Shawangunk Journal
Shawangunk Journal is a privately held hyperlocal news publication in Ellenville, New York, founded in 2006 to serve seven Hudson Valley towns. It operates as an official paper of record for Ulster County government entities and generates revenue from digital subscriptions, per-article sales, advertising, and event sponsorships.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersEllenville, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Shawangunk Journal does
Shawangunk Journal is a privately held, hyperlocal news publication founded in 2006 in Ellenville, New York, by Alex Shiffer and Sharon Richman to revive the community-media role previously filled by the Ellenville Journal (1849-1989). It serves residents of seven Hudson Valley towns — Crawford, Mamakating, Marbletown, Rochester, Rosendale, Shawangunk, and Wawarsing — and operates as the official paper of record for Ulster County, the Village of Ellenville, multiple towns, SUNY Ulster, and the Rondout and Pine Bush school districts. The publication produces weekly print editions and a continuously updated digital site covering news, opinions, columns, obituaries, public notices, a police blotter, calendar events, newscasts, and videocasts.
The underlying technology is the NewsAtomic publishing platform, co-developed by Shawangunk Journal and Zelacom Electronic Publishing, LLC (the legal publishing entity under New York jurisdiction). NewsAtomic provides a section-based reader with filtering by publication, location, and time frame, supports cross-publisher content syndication (e.g., Kingston Wire content), and integrates Google Analytics plus OAuth-based social login (Apple, Facebook, Google). The platform handles both subscription billing and per-article transactional payments, with a freemium onboarding flow offering new users a complimentary $1, 30-day reading account.
The business model rests on four revenue streams: recurring digital subscriptions, pay-per-article sales, display advertising (with 90% of advertising revenue reportedly flowing to writers or publishers), and event sponsorships (e.g., $200 Citizen of the Year business sponsorships). No revenue is publicly disclosed; the publication supplements operating income through community fundraising campaigns on Givebutter. The editorial team comprises the co-founders, a Managing Editor (John D'Amico), a Reporter (Chris Rowley), an Editorial Assistant (Robyn Hager), and several correspondents, with stated firmographics of 11-50 employees.
Shawangunk Journal firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Shawangunk Journal
- Legal name
- Zelacom Electronic Publishing, LLC
- Website
- https://shawangunkjournal.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Shawangunk Journal is a privately held hyperlocal news publication in Ellenville, New York, founded in 2006 to serve seven Hudson Valley towns. It operates as an official paper of record for Ulster County government entities and generates revenue from digital subscriptions, per-article sales, advertising, and event sponsorships.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Shawangunk Journal industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Local Newspaper Publishing
- NAICS
- Newspaper Publishers (513110), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131), Periodical Publishers (51312)
- SIC
- Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)
Keywords
Where Shawangunk Journal is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Ellenville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Shawangunk Journal business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Digital Subscriptions: Subscription-based access to all publication content. Readers can subscribe for ongoing access or purchase individual articles. Platform offers complimentary $1 reading account for 30 days for new users.
- Individual Article Sales: Readers can pay per-article to access individual stories. Prices displayed in reader with free articles marked with green check mark.
- Advertising: Revenue from display advertisements on the website, with 90% of advertising revenue going directly to writers or publishers according to FAQ.
- Event Sponsorships: Local businesses and individuals can sponsor events, such as the $200 Citizen of the Year dinner sponsorship.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Subscription-based unlimited access |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Per-article purchase option |
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | New user complimentary balance |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Event tickets |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
Shawangunk Journal product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Shawangunk Journal is a weekly local newspaper publishing company that produces hyperlocal news, opinion pieces, columns, videocasts, newscasts, a community calendar, police blotter, obituaries, and public notices for towns in Ulster County, New York. Distributed digitally through the proprietary NewsAtomic platform (with a print edition) and operating as the official paper of record for Ulster County, the Village of Ellenville, multiple towns, SUNY Ulster, and two school districts. Readers access content via monthly subscriptions, individual article purchases, or a 30-day new-user complimentary balance, supplemented by display advertising and event sponsorships.
