The following letter, written by four journalists from two Carpenter Media Group newspapers in Alaska, explains why they were resigning in the aftermath of an article being removed from the Homer News website last week following complaints from a state representative. The letter was written to the senior vice president and group publisher of Carpenter’s Canadian and Alaska division and is being republished here with the authors’ permission. As of Wednesday, the company had not publicly addressed the situation or responded to media inquiries about what happened.
The core responsibility of a community newspaper is to provide coverage of local elected officials and government. The ability of journalists at the Homer News and Peninsula Clarion to do this work was gravely undermined by actions taken by Carpenter Media Group management on Thursday, Sept. 25.
Last week, Alaska Rep. Sarah Vance sent a letter to corporate ownership expressing “outrage” over what she saw as political bias in a Homer News article first published online on Tuesday, Sept. 23.
She criticized the article’s content and demanded “immediate corrective action.” In her letter, issued on official Alaska Legislature letterhead, Rep. Vance urged the newspaper’s owners to review the paper’s overall editorial content for political bias and the work of the journalist who wrote the story.
Vance also said in the letter that she was “fully aware” of an effort to boycott Homer News advertising — stating that the paper would experience financial and reputational harm if it did not change its approach to covering community events. Rep. Vance never contacted the Homer News editorial team to discuss her concerns.
Without consulting the editor of the Homer News or the reporter who wrote the story, Carpenter Media removed the original article from the Homer News website, only to republish a modified version several hours later that reflected the changes demanded by Rep. Vance.
In the modified version republished by Carpenter management, there was no note to indicate the article had been changed.
We want to be clear: We have no problem with Rep. Vance expressing her opinion of our coverage. We cover difficult and sometimes controversial topics. Respectful dialogue about that coverage is welcome. As a community newspaper, we regularly provide Rep. Vance with a forum to discuss her views.
What we do have a problem with is Carpenter Media management changing a story at the behest of an elected official. We believe this destroys the credibility the public has placed in us as reporters and editors.
This willingness to acquiesce to a public official’s editorial demands and have conversations with her about the direction of our coverage is a betrayal not just of the journalists who work for Carpenter Media, but of the company’s integrity as a purveyor of news.
Additionally, informing readers of corrections and modifications that occur after initial publication is a vital standard journalistic practice to ensure that readers are aware when a media organization has modified their original presentation of the news. This blunder was a direct consequence of Carpenter management’s failure to coordinate with editorial staff. Carpenter’s management also left the article, in its original form, on the Peninsula Clarion website.
These actions were taken despite there being no immediate urgency to remove the content — Rep. Vance’s criticisms were raised regarding what she perceived as political bias, not factual inaccuracy.
In a follow-up social media post, also on her official government page, Rep. Vance thanked Carpenter Media for their “thoughtful and professional response to my concerns about biased reporting,” noting that they had a “respectful email exchange.”
Despite requests, we have not been informed of the content of dialogue between Rep. Vance and Carpenter Media management. In discussion with management our editor was told that the article did not meet their editorial standards and that the editing and reporting was “juvenile.”
We cannot live up to the core responsibility of a community newspaper in such an environment. We, employees of both the Homer News and Peninsula Clarion, are resigning our positions, effective Oct. 13, 2025.
Leaving these newspapers, at which we have spent a combined four decades, is not a decision we make lightly. We are proud of the work that we do covering local government as well as the arts, food, history, outdoors and sports. Though this decision is extremely painful for all of us, it is not difficult. We cannot do our jobs knowing that pressure from an elected official can mean our stories are edited without prior consultation with us.
Because we care deeply about the work we do and what it means to the community, we are all giving the standard two weeks’ notice instead of resigning outright. We hope Carpenter Media takes the opportunity to get personnel in place to continue the legacies of the Peninsula Clarion and Homer News. We hope this incident provides incentive for Carpenter Media to handle threats from officials in a way that safeguards the valued trust that readers have in newspapers.
The community deserves it.
Respectfully,
Erin Thompson, regional editor, Peninsula Clarion, Homer News and Juneau Empire
Chloe Pleznac, reporter, Homer News
Jeff Helminiak, sports and features Editor, Peninsula Clarion
Jake Dye, reporter, Peninsula Clarion