The Buffalo Bulletin has been in Robb Hicks’ family for generations. His wife, Jen Sieve-Hicks, was a reporter for many years and is now an award-winning editor. Both have served as chairs of the Wyoming Press Association.
The pair made their own headlines this week when they announced they’re stepping in to save eight papers that were in jeopardy of abrupt closure after their parent company pulled its support from dozens of outlets in the region last week. News Media Corporation’s Torrington-based publisher Rob Mortimore is also partnering on the new locally-owned venture.
Sieve-Hicks said she had a strong reaction to the news that the papers were shutting down.
“My first thought was, oh my gosh, school's starting in two weeks and all those school things that nobody is going to document: that first home football game, there's not going to be anyone there to take a picture or write a story. That might seem small, but for the participants and the parents and the grandparents, it's not small,” said Sieve-Hicks.
Robb Hicks said their deep Wyoming roots made them realize what would be lost if all these papers shut down. They started getting calls from retired publishers and editors.
“‘What’s going to happen here?’” Hicks recounted. “ And there just didn't seem to be any good answers. Sometimes, when there's not an answer, you have to be the one to step up and answer that call.”
They said they recognize that buying the papers might seem risky at a time when so many news organizations are failing. But they added that the Buffalo Bulletin’s subscriptions are better than ever. They’re confident by keeping their focus hyperlocal, they can help their newly acquired papers do the same.
The eight papers are in Niobrara, Goshen, Platte, Uinta and Sublette counties. The Hicks said they stepped in fast enough that only the Pinedale and Lusk papers missed a publication date.