LIBERAL, Kan. — A 124-year-old newspaper in this small southwest Kansas town was absorbed Thursday by an upstart rival whose two-year battle for readers captivated the newspaper industry.
Publisher Earl Watt and 15 others walked off their jobs at the Southwest Times in 2008 after out-of-town owners scaled the daily back to three days a week, raised fees, and cut staff and content. Watt then bought a $150,000 printing press and started the High Plains Daily Leader in May 2008.
The battle, which included a lawsuit against the new paper, came to an end when Daily Leader parent company Seward County Publishing purchased the Times from Liberal Publishing. The papers will be combined and operate as the Leader & Times, it reported Thursday in its first issue. Terms weren’t disclosed. The Associated Press
