The San Diego Sun recently achieved its fourth anniversary. In an era of rapidly shrinking media, especially among local outlets, four years is a significant accomplishment.
The milestone crept up on me. Thanks, LinkedIn, for auto-creating an anniversary notification that gave me cause to pause and take stock. Over three decades, I was the editor of three very different local magazines/newspapers. All three closed their doors, though one just temporarily, due to the pandemic.
Coming out of Covid in 2021, The Sun received start-up funding from Facebook/Meta’s Bulletin initiative for independent writers all over the country. The Bulletin program sunset after two years, but The Sun kept going.
Since then, we’ve broken some downtown news stories, created columns about residents and local businesses, started a few regular features, won dozens of awards and stepped onto the TEDx San Diego stage. Along the way, reader dialogue was built. The Sun has gained the trust of locals who keep me posted on what’s happening in our downtown neighborhoods. It’s been a full-circle path.
NEWS
With our hyperlocal focus on downtown San Diego, The Sun has been the only outlet to date to look into “The Shaky Start by the Ballpark District Cleanup Crew.”
We wrote early on how everybody – residents, business owners, The Gaslamp Quarter Association and even the San Diego Padres – are mad about “Mayor Gloria’s $10/Hour Parking Meter Fee Hike.”
Just last week, I went on “A Walk & Talk With The Port About The Seaport Village Revitalization Plan.“
It’s been awhile since there’s been any progress to report in an ongoing legal case, but The Sun has led the coverage of “Loud Concerts in Gallagher Square Park.”
And homelessness, unfortunately, has been an unavoidable issue. The problem predates The Sun, of course, but it permeates our community. Hopefully, all local newsgatherers treat this life-and-death issue as the dire emergency it is. Whatever the latest development, or angle of the day, all local media needs to remember the root problem: cyclical political neglect and inefficiency.
NEW SERIES
In the spirit of the times, with federal funding cuts resulting in financial strife for local organizations that bolster our social safety net, The Sun created a “Nonprofit Voices” series. It celebrates inspirational groups like Reality Changers (helping first-gen kids go to college), David’s Harp Foundation (which teaches job skills) and others.
What else? I started taking intriguing morsels from local restaurants and mixing them together as “Tidbits” offerings. Deanna Ratnikova kicked off an informative “Walking In The City” column. And, “Kaushal’s Corner” is the new name of the insider video series produced by former CNN anchor and downtown diva Kaushal Patel.
LONG-RUNNING SERIES
Almost from the get-go, The Sun has published insightful Q&As by downtown residents in our “Living In The City” series (we’ve run 59 of them). A couple years ago, the focus shifted and we initiated “Working In The City” Q&As (27 to date).
I hope you’ve seen the “Faces & Places” photo essays shot over the years by Sal Giametta. A veteran of local political and tourism offices, Giametta is a retired Little Italy resident whose portraiture of events large and small captures the soul of downtown San Diego.
A big thank you to all The Sun contributors, including talented groups of interns, who make this community news outlet special.
AWARDS
In just four years, I’ve lost the exact count of awards The Sun has won in writing contests by local chapters of The Press Club and Society of Professional Journalists. We’ve collected at least three dozen awards.
Here’s a not-so-humble brag: In 2025 we were named the #1 Digital News Site by the SPJ. And in winning seven awards in that contest we showed versatility — getting honors for stories about politics, homelessness, education, downtown resident profiles and business profiles.
LOOKING FORWARD
The San Diego Sun is a member in good standing of the national LION (Local Independent Online News) industry trade group. I credit LION for helping me find various funding opportunities.
The Sun has a nonprofit arm called “Skylight” which can accept tax-deductible contributions. Any amount helps! A special shout out goes to our top individual contributor, Patti Roscoe, a highly respected member of the San Diego community who believes in the power of local news.
We also seek out organizational grants. Hopefully we’ll have good news on that front before the end of the year.
The mission behind The Sun is best summed up by the title of the TEDx San Diego speech I delivered in 2024: “Your local newspaper is dying — why you should care.”
Local news outlets allow communities to come together with a shared sense of identity and purpose. And to speak truth to power. Those are powerful reasons why we should all care. SDSun
