New Mexico Press Association joins all member newspapers as NNA members

Dec 1, 2020

NMPA’s 39 member newspapers range in circulation from 1,000 to 102,150. The weekly Albuquerque Business First is the smallest newspaper with 1,000 subscribers, and the daily Albuquerque Journal leads in circulation with 102,150 subscribers.

PENSACOLA, Florida — National Newspaper Association Chair Brett Wesner, president of Wesner Publications in Cordell, Oklahoma, is pleased to announce that all New Mexico Press Association member newspapers have joined NNA, effective Nov. 10.

“I got to know many NMPA members when we started the newspaper in Grants, New Mexico, in 2017, and I've always enjoyed our interactions,” Wesner said. “A lot of folks were interested in NNA, but we didn't have a huge presence in the state. After Utah set the precedent by joining all of its member papers, we immediately began discussing if this would be right for New Mexico. I'm so excited that it has worked out, thanks to the NMPA Board and its executive director.”

Joining nine New Mexico newspapers that were already NNA members, Wesner approached Executive Director Sammy Lopez to bring on the remaining 30 newspapers.

“Several of our members were looking at joining NNA, and a couple of them were on our board,” Lopez said via Zoom conversation. “I think that they thought, ‘what a great situation.’”

Lopez and New Mexico newspapers are currently wrapping up a three-month campaign that brought in significant advertising revenue. The campaign featured advertisements for the census, a Secretary of State voting reminder and a constitutional amendment public notice.

Lopez joined the association in June 2019. He was most recently publisher of the Farmington (New Mexico) Daily Times, owned by Gannett Media. He is also a former publisher of newspapers in Las Cruces, New Mexico; Carlsbad, California; and Deming, New Mexico. On the media group side, Lopez was a World West group manager, overseeing eight newspapers in three states; and an executive for Civitas Media, managing six daily newspapers and two weeklies.

NMPA’s 39 member newspapers range in circulation from 1,000 to 102,150. The weekly Albuquerque Business First is the smallest newspaper with 1,000 subscribers, and the daily Albuquerque Journal leads in circulation with 102,150 subscribers.

The National Newspaper Association represents 1,600 community newspapers across the United States. To discuss membership, contact Executive Director Lynne Lance at lynne@nna.org or 850-542-7087.