Kansas Newspapers Directory

225

Total Newspapers

182

Paid Circulation

43

Free Circulation

3M+

Digital Archive Pages

Major Daily Newspapers

The Wichita Eagle

Location: Wichita, KS

Founded: April 12, 1872

Circulation: 40,000+ daily (2017)

Ownership: The McClatchy Company

Largest newspaper in Kansas, serving Wichita and surrounding area. Founded by Marshall M. Murdock, became daily in May 1884. Known for investigative reporting with extensive coverage of local and state news, business, sports, and entertainment. Provides in-depth insights into political, social, and economic issues affecting Wichita and broader Kansas region. Operates Kansas.com website.

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The Kansas City Star

Location: Kansas City, MO

Founded: September 18, 1880

Awards: Eight Pulitzer Prizes

Coverage: Kansas City metro, western Missouri, eastern Kansas

Archives: 4.1+ million pages (1880-2024)

Founded by William Rockhill Nelson and Samuel E. Morss as The Kansas City Evening Star. Major newspaper of Kansas City metropolitan area with widespread circulation in western Missouri and eastern Kansas. Renowned for journalism excellence and comprehensive regional coverage.

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The Topeka Capital-Journal

Location: Topeka, KS

Digital Archives: Full images from 1948

Oldest and largest media outlet in Northeast Kansas and most trusted news source for the region. Focuses on state politics, local news, and community events. Key resource for residents interested in state capital happenings and Kansas government coverage.

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Lawrence Journal-World

Location: Lawrence, KS

Founded: 1858 (roots), 1891 (by William Allen White), 1911 (current title)

Ownership: Ogden Newspapers (since 2016, after 125 years Simons family ownership)

Awards: Pulitzer Prize

Daily newspaper renowned for longstanding history and comprehensive local reporting. Printing moved to Kansas City Star facility in 2014, while production, editing, and administration remain in Lawrence. Available at ljworld.com.

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Salina Journal

Location: 1700 E Iron Ave, Salina, KS

Founded: 1871

Circulation: 20,364 (2019)

Ownership: Harris Enterprises (purchased 1949)

Daily morning newspaper delivered in north-central and northwestern Kansas. Serves Salina and surrounding region with local news, sports, and community coverage.

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Manhattan Mercury

Location: Manhattan, KS

Award-winning daily newspaper covering Manhattan and surrounding area with local news, sports, Kansas State University coverage, and community events.

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The Hutchinson News

Location: Hutchinson, KS

Daily newspaper covering much of Kansas with award-winning journalism providing latest news, information, and opinions about communities across the state. Available at hutchnews.com.

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Emporia Gazette

Location: Emporia, KS

Daily newspaper serving Emporia and Lyon County with local news, sports, business, and community coverage.

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Additional Regional Newspapers

Leavenworth Times

Founded: 1856

Oldest daily newspaper in Leavenworth, Kansas

Hays Daily News

Location: Hays, KS

Daily newspaper serving Ellis County

Garden City Telegram

Location: Garden City, KS

Six days per week, circulation ~8,000

Great Bend Tribune

Location: Great Bend, KS

Daily newspaper serving Barton County

Dodge City Daily Globe

Location: Dodge City, KS

Daily newspaper serving southwest Kansas

The Cowley Courier Traveler

Location: Arkansas City, KS

Daily newspaper serving Cowley County

Weekly & Community Newspapers

Kansas Press Association Directory

The Kansas Press Association maintains an online directory at kspress.com where members can browse active, associate, and student member newspapers. KPA represents more than 200 member newspapers throughout Kansas, including 10 dailies and approximately 190 weeklies.

Kansas supports approximately 190 weekly community newspapers serving towns and rural communities across the state. These publications provide essential local coverage of community events, school news, sports, government meetings, and local business.

Access the complete searchable directory by keyword, location, or county at: kspress.com/about-us/online-directory

College & University Newspapers

The University Daily Kansan

University: University of Kansas

Founded: September 17, 1904

Publication: Weekly print, daily online (kansan.com since late 1996)

Circulation: 12,000 (pre-2020)

Awards: 6 Newspaper Pacemaker Awards (1993, 1994, 1995, 2000, 2004, 2005)

Editorially independent student newspaper serving University of Kansas since 1904. Became tri-weekly in 1908 and daily in 1912. Stopped regular print editions in 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic, removed circulation boxes on campus. Now publishes weekly print edition and daily online at kansan.com and social media platforms (Instagram, Facebook, X, TikTok).

Recognition: Best Breaking News Reporting - Region 7 Mark of Excellence (Society of Professional Journalists, 2018), Four-Year Public University Newspaper Gold Medalist (Kansas Collegiate Media, 2016). Alumni work for The New York Times, Washington Post, Associated Press, and Wall Street Journal.

