THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, October 7, 1995 TAG: 9510070351
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JACK DORSEY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines
Navy News, considered the nation's oldest privately owned military publication, folded Friday after more than 68 years of publication in Hampton Roads.
Donna Abate, editor of the weekly newspaper for four years, blamed mismanagement on the part of an out-of-state owner as the primary reason the newspaper has stopped publication.
Approximately a dozen full-and part-time employees lost their jobs as a result of the closure, she said. Doors to the Virginia Beach-based office, in the 2400 block of Bowland Parkway, were locked Friday.
Also ceasing publication is the Hampton Roads Shopper, a 50,000-circulation companion to the newspaper. Both were operated by AdCrafters of Virginia and owned by Brian Clark of White Plains, N.Y.
Clark could not be reached for comment Friday.
``It's a shame to see this 68-year-old newspaper go,'' Abate said. ``It's very sad to see.''
Founded in 1927, Navy News was a tabloid, given away, mainly to sailors and Marines on area naval bases and other military facilities. Generally considered a mom-and-apple-pie, flag-waving newspaper, it reportedly has had a circulation of 40,000 to 50,000 copies a week.
For the first 59 years, it was published by members of the Fred L. ``Jack'' Robinson family. In 1986 it was sold to Robert E. Orkand, a retired Army officer. In June 1991 it was sold to Clark, Abate said.
``There were some big expenses taken on,'' Abate said. ``But I think we could have stayed on top. Our sales force had some very good people.''
She blamed a series of ``bad decisions'' that were made about six or seven months ago, but did not elaborate. About three months ago she began to suspect the business was about to go under.
``I'm in shock. In my heart I know it could have been fantastic,'' she said.
Abate said the decision to close the doors came so quickly that she didn't have time to include an editorial in the last edition, which was published Wednesday.
She wanted to explain to her readers that Navy News would not be around. Now Abate hopes to do that through a local daily newspaper.
Ron Bell, a part-time feature writer and columnist, said he too was shocked.
``I didn't see it coming,'' Bell said. ``But we need a decent burial, especially after 68 years.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]
[Navy News]
1927 - 1995
by CNB