Some of my earliest memories as a child were of my grandfather and my father reading the San Francisco Chronicle and the San Francisco Examiner. In those days (the 1950's) it was the expected practice to read both newspapers. One was a morning paper and the other was an evening paper. All the day's news could be read by spending a little time with both.
I also remember the San Francisco News-Call Bulletin that was a major contender from the 1860's through the 1930's. It began in 1856 as the San Francisco Call and eventually merged with the Examiner in 1965. I won't go into more detail because for many of you that is now considered to be Early California History.
In the photo: William Randolph Hearst
It seemed that men folk spent more time in those days reading the papers and they read them in a ritualistic kind of way. For both my grandfather and father that meant sitting in a stuffed easy chair with a cigar and a cup of coffee not very far away. I suppose my absolute earliest recollection of newspaper-reading was the sudden rattle made when the pages were turned.
Back in my early days there were two powerful dailies in San Francisco. One was the Chronicle, which was owned by the deYoung family - yes, the family after whom the museum is named. It was founded in 1865 by two very enterprising teenage bothers, Charlie and Mike deYoung. Not content to sell lemonade on street corners like other kids, these two boys began a newspaper that eventually grew into one of the largest in the United States.
The San Francisco Examiner began publishing as the Daily Democratic Press in 1863. It was the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln in 1865 that motivated the paper to kick into high gear, change it's name to the San Francisco Examiner, and expand it's circulation.
The examiner was bought by a mining engineer by the name of George Hearst in 1880. Hearst, having made his fortune in the Gold Rush, gave the Examiner to his son as a 23rd birthday gift. His son's name was William Randolph Hearst. Hearst built the Examiner into the "Monarch of the Dailies" and built a huge newspaper empire that spanned the entire continent. Hearst became the wealthiest and most powerful newspaperman in the country.
The San Francisco Examiner died on November 21, 2000. On that day the desks and chairs and typewriters and the rights to the name were sold to the Fang family, which immediately went about the process of dismantling and destroying the once-proud newspaper.
After their wrecking crew was done, the carcass was sold to cheap pulp rag publisher Phillip Anschutz of Denver, a right-wing conservative who has nothing in common with us in San Francisco, and who continues to publish a cheap throw-away rag that still uses the poor old Examiner name.
But ... back to the Chronicle!
When the Hearst Corporation sold the Examiner, they bought the Chronicle from the deYoung family and put all their considerable energy and talent into making the Chronicle the best newspaper in California - and today we have more evidence that they have succeeded!
Here is the story from today's San Francisco Chronicle:
The Chronicle has won four first-place awards and 12 awards total in the California Newspaper Publishers Association's 2006 Better Newspapers Contest, which includes newspapers from the across the state.
The Chronicle and its online news site, SFGate.com, also won eight first-place awards and 22 total in the East Bay Press Club's 2006 Excellence in Print Journalism Contest, tying the Contra Costa Times for the most awards by any newspaper or magazine in the regional contest.
In the statewide awards, Chronicle staff won both first and second place in the local breaking news category for newspapers with more than 200,000 circulation.
The first-place award was for coverage of a renegade driver who tore through San Francisco's streets Aug. 29 in a Honda Pilot, mowing down pedestrians. The Chronicle won second place for coverage of the saga of James Kim, the San Francisco father who died trying to save his family after their car became stranded on a snowy road in southwestern Oregon.
Staff writers Matthew B. Stannard, Jaxon Van Derbeken, Susan Sward and Steve Rubenstein led a team of more than two dozen reporters who covered the driver's rampage for both the Chronicle and SFGate.
Chronicle columnist Joan Ryan took first place in the writing category for a series of stories titled, "War Without End," in which she followed the treatment and recovery of two soldiers, Sgts. Michael Buyas and Brent Bretz, who were wounded in Iraq.
Chronicle staff won first place in the lifestyle coverage category for the Style section, and former Deputy Managing Editor John Curley, Senior Art Director Frank Mina and Executive News Editor Jay Johnson took first place in the front-page production category.
The Chronicle won second-place honors in the categories of editorial comment, sports story, sports coverage, investigative or enterprise reporting, environmental or agricultural resource reporting, sports photo and photo essay.
The Los Angeles Times won the most awards among big newspapers in the statewide contest. Its 21 prizes included the general excellence award.
In the East Bay Press Club awards, Chronicle photographer Lacy Atkins won three first-place awards for photo essay, feature photo and portrait.
Reporter Meredith May won first place in the in-depth or investigative reporting category for "Diary of a Sex Slave." The stories on the hit-run driver's rampage earned first place for team coverage of spot news.
Top honors in analysis went to reporter Tom Abate for his look into Internet control, "Speed Bumps on the Information Highway." Victoria Colliver took first place in beat reporting by a single reporter for her coverage of the health care industry. Reporter Jason B. Johnson won the multimedia category for "Prison Tour Program Tries to Keep Boys on Right Path."
Herb Caen would be proud.
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