Two stars align: Yukon Star launches as Whitehorse Star closes its doors

As the Whitehorse Star newspaper prepares to close its doors this week, a new publication is already gearing up to take its place.

A new paper, called the Yukon Star, will begin operations next week.

It will be primarily online, but there will be a weekly print version.

Max Fraser is leading the new publication as publisher.

"We need more journalism, not less," said Fraser. "My main concern was the state of journalism in the Yukon."

Fraser initially tried to buy the Whitehorse Star and launched a fundraising effort called Save the Star.

The Yukon Star is a new publication that will begin publishing May 31st. It is relying on subscriptions, advertising sales and fundraisers to be sustainable. (Max Fraser)

It stalled after the owners said they didn't need saving and didn't want to sell.

"I wish it had been otherwise but people made certain decisions and that's the way it is," said Fraser. "I'm just dealing with the situation."

Last month Michelle Pierce, the current owner of Whitehorse Star, expressed frustration at Fraser for what she called a lack of communication.

"We felt there was a lot of confusion in the community, people asking what's going on thinking we were behind it or supporting it, which we're not," said Pierce. "We didn't have faith in their model to be successful."

Michelle (left) and Melanie Pearce are the owners of the Whitehorse Star. They say they didn't have faith in Fraser's model for the newspaper and instead decided to sell. (George Maratos/CBC )

Forced to pivot, Fraser calls this his backup plan.

"At the outset of the fundraising campaign I said there was a plan A and a plan B," said Fraser.. "Plan A was to purchase the Star if the owners were willing, so now we're looking at plan B."

Fraser had been working with three others to try and purchase the Whitehorse Star.

That group is made up of a retired journalist, a business operator and a dentist.

They are now supporting Fraser's "plan B"

Nancy Campbell is one of them.

A former journalist, she worked at the Whitehorse Star in the 1980s and spent time working at the Yukon News and CBC.

"It's kind of exciting," said Campbell. "This is the first new outlet we've had for news in sometime."

For Fraser, a former editor at the Whitehorse Star, he recognizes the challenge he faces in trying to start a new publication at the same time a paper with a 124-year-long history is shutting down.

He says they'll rely on revenues from online subscriptions, advertising and sales of the weekly print editions.

Other fundraisers will also be held.

Jim Butler is the longtime editor of the Whitehorse Daily Star newspaper. He's been hired as the editor of the new publication Yukon Star, along with four other Whitehorse Star employees. (Vince Fedoroff/Whitehorse Daily Star)

"Everything is on the fly," said Fraser. "We have a grand vision of making sure that everybody who lives here sees themselves and their community in the pages of the paper."

The Star name isn't the only aspect of the publication that will be familiar to readers.

Five former staff of the Whitehorse Star have been hired including its longtime editor Jim Butler and photographer Vince Federoff, who started with the paper in 1973.

"We've got sort of the heart and soul of the Star going forward with the Yukon Star," said Campbell. "There will be new voices because of the different approach to how we're getting our message out."

"I wanted to stay in journalism and keep busy before I retired," said Butler. "The stars have aligned and I'm going to the Yukon Star."

The Yukon Star will print once a week out of Coquitlam, BC with the first issue scheduled for May 31.