Editing Democrat and Chronicle

{{Short description|Daily newspaper in Rochester, New York}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2020}}

{{Infobox newspaper
| name               = Democrat and Chronicle
| logo               = Democrat and Chronicle.png
| image              = Rochester Democrat and Chronicle front page.jpg
| image_size         = 225px
| type               = [[Daily newspaper]]
| format             = [[Broadsheet]]
| foundation         = {{start date and age|1833}}<br/>(as ''The Balance'')
| ceased publication = 
| owners             = [[Gannett]]
| editor             = Michael Kilian
| language           = English
| circulation        = {{unbulleted list|27,569&nbsp;daily|42,355&nbsp;Sunday}}
| circulation_date   = Q3 2022
| circulation_ref    = <ref name="Gannet's 10-K annual filing">{{cite web |url=https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/1579684/000157968423000014/gci-20221231.htm |title=Form 10-K|author=Gannett |website=Securities & Exchange Commission |access-date=March 10, 2023}}</ref><ref name="NL2023">{{cite news |last1=Benton |first1=Joshua |title=The scale of local news destruction in Gannett's markets is astonishing |url=https://www.niemanlab.org/2023/03/the-scale-of-local-news-destruction-in-gannetts-markets-is-astonishing/ |work=Nieman Lab |date=9 March 2023}}</ref>
| headquarters       = 245 East Main Street<br />[[Midtown Plaza (Rochester)|Midtown Plaza]]<br />[[Rochester, New York]] 14604<br />United States
| ISSN               = 1088-5153
| website            = {{URL|https://www.democratandchronicle.com/|democratandchronicle.com}}
}}

The '''''Democrat and Chronicle''''' is a daily newspaper serving the greater [[Rochester, New York]], area. Headquartered at 245 East Main Street in downtown Rochester, the ''Democrat and Chronicle'' operates under the ownership of [[Gannett]]. The paper's production facility is in [[Rockaway, New Jersey]]. Since the [[Rochester Times-Union|''Times-Union'']] merger in 1997, the ''Democrat and Chronicle'' is Rochester's only daily circulated newspaper.

==History==
Founded in 1833 as ''The Balance'', the paper eventually became known as the ''Daily Democrat''.<ref name="D&C">{{cite web|url=http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/artikkel?Dato=99999999&Kategori=CUSTSERV&Lopenr=51011004&Ref=AR|title=The newspaper|access-date=December 3, 2006}}</ref> The ''Daily Democrat'' merged with another local paper, the ''Chronicle'', in 1870, to become known as the ''Democrat and Chronicle''. The paper was purchased by [[Gannett Company|Gannett]] in 1928.<ref name="Gannett profile">{{cite web |url=http://www.gannett.com/about/map/ataglance/rochest.htm |title=About Gannett: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle |publisher=Gannett Co., Inc. |access-date=October 26, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061023200552/http://www.gannett.com/about/map/ataglance/rochest.htm |archive-date=October 23, 2006 }}</ref> Prior to 1959, the newspaper was headquartered at 59-61 E. Main Street, on Rochester's [[Main Street Bridge (Rochester, New York)|Main Street Bridge]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Explore our first home on Main Street |url=https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/insider/extras/2016/03/18/special-section-democrat-chronicle-1923/81974476/ |access-date=14 August 2023 |work=Democrat and Chronicle |date=1 June 2016}}</ref><ref name="Newhome">{{cite news |title=D&C announces plans for new downtown home |url=https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/local/2013/10/29/dc-announces-plans-for-new-downtown-home/3305125/ |access-date=14 August 2023 |work=Democrat and Chronicle |date=29 October 2013|author=Staff report.}}</ref>

From 1928 to 1985, the ''Democrat and Chronicle'' was Gannett's flagship paper. In 1959, the newspaper relocated to Gannett's headquarters in the [[Gannett Building]] at 55 Exchange Boulevard.<ref name="Newhome" /> It shared the space with the ''[[Rochester Times-Union]]'', an afternoon daily paper. Gannett moved its headquarters to [[Tysons Corner, Virginia]], home of [[USA Today]], in 1985. Over time, Gannett merged the ''Times-Union'' into the ''Democrat and Chronicle''. Their staffs were merged in 1992, and the ''Times-Union'' circulation ended in 1997.<ref>{{cite news |title=Rochester Times-Union Publishes Final Edition |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/06/28/nyregion/rochester-times-union-publishes-final-edition.html |access-date=14 August 2023 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=28 June 1997}}</ref> That same year, newspaper production was relocated from the Gannett Building to a facility in [[Greece (town), New York|Greece, New York]].<ref name="closing">{{cite news |title=D&C closing printing facility at Canal Ponds |url=https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/money/business/2023/01/04/democrat-and-chronicle-closing-printing-facility-at-canal-ponds/69776883007/ |access-date=14 August 2023 |work=Democrat and Chronicle |date=4 January 2023}}</ref>