Product overview
Shawangunk Journal is a single publication (not a platform-plus-modules architecture) that operates its website on the NewsAtomic publishing software platform. The main product is the local news website offering news stories, opinions, columns, videocasts, newscasts, calendar events, police blotter, obituaries, and public notices sections. Content is available through a subscription model with a free trial period and individual article purchases.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Shawangunk Journal (Digital and Print Edition) A weekly local newspaper serving the towns of Crawford, Mamakating, Marbletown, Rochester, Rosendale, Shawangunk and Wawarsing in New York's Hudson Valley. Available digitally through the NewsAtomic platform with subscriptions and per-article purchases, and as a weekly print edition.
Companies that use Shawangunk Journal
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Shawangunk Journal technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
Feature2 records
Shawangunk Journal partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- NewsAtomiccoreNewsAtomic is the publishing software platform created by Shawangunk Journal and Zelacom. The platform is designed for local news aggregation and reading, supporting multiple publishers with content grouping, reader settings, and payment processing.
- Zelacom Electronic Publishing, LLCcoreZelacom is a computer technology company that co-developed the NewsAtomic platform with Shawangunk Journal. Both companies are locally owned, independent, and dedicated to free press and open source software.
- Hudson Valley CurrentminorHudson Valley Current appears as an advertiser on the Shawangunk Journal website, with mutual promotional placement visible throughout the site.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Shawangunk Journal competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Patch.com: National hyperlocal news aggregator that runs community-specific pages across the Hudson Valley, including towns Shawangunk Journal serves. Direct competitor for local government coverage and digital advertising dollars.
- Times Union: Albany-based regional newspaper covering all of upstate New York including the Hudson Valley. A much larger incumbent that broadly competes for digital subscribers and advertisers in the same region.
Direct peers
- Watershed Post: Catskills-region digital local news site with a similar hyperlocal, community-driven model. Comparable in scale, geography-adjacent, and competes for the same pool of Hudson Valley/Catskills local journalism talent.
- Kingston Wire: Ulster County-based digital local news outlet that shares content and syndication with Shawangunk Journal. Operates a similar hyperlocal, subscription-supported model covering Kingston and surrounding Hudson Valley communities.
- Daily Freeman: Kingston, NY-based daily newspaper covering Ulster County and the broader Hudson Valley. A larger legacy local outlet competing for the same readers, advertisers, and government notice business.
- Hudson Valley Current: Hudson Valley regional news publication that advertises on Shawangunk Journal and covers overlapping geography. Comparable community-focused, locally owned digital news model.
- Spotlight Newspapers: Community newspaper group serving the Capital District of New York. Comparable scale, multi-town weekly model, and digital subscription approach to Shawangunk Journal's footprint strategy.
- River Reporter: Weekly newspaper serving Sullivan County, NY, in the upper Hudson Valley/Catskills region. Comparable small-footprint, locally owned, subscription and advertising-supported community paper model.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Shawangunk Journal social profiles
Digital presenceShawangunk Journal financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Shawangunk Journal leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Shawangunk Journal funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Shawangunk Journal M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Shawangunk Journal
What does Shawangunk Journal do?
Shawangunk Journal is a weekly local newspaper publishing company that produces hyperlocal news, opinion pieces, columns, videocasts, newscasts, a community calendar, police blotter, obituaries, and public notices for towns in Ulster County, New York. Distributed digitally through the proprietary NewsAtomic platform (with a print edition) and operating as the official paper of record for Ulster County, the Village of Ellenville, multiple towns, SUNY Ulster, and two school districts. Readers access content via monthly subscriptions, individual article purchases, or a 30-day new-user complimentary balance, supplemented by display advertising and event sponsorships.
Is Shawangunk Journal a public or private company?
Shawangunk Journal is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Shawangunk Journal founded?
Shawangunk Journal was founded in 2006. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Shawangunk Journal based?
Shawangunk Journal is headquartered in Ellenville, United States, in the North America region.
How does Shawangunk Journal make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Digital Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are individual Article Sales, advertising and event Sponsorships.
Who are Shawangunk Journal's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Patch.com and Times Union. Direct peers are Watershed Post, Kingston Wire, Daily Freeman, Hudson Valley Current, Spotlight Newspapers and River Reporter.
Does Shawangunk Journal have an API?
No public API is recorded for Shawangunk Journal.
What industry is Shawangunk Journal in?
Shawangunk Journal's product category is Local Newspaper Publishing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJADAB, Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital). Its NAICS code is 513110 and its SIC code is 2711.