On September 23, 1991, The Stranger, a weekly newspaper, begins publication. It is billed as an alternative to other alternative papers such as The Weekly and The Rocket. It is distributed free of charge, but, of the initial run of 20,000, only 12,000 are picked up. Most of the readers and advertisers are in the University District.
Publisher Tim Keck (b. 1967) started the paper with the proceeds from the sale of an alternative paper in Madison, Wisconsin, and with a loan from his mother. Early circulation was disappointing, but when Keck began covering the cultural scene on Capitol Hill, the paper took off. The success of The Stranger was a major factor in The Weekly moving to free distribution in 1995.
By 1998, 60,000 copies of The Stranger were being distributed each week.
Sources:
Erik Lundegaard, "Making Seattle Just A Little Bit Stranger," Washington Law and Politics, February 1998, pp. 17-19.
Licensing: This essay is licensed under a Creative Commons license that
encourages reproduction with attribution. Credit should be given to both
HistoryLink.org and to the author, and sources must be included with any
reproduction. Click the icon for more info. Please note that this
Creative Commons license applies to text only, and not to images. For
more information regarding individual photos or images, please contact
the source noted in the image credit.
Major Support for HistoryLink.org Provided
By:
The State of Washington | Patsy Bullitt Collins
| Paul G. Allen Family Foundation | Museum Of History & Industry
| 4Culture (King County Lodging Tax Revenue) | City of Seattle
| City of Bellevue | City of Tacoma | King County | The Peach
Foundation | Microsoft Corporation, Other Public and Private
Sponsors and Visitors Like You