[[File:D&C Building.jpg|thumb|left|The Democrat and Chronicle building at Midtown Plaza in Rochester, New York]]
In May 2016, the ''Democrat and Chronicle'' relocated its headquarters to a new, smaller building at the [[Midtown Plaza (Rochester)|Midtown Plaza]] site on East Main Street. At 153,350 square feet, the former headquarters in the Gannett building was considerably larger than the current headquarters, which is 42,000 square feet. The ''Democrat and Chronicle'' no longer needed the much larger space in the building, which included the area that formerly held the printing presses before 1996, which was expensive to maintain.<ref name="Newhome" />

With the move came new branding as ''D&C Digital'', emphasizing focus on the outlet's [[digital marketing]] services and video properties.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2016/05/21/democrat-and-chronicle-new-building-main-street/84439258/|title=D&C Digital: Welcome to our new home|website=Democrat and Chronicle|date=21 May 2016}}</ref>

In 2010, The ''Democrat and Chronicle'' ranked number one among US newspapers in market penetration, the percentage of readers in a metro area who read in print or online. The ''Democrat and Chronicle'' held that top spot for several years, and have been among the leaders since the 1990s.<ref>[http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/business-news/the-biz-blog/125811/ranking-of-newspapers-print-digital-market-penetration-shows-different-set-of-winners-than-print-digital-combined-reach/ "Ranking of newspapers' market penetration indicates the market matters as well as the content"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110408171524/http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/business-news/the-biz-blog/125811/ranking-of-newspapers-print-digital-market-penetration-shows-different-set-of-winners-than-print-digital-combined-reach/ |date=April 8, 2011 }} – Poynter Institute</ref>

In 2023, the paper announced it would relocate its printing offices from Greece, New York to [[Rockaway, New Jersey]] that April.<ref name="closing" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-01-05 |title=Democrat & Chronicle is moving its printing operations to New Jersey |work=WHEC |url=https://www.whec.com/local/democrat-chronicle-is-moving-its-printing-operations-to-new-jersey/ |access-date=2023-02-27}}</ref>

=== Sexual abuse scandal ===
{{More citations needed|section|date=January 2025}}
The ''Democrat and Chronicle'', along with its parent company [[Gannett]], was sued in October 2019 by a former paperboy who accused the newspaper of enabling a former district manager to sexually abuse him in the 1980s. In late 2018, this former paperboy emailed investigative reporters and Gannett management, asking them to investigate his claims. Karen Magnuson, then Executive Editor for Gannett's Democrat & Chronicle, told reporters to put their investigative reporting of abuse claims on "pause" and brought the email to the attention of Gannett's management to conduct their own investigation.{{Citation needed|date=September 2023}} Gannett COO Michael G. Kane then sent the original claimant a letter indicating no evidence had been found and they were "closing out" the matter. Shortly after, New York passed its Child Victim Act, lifting the statute of limitations on child sex abuse claims.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-12-07|title=Former paperboys await justice after suing Gannett for allowing sexual abuse four decades ago|url=https://www.poynter.org/?p=977924|access-date=2022-01-03|website=Poynter|language=en-US}}</ref> This initial case is currently pending. Four more lawsuits were filed in early 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Andreatta|first=David|title=Four more paperboys sue the Democrat and Chronicle claiming sexual abuse|url=https://www.rochestercitynewspaper.com/rochester/four-more-paperboys-sue-the-democrat-and-chronicle-claiming-sexual-abuse/Content?oid=11472140|access-date=2020-10-13|website=CITY News|language=en}}</ref> Additionally, three more men filed suit against Gannett for child sex abuse in September 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Two more former paperboys come forward to allege sexual abuse by supervisor: Lawsuit|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/paperboys-forward-allege-sexual-abuse-supervisor-lawsuit/story?id=73226121|access-date=2020-10-13|website=ABC News|language=en}}</ref> As the New York state window to file under its Childs Victim Act closed in August 2021, a ninth man sued<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/webcivil/captcha |access-date=2021-08-25 |website=iapps.courts.state.ny.us |title=Archived copy |archive-date=September 3, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210903221814/https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/webcivil/captcha |url-status=dead }}</ref> the Democrat and Chronicle, and its publisher Gannett, in Rochester NY alleging child sex abuse by the same former district manager of paper carriers. In July 2022, Gannett defense attorneys notified the court of their intent to file a motion to have the former paperboy's Child Victims Act cases taken "out of the state court system and turn them over to the New York Workers' Compensation Board"<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gannett's Legal Gambit |url=https://rochesterbeacon.com/2022/09/08/gannetts-legal-gambit/ |website=Rochester Beacon |author=Will Astor|date=8 September 2022}}</ref> stating that the 11-14-year-old paperboys should have applied for workman's compensation at the time of their injuries in the 1980s, or in 2019 upon enactment of the CVA as it is a simple online process.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/nyscef/ViewDocument?docIndex=oKUHyrvdVbsaTWAtEJPBDA==}}</ref> All these cases are currently pending in New York State court.

