The Big Bend Sentinel, one of the oldest newspapers in Far West Texas, announced Thursday that it is suspending its weekly print edition indefinitely while it evaluates its long-term business model amid rising production and distribution costs.
In a letter to subscribers, editor and publisher Rob D’Amico said the newspaper will continue publishing online and will increase its email newsletter frequency from one edition per week to two while the organization reassesses how to adapt to changes in the local news industry.
The move comes less than a year after the newspaper transitioned to nonprofit ownership under the Sentinel News Project, an organization launched by media designer Roger Black after acquiring the publication in September 2025.
D’Amico cited increasing postage rates, printing expenses and fuel costs associated with distributing the newspaper across the vast Big Bend region as key factors behind the decision.
“All the same groundbreaking reporting you’ve come to rely on from the Big Bend Sentinel will be available online, as it always has,” D’Amico wrote. “Increases in postage, printing rates and gasoline costs for distribution are contributing to a situation where we lose far more money than we make for the cost of printing each week.”
The publication will continue charging existing subscription rates and is encouraging subscribers to maintain their support as the organization pursues additional revenue through digital advertising, grants and reader donations.
The announcement represents a significant milestone for a newspaper approaching its 100th anniversary. The Sentinel has long served Brewster, Presidio and Jeff Davis counties and has become known nationally in recent years for its reporting on border issues, public lands and environmental topics.
D’Amico highlighted the newspaper’s recent reporting on border wall construction and noted a new reporting partnership involving the Sentinel, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune.
The suspension of the print edition underscores the financial pressures facing community newspapers across rural America, where printing and distribution costs have increased sharply while advertising revenue has increasingly shifted to digital platforms.
While the Sentinel’s leadership characterized the move as a temporary hiatus, the announcement did not provide a timeline for when or whether regular print publication might resume.
Multiple sources familiar with the situation had indicated in recent days that the organization was evaluating significant operational changes. The announcement confirms the newspaper is facing financial challenges that have prompted a broader reassessment of its business model.
The Sentinel’s transition to nonprofit ownership in 2025 was intended to create new fundraising opportunities and strengthen the newspaper’s long-term sustainability. At the time, Black described the nonprofit model as providing “great potential for growth” while preserving the publication’s commitment to community journalism.
For now, subscribers will continue receiving the Sentinel’s reporting through its website and expanded email newsletters, while the organization works to determine the future of its print operation.
“Our commitment to the traditions of a community newspaper” remains unchanged, D’Amico said, even as the publication adapts to the economic realities confronting local journalism in 2026.
