Sunday, September 27, 2009, 2:45 PM
Sunday Paper News, Stop the Presses
By Kevin Moreau

Five years young

The very first edition of The Sunday Paper—“Atlanta’s new free weekly”—hit the streets on Sept. 26, 2004, five years almost to the day from the issue currently on the stands (Sept. 27, 2009).  In a way, some things about the paper remain the same as they were way back then: Our first cover story was a piece by Stephanie Ramage about a controversial political figure (Bill Campbell).

But a lot of things about The Sunday Paper have changed. The look of the paper has evolved—for the better, I think. Employees, columnists and freelance contributors have come and gone. Most significantly, we’ve grown alongside the city we cover, and become a part of it. Over the last five years, we’ve striven to address the issues that matter to all of us, and to reflect the voices and opinions of everyday Atlantans.

As we’ve continued to grow, we’ve moved on from the syndicated content we used to help fill space in our early days—opinion columns by Ann Coulter, Arianna Huffington, Jesse Jackson, Oliver North and Bill O’Reilly; syndicated health content from the Mayo Clinic; recipes from Wolfgang Puck—in favor of quality homegrown content: voices, personalities and perspectives unique to our city and our paper.

On any given Sunday, you’ll find investigative journalism and political commentary from Stephanie Ramage; inside dish on our restaurant scene from Kirsten Ott Palladino; alternately whimsical and insightful musings on sports and society from Hunt Archbold; spot-on relationship advice from Blane Bachelor; James Burns’ “Grumbles”; recipes from local chefs; Bert Osborne’s opinionated take on local theater—and, for what it’s worth, a few hastily assembled ruminations from yours truly.

You’ll also find stories from a stable of writers I’m proud to work with, including Mark Woolsey, Charles Stanley, Diane Loupe, Steve Warren, Hal Horowitz, H.M. Cauley, Hope Philbrick, Alison Abbey and Colleen Oakley; fine photography from Spark St. Jude; a fun look at the events of the previous week in our Quick section—and the list is growing all the time.

A lot of people have invested a lot of time, energy, blood, sweat and tears to help The Sunday Paper become what it is today, and no discussion of our history would be complete without acknowledging their efforts.

First and foremost among those is my predecessor, Conal Byrne, whose guidance created a solid foundation it’s been my privilege to build on. I also have to thank former editors Elisabeth Bergman, Julie Douglas and Rachael Mason; former Sports Editor Jason Chatraw; copy editors Alison Cooper and Carly Felton; and editorial interns Nora Fleming, Larissa Greer, Colby Dunn, Gray Chapman, Nani Mathews, Bob Kamm, Calvin Son, Patrick Bray, Anne Lee Dabney and Carrie Gann, among others.


In no particular order, I’d also be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge the contributions of writers and columnists Robert Zaslavsky, Mark Douglas, Josh Clark, Eric Von Haessler, Walter Inge, Laurence Station, Rob O’Connor, Jay Moye, Adam Krohn, Caren West, Lisa Baron, Rebecca Friedlander, Suzanne Wright, Shannon Alderman, Phineas Mollod, Jason Tesauro, Chris Renaldo, Michael Mahan, Scott Sergent, Earle McDonald and Stu Klitenic.

Likewise, the following people also left their mark: photographers Nathan Lenz and Kevin Daniel; designers Allan Nava, Jose Navarro, Jeremy Dickens, Therese Mushock, Wendy Mitchell, Justin Hanna and Jackie Wasserman; and behind-the-scenes powerhouses Helena Clay, Heidi Chandonia and Rich Piombino. 

Lastly, a grateful nod to founding co-partners Howard Landsman, Danny Apple and Jeff Kremer; sales gurus David Lubell and Emily Dorroh Holden, among countless others far too numerous to name; Rich Aviles, Kristina Ackerman, Jason Mallory and Erin Armstrong, the best production/design/web team I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with; the tireless Spark St. Jude; Hunt Archbold; and my partners in crime, Stephanie Ramage and Kirsten Ott Palladino. Special thanks to Brian Conley, Tara Duncan and John Wright, and to the man without whom none of this would have been possible: SP’s publisher, visionary and guiding force, the indefatigable J. Patrick Best.

Everyone here at SP is proud of what we’ve accomplished so far, especially in the last year, as the recession has brought mighty newspapers low. But we’re not looking back. We’re focused firmly on the future—and on the readers who make it all possible. Our fifth-anniversary edition, like every issue, is dedicated to you. We put this paper out for you, and we couldn’t do it without you. We hope you enjoy it.