an ultra-conservative paper). Both papers had rather small circulations and no influence among the city's business community.<ref name = "Atlantic" /> The two major newspapers in Houston never mentioned Steven for many years thereafter. ===1965–1987: J. Howard Creekmore era=== John J. Jones left the ''Chronicle'' not long after Steven's ouster. J. Howard Creekmore, president of the Houston Endowment, took John Jones' place at the ''Chronicle''. Everett D. Collier replaced Steven as editor. Collier remained in this position until his retirement in 1979. J. Howard Creekmore was born in Abilene, Texas, in 1905. His parents died while he was young, so he was raised by his stepmother. The family moved to Houston in 1920. Howard enrolled in Rice Institute, where he graduated with degrees in history and English. After graduation, he went to work for Jesse Jones as a bookkeeper. Jones took an interest in the young man's career, and put him through law school. Creekmore passed the bar exam in 1932 and returned to work for Jones. He held several positions in the Jones business empire. In 1959, he was named to the board of Houston Endowment, and was promoted to president of the board in 1964.<ref>Ackerman, Todd. [http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/special/100years2/1075494.html "At the helm: Chronicle publishers.]" ''Houston Chronicle''. October 12, 2001. Retrieved May 11, 2010.</ref> By 1965, Creekmore had persuaded other directors of Houston Endowment to sell several business properties, including the ''Chronicle''. Houston oilman John Mecom offered $85 million for the newspaper, its building, a 30 percent interest in Texas National Bank of Commerce, and the historic Rice Hotel. Early in 1966, Mecom encountered problems raising the additional cash to complete the transaction. He then began lining up potential buyers for the newspaper, which included non-Houstonians such as Sam Newhouse, Otis Chandler and the Scripps-Howard organization. Creekmore strongly believed that local persons should own the paper. He insisted that Mecom pay the $84 million debt immediately in cash. Mecom cancelled his purchase agreement.<ref>''Time''. "Newspapers: A Deal Done In" June 17, 1966. [https://web.archive.org/web/20101028161301/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,899233,00.html time.com] Retrieved May 10, 2010.</ref> In 1968, the ''Chronicle'' set a Texas newspaper circulation record. In 1981, the business pages—which until then had been combined with sports—became its own section of the newspaper. Creekmore remained as publisher until Houston Endowment sold the paper to the Hearst Corporation. ===1987–present: Hearst Corporation era=== On May 1, 1987, the [[Hearst Corporation]] purchased the ''Houston Chronicle'' from Houston Endowment for $415 million.<ref>''Houston Chronicle'' Archives, "Houston Chronicle purchase completed by Hearst Corp." May 1, 1987.</ref> <!-- need more on the foundation that had owned the paper before --> Richard J. V. Johnson, who had joined the paper as a copy editor in 1956, and worked up to executive vice president in 1972, and president in 1973, remained as chairman and publisher until he retired on April 1, 2002.<ref>[http://www.aaf-houston.org/en/art/21/ "Richard J.V. Johnson: September 22, 1930 – January 14, 2006"]. American Advertising Federation Houston. January 19, 2006. Retrieved December 2, 2009.</ref> He was succeeded by Jack Sweeney. In 1994, the ''Chronicle'' switched to being a morning-only paper. With the demise of the ''Houston Post'' on April 18 the next year, the ''Chronicle'' became Houston's sole major daily newspaper. On October 18, 2008, the paper endorsed Senator [[Barack Obama]] for [[President of the United States]] in the [[United States Presidential Election, 2008|2008 U.S. Presidential Election]], the first Democrat to be endorsed by the newspaper since 1964, when it endorsed Texan Lyndon B. Johnson.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/6065490.html |title=The presidential ticket |date=October 18, 2008 |work=Houston Chronicle |access-date=July 26, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://blogs.chron.com/txpotomac/2008/10/houston_chronicle_endorses_oba.html |title=''Houston Chronicle'' endorses Obama over McCain – the first time the ''Chron'' has picked a Democrat since LBJ in 1964 |work=Houston Chronicle |type=Blog |first=Richard |last=Dunham |date=October 19, 2008 |access-date=July 26, 2010}}</ref> It endorsed [[Mitt Romney]] in 2012,<ref>{{cite news |title=Romney for president |url=http://www.chron.com/opinion/editorials/article/Romney-for-president-3965675.php |access-date=July 30, 2016 |work=Houston Chronicle |date=October 21, 2012}}</ref> but endorsed [[Hillary Clinton]] in 2016,<ref>{{cite news |title=These are unsettling times that require a steady hand|url=http://www.chron.com/opinion/recommendations/article/For-Hillary-Clinton-8650345.php |access-date=July 30, 2016 |work=Houston Chronicle |date=July 29, 2016}}</ref> and [[Joe Biden]] in 2020.<ref>{{cite news |title=We recommend Joe Biden for president|url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/editorials/article/endorsement-Joe-Biden-president-us-election-2020-15636598.php |access-date=October 11, 2020 |work=Houston Chronicle |date=October 11, 2020}}</ref> Locally, the ''Chronicle'' endorsed [[Wendy Davis (politician)|Wendy Davis]] for governor in [[Texas gubernatorial election, 2014|2014]],<ref>{{cite news |last1=Caruba |first1=Lauren |title=A Handy Guide to the Major Texas Newspaper Endorsements |url=http://www.texasmonthly.com/the-daily-post/a-handy-guide-to-the-major-texas-newspaper-endorsements/ |access-date=July 30, 2016 |agency=Texas Monthly |date=November 4, 2014}}</ref> and [[Sylvester Turner]] for mayor in 2015.