Outlet for students in news and strategic communication tracks with opportunities for reporters, editors, business managers, photographers, and digital media managers.

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The First Kansan (KU)

University: University of Kansas

Additional KU student publication providing campus news and student perspectives. Affiliated with KU Memorial Unions.

Kansas State Collegian

University: Kansas State University

Location: Manhattan, KS

Student newspaper covering Kansas State University campus news, sports, and Manhattan community events.

Digital & Alternative News Sources

Kansas Reflector

Nonprofit news operation committed to delivering in-depth reporting and spectrum of opinions with keen focus on state government and politics in Kansas.

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The Lawrence Times

Digital news source providing Lawrence, Kansas news and information.

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Salina Post

Local source for Salina news, sports, obituaries, opinion, and announcements.

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Salina311

Provides Salina stories, data, events, commerce, and rewards. Official Newspaper of Record in Saline County.

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Historical Kansas Newspapers

Kansas Digital Newspapers Program

The Kansas State Historical Society manages the Kansas Digital Newspapers program, making over 3 million Kansas newspaper pages freely available online. This comprehensive archive preserves Kansas newspaper history for researchers, genealogists, and history enthusiasts.

Major Archives:

  • Kansas City Star Archives - 4.1+ million searchable pages from 1880-2024
  • Wichita Eagle Archives - Dating to 1872, daily since 1884
  • Topeka Capital-Journal - Full digital images from 1948
  • Lawrence Journal-World Historical Archive - Dating to 1858
  • Salina Daily Journal - Library of Congress archives (1887-1888)
  • University Daily Kansan - Library of Congress archives (1912-Current)

Access Resources:

  • NewsBank - Full-text access to 55 Kansas newspapers including Wichita Eagle (1984-), Emporia Gazette (2002-), Kansas City Star (1991-), Lawrence Journal-World (1990-), Manhattan Mercury (1997-), Topeka Capital-Journal (2002-)
  • Salina Public Library - Digital copies of Salina Journal (October 2020-December 2023, in-library access only)
  • Kansas State Historical Society - Over 3 million pages freely available online

Historical Significance:

The Kansas Press Association formed a committee on December 13, 1875, which established the Kansas Historical Society specifically to collect newspapers. This partnership between the press association and historical society has preserved Kansas newspaper heritage for over 145 years.

Press Organizations

Kansas Press Association (KPA)

Founded: 1863 (as Kansas Editors' and Publishers' Association)

Anniversary: Celebrating 160+ years of service

Members: Over 200 newspapers (10 dailies, ~190 weeklies)

Mission: Preserve the legacy and advance the prominence of Kansas newspapers and the communities they serve faithfully. Organized to serve, improve, and promote the newspaper industry, and protect the rights of a free press.

Services:

  • Marketing and educational services
  • Legal and technology hotlines
  • Legislative representation
  • Industry conventions, conferences, and seminars
  • Central source of industry information
  • Online searchable directory of member newspapers

Contact: Emily Bradbury, Executive Director
4021 SW 10th St, #351, Topeka, KS 66604
(785) 271-5304

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Kansas Newspaper Foundation

Established: 1982

Status: 501(c)(3) arm of Kansas Press Association

Total Funds: $1,054,608 (as of March 31, 2025)

President: Ken Knepper (former publisher, Newton Kansan)

Serves to receive charitable contributions to advance educational and benevolent activities of the association and other programs identified by donors. Board members appointed to two-year terms, most often from ranks of past Kansas Press Association presidents.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Kansas has approximately 225 newspapers in publication, consisting of 182 paid circulation newspapers and 43 free circulation newspapers. The Kansas Press Association represents more than 200 member newspapers throughout the state, including 10 dailies and approximately 190 weeklies. Total circulation of newspapers in Kansas is 1,086,380 compared to 161,108,977 for the entire United States.

The Wichita Eagle is the largest newspaper in Kansas with a daily circulation of over 40,000 as of March 2017. Founded on April 12, 1872, by Marshall M. Murdock, it became a daily paper in May 1884. Owned by The McClatchy Company, the Eagle is known for investigative reporting and provides extensive coverage of local and state news, business, sports, and entertainment. The newspaper serves Wichita, the largest city in Kansas, and the surrounding area, and operates the Kansas.com website.

Major regional dailies include The Wichita Eagle (Wichita, 40,000+ circulation), The Kansas City Star (Kansas City metro, 8 Pulitzer Prizes), The Topeka Capital-Journal (state capital, oldest in Northeast Kansas), Lawrence Journal-World (founded 1858, Pulitzer Prize winner), Salina Journal (founded 1871, 20,364 circulation), Manhattan Mercury (award-winning), The Hutchinson News (award-winning), Emporia Gazette, Hays Daily News, Garden City Telegram (~8,000 circulation), Great Bend Tribune, Dodge City Daily Globe, and Leavenworth Times (founded 1856, oldest in Leavenworth).

