John F. Fitzpatrick (publisher)
Encyclopedia
John Francis Fitzpatrick was the publisher of The Salt Lake Tribune
from 1924 to 1960. He created the Newspaper Agency Corporation
in 1952.
. His father was a railroad engineer. After participating in a strike, his father was blacklisted, and the family moved to Burlington, Iowa
. Fitzpatrick graduated from Burlington High School and went to work for the railroad industry including the Pere Marquette railroad
.
He lived in Salt Lake City Utah
for a short time in 1910. He was working as a railroad clerk when Thomas Kearns
, former U.S. Senator from Utah (1901-05) and millionaire silver miner, bought The Salt Lake Tribune
in 1901, and hired John F. Fitzpatrick as his personal secretary in 1913.
Fitzpatrick married Eleanor F. Crawford in 1914.
Fitzpatrick's grandson, Timothy Fitzpatrick is currently the deputy editor of The Salt Lake Tribune
(2010).
The Salt Lake Tribune had been the voice of the opposition to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which owns the other daily paper in Salt Lake City, the Deseret News. Confrontations between the Deseret News and the Tribune eased somewhat during Thomas Kearns's Tribune regime, flaring only occasionally. When Fitzpatrick became Tribune publisher, "the savage salvos ended once and for all." Fitzpatrick's legacy as the architect of accommodation between members of the LDS Church and non-Mormons in Salt Lake was such that his obituary in Time Magazine was titled "The Peacemaker." In 1937, Fitzpatrick hired his eventual successor, John W. Gallivan
.
Meanwhile, in 1952, Thomas F. Kearns, one of Senator Kearns's three children, decided to get out of the newspaper business. Fitzpatrick needed to sell off of company assets to acquire Kearns's 40 percent interest, or control of the paper would fall out of family hands.
The accommodation reached in 1952, with the Deseret News solved this problem for the Tribune. For the Deseret News, it allowed its continued survival. The Deseret News and the Tribune entered into a joint operating agreement whereby they combined the advertising and printing business of the two papers; editorially they remained separate. The new joint publisher was incorporated as the Newspaper Agency Corporation
, and Fitzpatrick was its first president and architect. David O. McKay
, President of the LDS Church, viewed this as the only way the church-owned Deseret News could survive. As part of the deal, The Tribune sold the afternoon paper, The Salt Lake Telegram, to the Deseret News; this gave Fitzpatrick the funds to buy out Thomas F. Kearns. The Deseret News went to evening publication, and stopped publishing on Sunday.
for coverage of an airline collision over the Grand Canyon.
Fitzpatrick had become an important civic leader. He met every Tuesday morning with Church President McKay and Gus P. Backman, the secretary of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce
. These breakfast meetings started with the creation of the Centennial Commission in the early 1940s, and continued until Fitzpatrick's death.
Fitzpatrick died of a heart attack in his home on September 11, 1960. The next day, in an emergency board meeting the Kearns-Tribune Corporation board elected Jack Gallivan
, as Fitzpatrick's had no chosen successor, as president of the corporation and publisher of the Tribune. The First Presidency of the LDS Church also endorsed Gallivan as president of the Newspaper Agency Corporation.
The Salt Lake Tribune
The Salt Lake Tribune is the largest-circulated daily newspaper in the U.S. city of Salt Lake City. It is distributed by Newspaper Agency Corporation, which also distributes the Deseret News. The Tribune — or "Trib," as it is locally known — is currently owned by the Denver-based MediaNews Group....
from 1924 to 1960. He created the Newspaper Agency Corporation
Newspaper Agency Corporation
The Newspaper Agency Corporation Inc. is a printing, delivery and advertising company jointly owned by the Deseret Morning News and The Salt Lake Tribune, the two major daily newspapers in Salt Lake City, Utah.-History:...
in 1952.
Early life
Fitzpatrick was born January 18, 1887, in Pottsville, PennsylvaniaPottsville, Pennsylvania
Pottsville is the only city in and the county seat of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 15,549 at the 2000 census. The city lies along the west bank of the Schuylkill River, north-west of Philadelphia...
. His father was a railroad engineer. After participating in a strike, his father was blacklisted, and the family moved to Burlington, Iowa
Burlington, Iowa
Burlington is a city in, and the county seat of Des Moines County, Iowa, United States. The population was 25,663 in the 2010 census, a decline from the 26,839 population in the 2000 census. Burlington is the center of a micropolitan area including West Burlington, Iowa and Middletown, Iowa and...
. Fitzpatrick graduated from Burlington High School and went to work for the railroad industry including the Pere Marquette railroad
Pere Marquette Railway
The Pere Marquette Railway was a railroad that operated in the Great Lakes region of the United States and Canada. The railroad had trackage in the states of Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and the Canadian province of Ontario. Its primary connections included Buffalo; Toledo; and Chicago.The company was...
.
He lived in Salt Lake City Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
for a short time in 1910. He was working as a railroad clerk when Thomas Kearns
Thomas Kearns
Thomas Kearns was a mining, banking, railroad and newspaper magnate. He was elected United States Senator from Utah from 1901 to 1905.- Immigration and mining :...
