The Blowing Rocket is a weekly newspaper in Blowing Rock, North Carolina, United States.
| Type | Weekly newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Tabloid |
| Owner(s) | Adams Publishing Group |
| Founded | June 1932[1] |
| Language | English |
| Headquarters | 452-1 Sunset Drive Blowing Rock, North Carolina |
| Circulation | 407 (as of 2021)[2] |
| OCLC number | 23858420 |
| Website | blowingrocket |
History
editThe newspaper was created as a tabloid by state Senator Columbus Vance Henkel, Jr., in June 1932. During the 1930s and 1940s it was a seasonal newspaper, published only during the months of June, July and August. Each summer a student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Journalism was hired to edit the Rocket.
In the 1950s the Rocket switched to broadsheet format and a year-round publication schedule. In 1956 the Rocket was acquired by Rivers Printing Company, which owned the Watauga Democrat in Boone.
Today the Rocket is part of Jones Media's High Country Media group, which includes the Watauga Democrat, The Avery Journal and the Mountain Times.
The Blowing Rocket has the distinction of being the last newspaper affiliated with the National Press Association to charge 10 cents for an individual copy. The Epitaph in Tombstone, Arizona raised its price from 10 cents to 25 cents in 1982, shortly before the Rocket took the same step.[1]
In 2002, the Rocket had a paid circulation of 3,530.[3] As of December 1, 2019, the newspaper had a circulation of 591.[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "About". Blowing Rocket.
- ^ "Western North Carolina Circulation Map" (PDF). Adams Publishing Group. 2021-05-01. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ "NC Newspapers by circulation". Park Library. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 2008-10-16.
- ^ "Regional Maps and Circulation (High Country)" (PDF). Adams Publishing Group. 2019-12-01. Retrieved 2023-04-08.