The University Daily Kansan is an editorially independent student newspaper serving the University of Kansas since September 17, 1904. It became tri-weekly in 1908 and daily in 1912. The paper won six Newspaper Pacemaker Awards from Associated Collegiate Press (1993, 1994, 1995, 2000, 2004, 2005) and received Best Breaking News Reporting recognition from the Society of Professional Journalists (2018). Originally distributed in print with 12,000 circulation across campus and Lawrence apartments, it stopped regular print editions in 2020 due to COVID-19. Now publishes weekly print edition and daily online at kansan.com with social media presence. Alumni work for The New York Times, Washington Post, Associated Press, and Wall Street Journal.

The Kansas State Historical Society manages the Kansas Digital Newspapers program with over 3 million newspaper pages freely available online. NewsBank provides full-text access to 55 Kansas newspapers including Wichita Eagle (1984-present), Kansas City Star (1991-present), Lawrence Journal-World (1990-present), Manhattan Mercury (1997-present), Topeka Capital-Journal (2002-present), and Emporia Gazette (2002-present). The Kansas City Star archives contain 4.1+ million searchable pages from 1880-2024. The Topeka Capital-Journal offers full digital images starting in 1948. The Salina Public Library maintains digital Salina Journal copies from October 2020-December 2023 (in-library access only). The Library of Congress houses University Daily Kansan archives (1912-Current) and Salina Daily Journal archives (1887-1888).

The Kansas Press Association, organized in 1863 as the Kansas Editors' and Publishers' Association, celebrates over 160 years of serving Kansas newspapers. KPA represents more than 200 member newspapers statewide (10 dailies and approximately 190 weeklies). The organization provides marketing and educational services, legal and technology hotlines, legislative representation, and hosts conventions, conferences, and seminars. KPA maintains an online searchable directory at kspress.com and serves as a central source of industry information. Contact Executive Director Emily Bradbury at 4021 SW 10th St, #351, Topeka, KS 66604, (785) 271-5304. On December 13, 1875, a KPA committee formed the Kansas Historical Society specifically to collect newspapers.

The McClatchy Company owns The Wichita Eagle (Kansas's largest newspaper). Ogden Newspapers of Wheeling, West Virginia owns the Lawrence Journal-World (acquired 2016 after 125 years of Simons family ownership). Harris Enterprises owns the Salina Journal (purchased 1949 from Hutchinson, Kansas base). The Kansas City Star operates independently. Many smaller community newspapers remain locally owned or part of regional newspaper groups. The Kansas Press Association represents over 200 member newspapers regardless of ownership, maintaining the network of independent, chain, and family-owned publications across Kansas.

The Leavenworth Times, founded in 1856, is the oldest daily newspaper published in Leavenworth, Kansas. Other historic Kansas newspapers include the Lawrence Journal-World (tracing roots to 1858, though the current title emerged in 1911 when founded by William Allen White), the Salina Journal (founded 1871), and The Wichita Eagle (founded April 12, 1872, became daily May 1884). The Kansas City Star was founded September 18, 1880, by William Rockhill Nelson and Samuel E. Morss as The Kansas City Evening Star. The University Daily Kansan first appeared on University of Kansas campus September 17, 1904.

Kansas Reflector is a nonprofit news operation committed to delivering in-depth reporting and a spectrum of opinions with keen focus on state government and politics. The Lawrence Times provides digital news coverage for Lawrence, Kansas. Salina Post offers local Salina news, sports, obituaries, opinion, and announcements. Salina311 provides Salina stories, data, events, commerce, and rewards while serving as the Official Newspaper of Record in Saline County. KSAL serves as Salina's number one source for local news, weather, sports, and auctions. Traditional newspapers also maintain robust digital presences including Kansas.com (Wichita Eagle), ljworld.com (Lawrence Journal-World), kansan.com (University Daily Kansan), and hutchnews.com (Hutchinson News).

The Kansas Newspaper Foundation was established in 1982 as the 501(c)(3) charitable arm of the Kansas Press Association. The foundation receives charitable contributions to advance educational and benevolent activities of the association and other programs identified by donors. As of March 31, 2025, the total value of all KNF funds, including the checking account, was $1,054,608. Ken Knepper, former publisher of the Newton Kansan, serves as current president of the KNF Board of Trustees. Board members are appointed to two-year terms, most often selected from the ranks of past Kansas Press Association presidents, ensuring continuity of journalism advocacy and support for Kansas newspapers.

Last updated on November 27, 2025