Half Moon Bay Review moves to digital format

The change follows a decision by Editor and Publisher Clay Lambert to leave the local news group at the end of January. CNGI announced that Coastsider and longtime local journalist August Howell will become interim editor of the online publications when Lambert leaves.

The organization’s board of directors made the decision at a meeting Tuesday night and told staff beginning Wednesday morning. CNGI CEO Rich Klein stressed that subscribers will continue to get up-to-the-minute news and information from hmbreview.com and pacificatribune.com.

“You will find the same award-winning local news, humor, comics and lifestyle portraits that you already enjoy,” according to a statement from CNGI. (Read the entire statement at left.) “You will find our roundup of social media topics, historical snapshots, police activity, births and deaths, and classifieds and events.

“We will continue to provide a venue for local advertisers, spotlight our neighborhoods, and keep an eye on our public officials,” the statement continued. “Your news will arrive faster and easier, with no trees sacrificed in the process.”

The moves come amid a prolonged downturn in the news industry that is global in scope and felt both in large markets and small communities. At one time small-town newspapers had a near monopoly on local advertising, and newspapers like those on the coast thrived until the turn of the century.

But technological advancements and changing consumer behavior led to mounting economic challenges for newspaper publishers. Advertisers often find digital platforms better able to target their audience and more cost effective as a result. The Pew Research Center noted in 2023 that total newspaper circulation peaked in the 1980s and has been in steep decline since 2000. And a 2022 study suggested more than 2,500 American newspapers had gone out of business entirely in the last 20 years. Most existing news organizations have turned to layoffs and other cost-cutting measures to survive. By some estimates nearly a third of American journalists have been laid off since 2008.

The downturn in print newspaper fortunes only escalated with the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused countless small businesses in the country — core local newspaper advertisers — go to out of business.

Coastside News Group formed to purchase the Half Moon Bay Review and Coastside magazine from Arizona-based Wick Communications in 2018. It formed as a California benefit corporation with incorporating documents that mandate the organization’s primary goal is benefiting the community rather than making a profit. In 2021, Pacifica residents persuaded the company to purchase the Pacifica Tribune from its Marin County-based owner. The CNGI board added two Pacifica residents at that time.

There is reason for optimism in the digital news ecosystem. Digital advertising has grown across the industry and now accounts for nearly half of news advertising, according to the Pew Research Center.

Importantly, online publications allow a rich experience and can include audio, video and endless space for details as well as links to additional information that might not make print editions. Many local news digital-only news sites flourish around the Bay Area, including Berkeleyside, San Jose Spotlight and Santa Cruz Lookout.