Nearly three years after the first lawsuit filing, in July 2022, Gannett (the parent company and publisher of the Democrat & Chronicle) defense attorneys notified the court of their intent to file a motion to have the former paperboys' Child Victims Act cases taken "out of the state court system and turn them over to the New York Workers' Compensation Board" stating that the 11–14-year-old paperboys should have applied for workman's compensation at the time of their injuries in the 1980s or upon enactment of the CVA in 2019. In December 2022, presiding Judge, Deborah A. Chimes acquiesced to Gannett's demands that NY Workers Compensation Board – despite the existence of the Child Victims Act as NY State law – determine if Plaintiffs have a valid cause of action for damages or whether they are limited to benefits under the Worker’s Compensation Law. This despite the fact that the Workers Compensation Board has no mechanism to consider this question of justice and legal rights, as the Board is tasked by the state of New York solely to: [https://www.wcb.ny.gov/content/main/TheBoard/InfoAbout.jsp "administer workers’ compensation, disability benefits and Paid Family Leave."] On July 26, 2024, this demand of Gannett, received and accepted fully by Judge Deborah Chimes, [https://www.businessinsurance.com/Suit-alleging-child-sex-abuse-wrongly-sent-to-workers-comp-board/ was reversed], by the Fourth Judicial Department of the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court. The nine plaintiff cases remain pending action by Judge Chimes and her court.

==Notable contributors==
* [[Earl Caldwell (journalist)|Earl Caldwell]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Earl Caldwell, once a local watchdog|url=http://blogs.democratandchronicle.com/watchdog/?p=2350|access-date=December 6, 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130121163308/http://blogs.democratandchronicle.com/watchdog/?p=2350|archive-date=January 21, 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* [[Henry W. Clune]] 
* [[Marie D. De Jesus]]<ref>{{cite web|last=Pablo|first=Manriquez|title=7 Young Latinos In Online Media To Watch In 2012|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pablo-manriquez/7-latinos-in-online-media_b_1016442.html|work=List of Influencers|date=October 19, 2011 |publisher=The Huffington Post|access-date=December 22, 2011}}</ref>  
* [[Arch Merrill]]
* [[Manuel Rivera-Ortiz]]
*[[Brian Rooney (journalist)|Brian Rooney]], Correspondent, [[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]
* [[Michael Walsh (author)|Michael Walsh]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Portal|New York (state)|Journalism}}
* [http://www.democratandchronicle.com/ Official Site]
* [http://www.gannett.com Gannett Official Site]
* [https://www.newspapers.com/paper/democrat-and-chronicle/3749/ Democrat and Chronicle Archive]
* [https://www.scribd.com/doc/305240715/D-C-s-first-home-on-Main-Street 1923 Paper detailing the opening of old Pre-Gannett building formerly on Main Street Bridge]

{{Gannett}}
{{City of Rochester, NY}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Democrat And Chronicle}}
[[Category:Newspapers published in Rochester, New York]]
[[Category:Gannett publications]]
[[Category:History of Rochester, New York]]
[[Category:Daily newspapers published in New York (state)]]
[[Category:Newspapers established in 1833]]
[[Category:1833 establishments in New York (state)]]