The Madison Times

The Madison Times Weekly is a weekly African-American newspaper in Madison in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Civil rights activist Betty Franklin-Hammonds established the paper in April 1991. It was initially a sister publication of the Milwaukee Times, which had bought the Wisconsin Free Press, a Black-focused paper that published sporadically in Madison in the 1980s.[1] Hammonds stated that the paper operated separately within its first few months. Hammonds started the paper as a resource for the under-served African-American community;[1] the paper soon expanded its focus to various minority communities.[2] In 1992 the paper joined with WORT radio, WYOU community television, and the online service DANEnet to create the Neighborhood Network, to cover local news and serve local activists.[3]

Following Hammonds' death at age 56 in 1999,[4] her husband David became publisher, and remained majority owner. Jonathan Gramling, a "longtime friend and associate" of the Franklin-Hammonds family, took over as editor. Under Gramling's direction, the paper added more full color photography, and increased its event coverage. In 2002, amid a nationwide industry slump, the paper experienced financial challenges, prompting staffing cuts. David described the newspaper as a community-oriented enterprise, rather than a financial investment.[2] The paper's circulation was about 8,500 in 2004.[5]

Local politician and bureaucrat Ray Allen purchased the paper in 2005.[6] Though Allen stated at the time that he did not plan significant personnel changes, Gramling, who had recently won a human rights award, announced his intention to leave the paper shortly after the acquisition.[7][8]

Allen sold it to Courier Communications, the parent company of the Milwaukee Courier and WNOV-AM radio, in 2014.[9] The two newspapers had been sharing editorial and advertising content for about a year prior to the sale; at the time of the acquisition, the two papers had a combined circulation of 55,000.[10][11]