, former U.S. Senator from Utah (1901-05) and millionaire silver miner, bought The Salt Lake Tribune
The Salt Lake Tribune
The Salt Lake Tribune is the largest-circulated daily newspaper in the U.S. city of Salt Lake City. It is distributed by Newspaper Agency Corporation, which also distributes the Deseret News. The Tribune — or "Trib," as it is locally known — is currently owned by the Denver-based MediaNews Group....
in 1901, and hired John F. Fitzpatrick as his personal secretary in 1913.
Fitzpatrick married Eleanor F. Crawford in 1914.
Fitzpatrick's grandson, Timothy Fitzpatrick is currently the deputy editor of The Salt Lake Tribune
The Salt Lake Tribune
The Salt Lake Tribune is the largest-circulated daily newspaper in the U.S. city of Salt Lake City. It is distributed by Newspaper Agency Corporation, which also distributes the Deseret News. The Tribune — or "Trib," as it is locally known — is currently owned by the Denver-based MediaNews Group....
(2010).
Publisher
Since Kearns's death in 1918, Fitzpatrick had "for all practical purposes, been functioning as the newspaper's owner." Fitzpatrick officially became publisher of the Tribune upon the death of Ambrose McKay in 1924.The Salt Lake Tribune had been the voice of the opposition to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which owns the other daily paper in Salt Lake City, the Deseret News. Confrontations between the Deseret News and the Tribune eased somewhat during Thomas Kearns's Tribune regime, flaring only occasionally. When Fitzpatrick became Tribune publisher, "the savage salvos ended once and for all." Fitzpatrick's legacy as the architect of accommodation between members of the LDS Church and non-Mormons in Salt Lake was such that his obituary in Time Magazine was titled "The Peacemaker." In 1937, Fitzpatrick hired his eventual successor, John W. Gallivan
John W. Gallivan
John W. Gallivan is an American newspaper publisher, cable television pioneer, and civic leader. A major figure in the promotion and development of Salt Lake City and Utah's ski industry, he was instrumental in starting the campaign to bring the 2002 Olympic Winter Games to Salt Lake City...
.
Newspaper Agency Corporation
By 1947, the Tribune's circulation had increased to 87,237, while that of the Deseret News had fallen to 40,485. The Deseret News was in trouble, so in 1948, the Deseret News started Sunday publication, and a circulation war began. Both papers pushed hard to increase circulation over the next four years, with aggressive promotions that included prize giveaways.Meanwhile, in 1952, Thomas F. Kearns, one of Senator Kearns's three children, decided to get out of the newspaper business. Fitzpatrick needed to sell off of company assets to acquire Kearns's 40 percent interest, or control of the paper would fall out of family hands.
The accommodation reached in 1952, with the Deseret News solved this problem for the Tribune. For the Deseret News, it allowed its continued survival. The Deseret News and the Tribune entered into a joint operating agreement whereby they combined the advertising and printing business of the two papers; editorially they remained separate. The new joint publisher was incorporated as the Newspaper Agency Corporation
Newspaper Agency Corporation
The Newspaper Agency Corporation Inc. is a printing, delivery and advertising company jointly owned by the Deseret Morning News and The Salt Lake Tribune, the two major daily newspapers in Salt Lake City, Utah.-History:...
, and Fitzpatrick was its first president and architect. David O. McKay
David O. McKay
David Oman McKay was the ninth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , serving from 1951 until his death. Ordained an apostle and member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1906, McKay was a general authority for nearly 64 years, longer than anyone else in LDS Church...
, President of the LDS Church, viewed this as the only way the church-owned Deseret News could survive. As part of the deal, The Tribune sold the afternoon paper, The Salt Lake Telegram, to the Deseret News; this gave Fitzpatrick the funds to buy out Thomas F. Kearns. The Deseret News went to evening publication, and stopped publishing on Sunday.
Later years
In 1957, the Tribune won a Pulitzer PrizePulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
for coverage of an airline collision over the Grand Canyon.
Fitzpatrick had become an important civic leader. He met every Tuesday morning with Church President McKay and Gus P. Backman, the secretary of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce
Chamber of commerce
A chamber of commerce is a form of business network, e.g., a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to advocate on behalf of the business community...
. These breakfast meetings started with the creation of the Centennial Commission in the early 1940s, and continued until Fitzpatrick's death.
Fitzpatrick died of a heart attack in his home on September 11, 1960. The next day, in an emergency board meeting the Kearns-Tribune Corporation board elected Jack Gallivan
John W. Gallivan
John W. Gallivan is an American newspaper publisher, cable television pioneer, and civic leader. A major figure in the promotion and development of Salt Lake City and Utah's ski industry, he was instrumental in starting the campaign to bring the 2002 Olympic Winter Games to Salt Lake City...
, as Fitzpatrick's had no chosen successor, as president of the corporation and publisher of the Tribune. The First Presidency of the LDS Church also endorsed Gallivan as president of the Newspaper Agency Corporation.