Nestled on the corner of State and Magnolia Streets in downtown Bellingham, the staff of the newly formed Cascadia Daily News can watch over the city of subdued excitement from their third floor offices in the historic Puget Sound Power & Light Building. The energy is palpable in the small, open-floor plan space where a handful of reporters and editors type intently at computers that line the walls of this 1930s art deco-inspired brick building. They went live with their daily online editions in late January and published their inaugural weekly print edition this week.

One month and three days after the final edition of the alternative weekly newspaper Cascadia Weekly was published, Cascadia Daily News launched online Jan. 24, introducing itself as “your new hometown newspaper for the upper left corner of Washington state, and the region beyond.” An evolution of the former weekly publication with all new leadership and goals, financer David Syre recruited a team of talented, local journalists to take on the new endeavor in the summer of 2021, and now Cascadia Daily News has made its debut after months of preparation.

At the helm of CDN is Executive Editor Ron Judd, former Western J-kid and longtime reporter for The Seattle Times. Judd said he jumped on the opportunity when he was recruited by Syre, and he brings to the table over 30 years of journalism experience, a passion for Bellingham news, and an overall determination and hope for the paper to be a success.

“The main thing was it was an incredibly rare, once-in-a-lifetime chance to start a news publication from scratch,” Judd said.

The city’s main preexisting chain paper, The Bellingham Herald, is still alive and publishing, but it has a much smaller staff than previously and is owned by McClatchy, which was acquired by a hedge fund. Judd said one of the main goals of CDN is to be a community newspaper, one that features common life — things like arts and entertainment, opinion and sports — which is something that he believes Bellingham needs. 

“To me, it’s been the one missing piece of Bellingham being a great place to live,” Judd said.

So, what can readers expect from Cascadia Daily News? A paper that lives and breathes Bellingham. There’s a range from local to worldwide news coverage, of course, but there’s also a column about regional breweries and distilleries, a profile on snowboarding couples who renewed their vows on Mount Baker, and even a weekly horoscope.

The variety in Cascadia Daily News content might just be the ticket to appealing to both young and old generations in Bellingham, which Judd said is another goal of CDN.

Judd said he hired a staff that reflects this goal, as CDN is comprised of several generations of journalists, weighted heavier towards the younger, female side. As part of the staff, Judd also hires a handful of interns every season.

“I hired the smartest, youngest people I could find who reinvent the way that news is going to be done in ways that I can’t really imagine and speak to the next generation,” Judd said. “And that’s a big part of our mission here and another reason we hire so many interns.”

One such intern is Victoria Corkum, current visual journalism student at Western. Corkum said she appreciates the opportunity for a paid internship, and has been impressed by CDN’s attention to their interns.

“Working at Cascadia Daily News has been the best possible opportunity to come my way,” Corkum said.

She said she appreciates the staff’s kindness and support and admires the publication’s overall attitude.

“Cascadia Daily has eyes that are wide open and an attitude of excitement surrounding our city,” Corkum said.

Judd and Corkum aren’t the only Western alum in the CDN newsroom; other former Western journalism students include CDN assignment editor Elizabeth Kayser, visual journalist and education reporter Hailey Hoffman, CDN sports editor Hailey Palmer and CDN digital editor — and past journalism alumni newsletter editor — Jaya Flanary.

Flanary was hired as CDN’s digital editor shortly after graduating in June 2021, and she credits landing the position to part luck and part the journalism skills she learned in Western’s journalism department.

“I feel extremely lucky that I get to stay in Bellingham and have a job in the industry that I want to have a job in,” Flanary said.

As CDN’s digital editor, Flanary has had the solo task of designing the newspaper’s website and print layout from scratch. Flanary said this was no small feat but seeing the online launch in January made it worth all the hard work.

“The rewarding part is seeing it live on a website or seeing it in print in your hands, or better yet, seeing it in someone else’s hands,” Flanary said.

CDN’s print launch was Wednesday, March 2, and Bellingham folks can expect to see copies popping up in various spots around town, Judd said. CDN readers will also be able to receive delivered subscriptions, and editions will also be available via e-reader.