SALT LAKE CITY (OSV News) — After 125 years of print publication, the Intermountain Catholic, newspaper of the Diocese of Salt Lake City, will move to an online format during the first week of Advent, the beginning of the Catholic Church’s liturgical year.
The last print edition of the Intermountain Catholic will be Nov. 28.
The news was announced to diocesan clergy and staff in a Sept. 22 email sent by Father John Evans, vicar general.
“The Intermountain Catholic has a warm place in the hearts of many, and there’s nothing like holding it in our hands, flipping through the articles, and maybe sipping on a cup of coffee,” Father Evans wrote. “Unfortunately, it has become cost prohibitive to continue the print version.”
Costs of printing, postage have risen sharply
The costs of printing and postage for the print publication have risen sharply in the past two years, while the number of subscriptions has remained about the same and advertising revenue has decreased. These factors combined have contributed to the Intermountain Catholic’s financial instability.
With the restructuring, two staff positions at the Intermountain Catholic will be eliminated, Father Evans wrote in the email, adding, “We are so thankful for all of the IC staff and their dedicated work. We will assist those departing with job placement efforts and other human resource support.”
The cessation of the Intermountain Catholic’s print edition follows the trend of the closure of Catholic newspapers and magazines across the country in recent years, including those of Our Sunday Visitor, which announced in August that it will stop printing almost all of its periodicals by the end of this calendar year.
Online presence increases evangelical outreach
While the print edition of the Intermountain Catholic will cease, the move to online will increase its evangelical outreach, because the link will be emailed to all registered parishioners in the diocese.
“I am sad that our historic publication will cease printing,” said Marie Mischel, who has served as the editor of the Intermountain Catholic since 2009. “I’ve been proud to be a part of its wonderful tradition of reporting on the Catholic Church here in our local diocese and beyond.
“I’m going to miss our print edition, but I’m also excited about being able to lead the Intermountain Catholic into its new era of online only. In doing so I’ll be building on the foundation that’s already in place with our existing website, Facebook and X pages.”
Will continue to cover church in Utah
As it moves to an online-only format, the Intermountain Catholic will continue to provide news about the Catholic Church in Utah. Reporters will attend events throughout the diocese and publish stories and photos online. The “Around the Diocese” calendar listing and other popular features of the print publication will be maintained, and a weekly PDF of local coverage will be available for those who wish to print it themselves.
Because the Intermountain Catholic will no longer have a print edition, the annual subscription campaign, which had been in October, will not be held, and any automatic subscription renewals will be canceled. Advertising also will be discontinued.
Paper’s roots date to 1884
The Intermountain Catholic traces its roots to the Colorado Catholic, which was published in Denver beginning in 1884. When that publication ceased in 1899, the Intermountain Catholic printed its first edition in December of that year and published weekly until 1920. Then, for three years there was no local Catholic paper.
From 1923 to 1926, there was a monthly diocesan publication. The Intermountain Catholic returned in 1926. Although it went through several name changes, it continued to publish regularly, and through the years won numerous awards for its stories and photographs.
Linda Petersen is a staff writer at Intermountain Catholic, the news outlet of the Diocese of Salt Lake City. This story was originally published by Intermountain Catholic and distributed through a partnership with OSV News.
