New Uinta County Herald owners hold town hall

EVANSTON — The new owners of the Uinta County Herald and the Bridger Valley Pioneer — and six other newspapers throughout the state — hosted a town hall public forum on Wednesday, Sept. 17, at the Legal Tender in Evanston. 

307 Media LLC owners and operators, Rob Mortimore of the Torrington Telegram and Robb Hicks of the Buffalo Bulletin, met with past, present and future readers and subscribers to field input and suggestions. 

“Each of these papers is going to have to stand on its own,” Hicks said. “It is our hope that we’ve made an investment in this community that by virtue of the faith in that investment, you’ll have faith in us to reinvest in the local newspaper.” 

The evening’s first input was that of a concerned citizen who alleged political bias from the Herald.

“This newspaper ... has been very slanted against what the community is,” the man said. 

“A newspaper should reflect the character of the community it represents,” Hicks said, acknowledging the overwhelming political persuasion of Uinta County, though “they [the minority] shouldn’t be ignored either. Part of what makes Evanston unique is all of y’all.” 

Other attendees stated that they felt that the reporting was fair and well-balanced. 

“We still have to understand that there are diverse opinions,” Mike Slaughter said, suggesting promotion and expansion of letters to the editor to showcase an array of community perspectives. 

Bren Payne led the room in a round of applause for the reporting staff that kept working during the paper’s brief closure last month. 

“I find the Herald to be very informative ... and I appreciate the community strength,” Slaughter said. “[But] it has less pages and less information and it is not timely as much,” he said. “Especially when it comes to [city] council or even the [county] commission meetings. That’s a concern to me because we’re a week to two weeks behind.” 

“Unfortunately,” Hicks said, “enough was taken from these newspapers over the last 20, 30, 40 years.” 

He said the papers have shrunk due to the prior company’s mismanagement and also acknowledged that the skeleton staffs at the papers do not currently allow for consistent coverage of every event. 

Hicks said that he and Mortimore are in the process of setting up a nonprofit arm to accept funding from grants and donations in hopes to beef up staffing and paper sizes. 

“My hope is that we can grow these papers,” he said. “As the communities invest, we can re-invest.” 

Harriet Beck, the governor of the Soroptimist Peaks to Plains Region, suggested more promotion of local organizations and volunteer opportunities. 

“We could do a little bit more about what agencies and what groups are out there,” she said. 

One woman said, “The community calendar with upcoming events is really important to me.” 

Another attendee suggested a regular local history column and a high school journalism club feature. 

“Right now, this is the staff we can afford,” Hicks responded, explaining that local government news coverage will take precedence, at least while the company regains its footing and builds momentum. 

“For the most part, I think we’re all on the same page.” “I really appreciate the covering of government in Uinta County,” said Evanston City Councilwoman Jen Hegeman, “and I wish it was more detailed ... in holding accountability and going deeper and having the resources for the reporters to be more investigative.” 

Hegeman said that everyone in the community can agree on the importance of what’s done with the residents’ tax money. 

Former Herald reporter Sheila McGuire agreed with the importance of continuing to hold elected officials accountable. 

“You’re not always going to like what the paper writes about you, that comes with the territory,” she said. 

Evanston resident Bradley Mills accused the Herald of denying his First Amendment rights by either altering his letters to the editor or not publishing them altogether. 

“A newspaper cannot take away your First Amendment right,” Hicks responded, “because it’s not the government. Only the government can take that away from you. … We have an editorial right to ensure that anything that is in the pages of the Uinta County Herald does not incite violence, does not contain libel, does not contain slander.” 

“I love the Herald — always have, always will,” said Mike Davis, a fifth-generation Uinta County rancher.

“This community paper represents the people that live here. Our values. Whether she’s a Democrat and I’m a Republican, she’s a conservative, she’s purple — I don’t care. I care about the people in this town and what they believe and how they act — period.” 

Hicks thanked the audience for attending and expressed appreciation for their continued interest and support. 

“I’m grateful for our staff that put blood, sweat and tears into putting out a paper,”Hicks said of the six days in August that the community papers were shuttered. “They volunteered their time, and it’s because they did that this worked.”

This story was published on Sept. 24. 2025.