The Tampa Tribune

The Tampa Tribune

The Tampa Tribune, is a daily newspaper published in Tampa, Florida. The paper's tagline is "Life. Printed Daily." In 1966, The Tampa Tribune, along with sister properties WFLA-AM-FM-TV, was purchased by Richmond Newspapers, becoming Media General in 1969. The Tribune was a flagship newspaper under the Media General banner until it was sold in 2012. One of two major newspapers published in the Tampa Bay area, the Tribune is second in circulation and readership to the Tampa Bay Times.

Daily publication of the Tribune started in 1895 when Wallace Stovall upgraded printing from once a week. In 1958, the struggling evening newspaper, the Tampa Daily Times, was bought out by the Tribune Company and was published until 1982. To this day, the logo for The Tampa Times continues to be displayed in the masthead on the front section, as a way for the Tribune to keep its trademark on the Tampa Times name, and to avoid confusion with the Tampa Bay Times, which publishes an edition for Tampa.

In 2006, it was decided in a lawsuit that the Tribune could keep its exclusive use of The Tampa Times name, but only for five years. This exclusivity ended at the end of 2011, allowing the St. Petersburg Times to rename itself the Tampa Bay Times, effective January 1, 2012. The decision does not restrict the use of The Tampa Times name by the Tribune after the expiration of exclusivity -- as of January 2012, the Tribune continues to use The Tampa Times name in its masthead.

Since 2000, the Tribune has partnered with WFLA-TV and TBO.com in a converged arrangement, all connected with one another under owner Media General. The large media complex is located on Parker Street in Downtown Tampa. In December 2009, executive editor Janet Coats left the paper and was not replaced until May 17, 2012 when managing editor Richard "Duke" Maas was promoted to executive editor. The Tampa Tribune also operates Hernando Today and Highlands Today, local offshoots of the Tribune located in Brooksville and Sebring, respectively.

On May 17, 2012, it was announced that investment company Berkshire Hathaway will be acquiring Media General's newspaper division; the purchase does not include the Tribune or its associated regional papers, which were being retained by Media General. No reason was given as to why Media General was retaining the Tribune, but there was speculation that the paper would be sold to another party, such as Halifax Media Group (which owns several papers in Florida) or a completely different owner, or that the paper would merge with the Tampa Bay Times. In October 2012, The Tampa Tribune and its associated print and digital products were acquired by Tampa Media Group, Inc., a new company formed by Revolution Capital Group.

The Tampa Tribune also published a Sunday magazine, Florida Accent, during the 1960s and 1970s.