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sylvester Turner for mayor |url=http://www.chron.com/opinion/recommendations/article/Sylvester-Turner-for-mayor-6564480.php |website=Houston Chronicle |access-date=October 11, 2015 |date=October 11, 2015}}</ref> Additionally, the ''Chronicle'' initially endorsed [[Jeb Bush]] for the [[United States presidential election in Texas, 2016#Republican primary|2016]]<ref>{{cite news |title=For Bush |url=http://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/recommendations/article/For-Bush-6827621.php |access-date=July 30, 2016 |work=Houston Chronicle |date=February 12, 2016}}</ref> Republican primary, but did not endorse any other candidate after he dropped out.<ref>{{cite news |title=2016 Texas Primary Endorsements |url=http://www.chron.com/opinion/recommendations/article/Houston-Chronicle-2016-Texas-Primary-Endorsements-6827491.php#photo-9475977 |access-date=July 30, 2016 |agency=Houston Chronicle |date=February 29, 2016}}</ref> ===2018 source-fabrication scandal=== In September 2018, then-executive editor Nancy Barnes released a statement on the ''Chronicle''{{'}}s website notifying readers for the first time that the paper's Austin bureau chief, Mike Ward, had resigned and was the subject of an internal investigation after questions were raised by a staff member over fabricating sources.<ref name="apnews.com">{{cite web |title=Houston Chronicle reporter accused of faking sources resigns |url=https://apnews.com/cb263cd6b23a4f928382d5e2d009f384 |website=AP NEWS |date=September 11, 2018}}</ref> Barnes opted not to disclose the source-fabrication or Ward's resignation to ''Chronicle'' readers and the general public until she was contacted by reporters at other outlets pursuing a story about the ''Chronicle''{{'}}s scandal—one full week after Ward had resigned. By the time Barnes informed the public about what would turn into the biggest journalism scandal of 2018, it had already become one of the worst kept secrets in Austin among the capitol press corps that writes about Texas politicians. The scandal had also become popular fodder among staffers who work at the capital. Within 45 minutes of being contacted by a freelance reporter for the ''Texas Observer'', Barnes hastily issued a press release announcing that one of her reporters bad been caught making up sources over the course of several years. Barnes never explained why the ''Chronicle'' decided against being transparent to it readers immediately, instead of waiting for word to leak to the extent that other news outlets started planning stories.{{citation needed|date=June 2022}} The sources being questioned in Ward's reporting were the product of "man-on-the-street" interviews from a story dealing with rebuilding efforts following Hurricane Harvey. Barnes said ''Houston Chronicle'' researchers had problems finding a number of sources quoted in Ward's story, so the newspaper hired investigative journalist David Wood, a Pulitzer Prize winner.<ref name="David Wood of The Huffington Post">{{cite news |title=David Wood of The Huffington Post |url=https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/david-wood |publisher=Pulitzer}}</ref> On November 8, 2018, one day before Barnes left for a position as senior vice president of news at National Public Radio, the ''Houston Chronicle'' released some of Wood's findings. The paper announced it was retracting a total of eight stories.<ref name="chron.com">{{cite news |title=A note from the editor of the Houston Chronicle |url=https://www.chron.com/local/article/A-note-from-the-editor-of-the-Houston-Chronicle-13218790.php |newspaper=Houston Chronicle}}</ref> Barnes later went on to tell ''Columbia Journalism Review'' that the widespread fabrication apparent in Ward's articles was unprecedented, in her experience: "I've been an editor a long time and I have never seen anything like this, period.".<ref name="cjr.org">{{cite magazine |title=Broken trust at the Houston Chronicle |url=https://www.cjr.org/analysis/houston-chronicle-mike-ward.php |magazine=Columbia Journalism Review}}</ref> None of the ''Chronicle''{{'}}s editors responsible for overseeing Ward's stories—including then-managing editor Vernon Loeb—assumed any responsibility for the fact that one of their reporters had been cheating for years under their noses. In many instances over the course of years, Loeb worked directly with Ward and even rewrote his stories for final publication. The ''Austin American Statesman'', where Ward worked as a reporter for 25 years covering the state's political class prior to joining the ''Houston Chronicle'' in 2014, also conducted an internal review of "his final years" of work at the paper.<ref name="statesman.com">{{cite news |title=Former Statesman reporter suspected of fabricating sources at Houston paper |url=https://www.statesman.com/news/20181109/former-statesman-reporter-suspected-of-fabricating-sources-at-houston-paper |newspaper=Austin American Statesman}}</ref> A copy of the original story that led to the investigation has been removed from the ''Chronicle''{{'}}s website. But Austin-based NPR affiliate KUT interviewed Ward for the radio in the days after the story ran and still has the story posted on its website, despite the fact that the sources used in Ward's reporting are suspected of being fake.<ref name="kut.org">{{cite news |title=For Most Affected By Harvey, Anger At Government Has Subsided |url=https://www.kut.org/post/most-affected-harvey-anger-government-has-subsided |publisher=KUT}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page