Penticton Herald

Penticton, British Columbia, Canada · Founded 1906 · Daily newspaper serving the South Okanagan

Overview

The Penticton Herald is a daily newspaper serving Penticton, British Columbia, and the surrounding South Okanagan Valley. Founded on July 21, 1906 by W.J. Clement as the Penticton Press, it was renamed the Penticton Herald in 1910 and has published continuously since — one of only a small number of papers in British Columbia that still delivers a print edition seven days a week. It is owned by Continental Newspapers Canada Ltd., a private company whose principal owner is David Radler, formerly of Hollinger International. The Herald covers local news, sports, business, community events, and regional affairs in the South Okanagan. It publishes supplemental products including Real Estate Today and the Herald Extra, and offers digital advertising services alongside its print and online editorial operations.

The Herald operates within the Okanagan Valley Newspaper Group, Continental's cluster of BC Okanagan papers that also includes the Kelowna Daily Courier. Both publications are based out of the same Penticton address. The Herald's coverage area — the South Okanagan Valley — is also the primary coverage territory of IndigiNews, which covers Indigenous communities in the region including Penticton Indian Band and Similkameen First Nations.

History

The Herald's July 21, 1906 first edition, published by W.J. Clement under the name Penticton Press, predates the incorporation of Penticton as a city by two years. The paper's archives, now held in the BC Regional Digitized History collection at Okanagan College Library and UBC Okanagan Library, document over a century of South Okanagan life. Headline events the paper has covered include the Penticton Vees' world championship hockey victory, the Garnet fire in the hills east of Penticton, and the restoration of the SS Sicamous sternwheeler, a local heritage landmark.

The paper changed its name from Penticton Press to Penticton Herald in 1910. It eventually became part of Continental Newspapers Canada Ltd. — a company that traces its ownership lineage through David Radler's holdings, originally organized under Horizon Operations before being renamed Continental Newspapers Canada. Radler was a business partner of Conrad Black at Hollinger International; both were convicted of fraud in connection with that company during the 2000s, with Black selling his interest in the relevant holding company in 2006. Continental has not made major acquisitions since and continues to publish three dailies: the Penticton Herald, the Kelowna Daily Courier, and The Chronicle-Journal in Thunder Bay, Ontario.

Ownership: Continental Newspapers Canada Ltd.

Continental Newspapers Canada Ltd. is a private Canadian daily newspaper publisher headquartered in Kelowna, British Columbia. It publishes three daily newspapers: the Penticton Herald, the Kelowna Daily Courier, and The Chronicle-Journal (Thunder Bay, Ontario).

Ownership structure: David Radler holds approximately 72.4% of Continental Newspapers Canada Ltd.; Glacier Media holds approximately 27.6%.

David Radler was a principal of Hollinger International alongside Conrad Black. Both were convicted of fraud in US federal court in the mid-2000s in connection with Hollinger. Radler pleaded guilty in 2005, cooperated with prosecutors, and was sentenced to 29 months in prison; he organized his Canadian newspaper holdings separately from Hollinger and retained control of Continental Newspapers Canada through that period and since. As a private company, Continental is not required to publish annual reports.

Note for Newsjunkie users: The News Media Canada ownership registry lists Continental Newspapers Canada as the owner of three Canadian daily newspapers. No ownership change has been documented in sources available as of the date of this profile.

Sister Publications (Continental / Okanagan Valley Newspaper Group)

Kelowna Daily Courier (pentictonherald.ca sister paper, same address)The Chronicle-Journal — Thunder Bay, Ontario

Supplemental Publications

The Herald produces several supplemental products alongside its main newspaper: Real Estate Today, the Herald Extra, and (per various source dates) the Okanagan Valley TV Guide and Southern Exposure. It also offers digital marketing services to local businesses including social media training, online reputation management, and digital retargeting campaigns — a revenue model common to community dailies attempting to offset print advertising declines.

Penticton Herald
101–186 Nanaimo Ave West, Penticton, British Columbia V2A 1N4
ISSN: 0844-2711 · pentictonherald.ca

Founded: July 21, 1906 (as Penticton Press) · renamed Penticton Herald 1910

Owner: Continental Newspapers Canada Ltd. (David Radler 72.4%, Glacier Media 27.6%)

Editor: James Miller · Director of Advertising and Marketing: Tova Tambour

Sister papers: Kelowna Daily Courier · The Chronicle-Journal (Thunder Bay, ON)

Digitized archive: BC Regional Digitized History — Okanagan College Library / UBC Okanagan Library