By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — The newspaper that told the world about a “flying saucer” crash near Roswell in 1947 nearly became history itself this week — but just two days after announcing it would shut down, it has found a new owner and will keep publishing.
The Roswell Daily Record’s ownership announced Wednesday they reached an agreement to sell to the New Mexico News Group, which will keep the paper publishing. The sale comes days after the newspaper said it would cease operations and liquidate its assets.
“After this week’s announcement that the paper would close, we looked for ways to write a new chapter for the paper, not an obituary,” said Pat Davis, founder and publisher of New Mexico News Group and Ctrl+P Publishing, in a release. Davis said the deal keeps the Record “100% New Mexico-owned and locally staffed.” Funding from the Citizen Media Group, a nonprofit news funding organization will also help.
Barbara Beck, the Record’s current owner and publisher, will stay on to help with the transition. “I am very pleased with this decision,” adds Barbara Beck, current owner and publisher. “We feel that the new owners will continue our century-long tradition of excellence and I welcome them to Chaves County.”
Founded in 1891, the Roswell Daily Record has been owned and published by the Beck family since 1933, spanning three generations, according to the release. The newspaper championed New Mexico statehood before it became the nation’s 47th state in 1912 and later gained international attention for its 1947 front page reporting a “flying saucer” crash near Roswell.
The New Mexico News Group will begin publishing the Record in August. The companies did not disclose the terms of the sale.
Learn more about how you can help save the Roswell Daily Record by donating to the NM Reports local journalism fund from the Citizen Media Group.