Nashville Scene

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Nashville Scene

Type Alternative weekly
Format Tabloid

Owner Village Voice Media
Publisher Chris Ferrell
Editor Liz Garrigan
Founded 1989
Headquarters 2120 Eighth Ave. S.
Nashville, TN 37204-2204
Flag of United States United States
Circulation 52,019[1]

Website: nashvillescene.com

Nashville Scene is an alternative newsweekly in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1989, became a part of Village Voice Media in 1999, and later joined the ranks of sixteen other publications after a merger of Village Voice Media with New Times Media early in 2006. The publication mainly reports and opines on music, arts, entertainment, and local and state politics in Nashville.

Contents

[edit] Early History

Nashville Scene began life as a shopper, a home-distributed advertising product. It was purchased on April 26, 1989, by advertising executive Albie Del Favero and Nashville Banner political reporter Bruce Dobie, who became its publisher and editor respectively. Their new product became Nashville's first successful alternative weekly, according to newspaper marketing materials.

The new owners modified the paper's circulation model, distributing it for free in racks at restaurants and other high-traffic locations, and modeled their editorial product after the Village Voice, the oldest alternative weekly in the United States.

"The dailies break the news, we put it back together," was one of the Nashville Scene's early marketing mantras, as it attempted to distinguish itself from other news sources with longer, more detailed features and commentaries on current topics, as well as some community activism that helped lead to the development of an area of Nashville labeled "SoBro" (south of Broadway)[2], a term coined[3] by the Scene's editorial staff.

[edit] Village Voice Media

In 1999, Del Favero and Dobie formed a group of investors[4] and purchased Stern Publishing[5], then-owner of the Village Voice and five other alternative newsweeklies across the nation. They named the new corporation Village Voice Media.[6] Village Voice publisher David Schneiderman, also one of the investors, became chief executive officer of the new venture.

In late 2004, both Del Favero [7] and Dobie[8] resigned their positions as publisher and editor of the Scene. The editor role was taken on by the Scene's then-news editor Liz Garrigan. Chris Ferrell was hired by Village Voice Media to assume the role of publisher at the beginning of 2005[9].

In January of 2006, Village Voice Media was acquired by New Times Media and kept the Village Voice Media name.[10] The Nashville Scene remains one of the seventeen assets owned by the new company.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Nashville Scene. Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  2. ^ Kreyling, Christine. "Tomorrow-land", Nashville Scene, 1996-08-22. Retrieved on February 20, 2007.
  3. ^ Kreyling, Christine. "True Grid", Nashville Scene, 1996-07-25. Retrieved on February 20, 2007.
  4. ^ Fazzone, Amanda. "Howe, Venture Firm Buy Stake in Nashville Scene", Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, 1999-12-15. Retrieved on February 20, 2007.
  5. ^ Fazzone, Amanda. "Stern Sold to Investor Group", Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, 2000-01-06. Retrieved on February 20, 2007.
  6. ^ Pulle, Matt. "A New Voice", Nashville Scene, 2000-01-06. Retrieved on February 20, 2007.
  7. ^ "Publisher Del Favero to Leave Nashville Scene", Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, 2004-07-15. Retrieved on February 20, 2007.
  8. ^ Fox, David A.. "Editor Bruce Dobie to leave the 'Scene'", NashvillePost.com, 2004-11-03. Retrieved on February 20, 2007.
  9. ^ "Nashville Scene Hire Is the Latest Politico Alt-Weekly Publisher", Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, 2004-12-02. Retrieved on February 20, 2007.
  10. ^ "Village Voice Media and New Times to Merge", Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, 2005-10-24. Retrieved on February 20, 2007.

[edit] External links