Today marks the last day of existence for the Rocky Mountain News. E.W. Scripps announced its closure yesterday. Though it was far from a surprise, it was still a shock — how could this paper disappear from Denver?

Honestly, the Rocky Mountain News was not necessarily my paper of choice in the Denver area. I wasn’t a huge fan. In my father’s opinion, it was too conservative. My favorite thing in the newspaper used to be the hockey coverage, and I didn’t like that in the RMN, either. We read this paper in a few classes in high school, and for some reason, I never really took a liking to it.

There was another newspaper I liked, and still do. The Denver Post, with which the RMN established a Joint Operating Agreement in 2001, was what we read in our household, and I continue to read it more regularly than the RMN. Now it is the sole paper in Denver.

Unfortunately, this is the way it will to have to be in Denver. Denver is just not big enough to carry two major newspapers. I’m sad about the Rocky, even though I didn’t agree with its editorials and I prefer the Post. It marks a huge loss in journalism, from a smaller job market for journalists to a larger dominance of a single editorial board, both of which are ultimately, if ever-so-slightly, detrimental to free speech and opinion. Furthermore, Colorado is considered one of the most flexible states in terms of journalistic rights; journalists in Colorado are more protected from libel than journalists in most other states. It’s a shame that the amazing freedom of the press in this state is witnessing the closure of one of its oldest and most storied institutions.

For that, for the other journalists in Denver, I am truly disappointed that the Rocky has seen its final day.

Rocky Mountain News Final Edition