HARTFORD, Conn — The Hartford Courant, America's oldest continuously published newspaper, will no longer have an office in Hartford.
Tribune Publishing, the Courant's parent company, released a statement about the closure Friday.
The company said out of caution, it does not anticipate employees working remotely to return to the office for the rest of the year and into 2021. It continued by saying the decision was coupled with Tribune Publishing's evaluating its real estate needs during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Andrew Julien sent an email to the Courant's staff about the closure:
“This is a decision about real estate needs amid a difficult and challenging time on both the public health and economic fronts. It won’t change the essence of what we do: Delivering the high-impact journalism readers have come to expect from the Courant and crafting creative solutions that meet the needs of our advertising partners.”
The office space located on 285 Broad Street in the Capital city will be permanently closed as of December 27, 2020.
The Hartford Courant Guild released its own statement regarding the closure:
The Hartford Courant’s Broad Street newsroom will be permanently closed before the end of the year, the paper’s Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Andrew Julien announced to staff Friday afternoon.
Julien told staff there are no immediate plans to find a new office space for The Courant. The existing office space will be closed on Dec. 27, and staff will be required to clear out their desks by Dec. 23.
The Courant, which is owned by parent company Tribune Publishing, is the oldest continuously published newspaper in the United States and has called Broad Street “home” for 70 years.
The newsroom is the heart of the newspaper. At 285 Broad Street, newspaper staff hash out ideas, meet with sources, recuperate after traumatic days and craft the stories that reverberate across the state.
The decision to close the building is a slap in the face to the reporters, editors, columnists and advertising staff who have worked for decades to produce the state’s largest newspaper. The closure is further evidence that Tribune Publishing, and vulture hedge fund Alden Global Capital, care only about profits, not about the newspapers they own or the communities they serve.
The Courant staff have worked throughout the pandemic and for centuries before that to provide Connecticut residents with the best possible news coverage. We want that legacy to continue for centuries more.
But under Tribune Publishing’s ownership, that future is threatened, as the company clearly demonstrated with Friday’s announcement.
The Courant Guild is actively seeking an owner who will actually invest in the paper’s future. More information on that effort can be found at saveourcourant.org.
Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin also released a statement regarding the closure:
"At a time when so many cities have seen their papers of record close down altogether, we're fortunate that the Hartford Courant continues in operation, with committed reporters on the beat covering our city and our state every day. But it's a sad day and a tough blow to see the Tribune Publishing Company close the newsroom and physical headquarters of the oldest continuously published newspaper in America. Robust and trusted local journalism is critical for the health of local democracy, government, and community, and as more and more papers get acquired by hedge funds focused on the bottom line, we should all worry deeply about the relentless pressures and constant chipping away at the resources dedicated to local news."
