Maui News to transition to weekly print edition

WAILUKU, Hawaii — Maui News, the Valley Isle’s only newspaper, will start printing the newspaper just on Thursdays, starting June 6. 

Since 2019, Maui News’ onsite printing press has printed the paper six days a week — with no paper on Sundays. For three decades before that, the Maui News was a daily newspaper. 

Now, the publication will put a greater focus on its website. 

“We will transition The Maui News to an operation that is focused on providing information to you with an as-it-happens, digital-focused publishing strategy, along with a weekly printed edition,” wrote Maui News publisher Chris Minford in a letter to readers about the change.

He described digital news as “the future of local news.”

“It is also a well-known fact that many newspapers have made similar decisions in recent years, and that is the direction that most of the industry is heading,” Minford said.

Four years ago, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser started printing the newspaper six days a week, axing the Saturday print edition. In March, Oahu’s only newspaper was sold to new owners.

In 2000, Ogden Newspapers, a West Virginia-based publisher, bought Maui News. Last year, the publisher announced they were looking to sell the newspaper. 

“We’re worried about the possible loss of jobs,” said Robert Collias, who has been a sports reporter for Maui News since 1990, about the change. 

Collias is also concerned the news will no longer reach Maui residents who don’t have access to the internet. He also said a lot of readers expressed to him they simply like reading the newspaper and don’t want to read it online. 

Minford could not be reached for comment for about the new strategy and layoff concerns. 

Collias, who is the representative for Pacific Media Workers Guild, the union that represents the newsroom, said Ogden’s regional publisher Michael Christman and Minford held a Zoom meeting on Wednesday with representatives from the three unions, including Honolulu Typographical Union and Teamsters Local 996, which are involved with Maui News. During the meeting, the decision to print the paper one day a week was announced.

“They said that there are possible layoffs,” Collias said. But he was told that there are no immediate staffing changes planned for the news or advertising departments.  

He said the seven employees who print the newspaper are particularly concerned that they might lose their jobs. 

When the Aug. 8, 2023, wildfires devastated Maui, the reporters at Maui News extensively covered the news, but those fires likely impacted Maui News’ financial situation. Collias said the newspaper lost advertisers after Lahaina businesses burned down. He also said some people stopped paying for their subscriptions after they lost their jobs or moved away from Maui. 

Michelle Broder Van Dyke covers the Hawaiian Islands for Spectrum News Hawaii. Email her at michelle.brodervandyke@charter.com.