After closing the physical Pine Journal office in Cloquet by the Duluth News Tribune, several former staffers began researching how to start their own newspaper. They reopened the closed newspaper office at 122 Avenue C. The Pine Knot News (PKN) is a locally owned and operated small-town community newspaper, an independent hyperlocal weekly newspaper covering northern Carlton County. PKN strives to bring communities closer together by keeping them informed and engaged through coverage of local news, sports, neighbors, and happenings.
The first issue of the PKN launched October 26, 2018. They unveiled their commitment to quality local information by blanketing Carlton County with two free issues to introduce themselves, a detailed election guide and a subsequent weekly newspaper. After opening during a time of newspaper closures, and then the onset of the pandemic, PKN has grown to cover local happenings, sports, arts, and events and today has 1,800 subscribers and continues growing.
“We are a good source of vetted journalistic information. We must fact check everything we publish including letters to the editor. In our office we have many balls in the air, we do it all, we write, take photos, and do all administrative duties.” Jana Peterson, PKN Editor.
“Our goal at the PKN is to educate people on issues that live here, work here, go to school here, have their families here, and want to be part of this community. Our goal is to make it a bigger, better place, that celebrates our neighbors. We are locals supporting local stories.” Pete Radosevich, Publisher.
PKN staff is incredibly involved in the community and its events assisting in planning the Fourth of July events and hosting this year’s September Celebration in the West End. Since opening, PKN has also become one of the most highly awarded newspapers in the state with over 33 awards. Editor Jana Peterson has won the Better Newspaper Contest and First Place for Investigative Reporting in the 2018 Page One Awards from the Society of Professional Journalists, in addition to numerous other awards over her 20-plus years as a journalist. In the first year the Pine Knot News was eligible to participate in the Minnesota Newspaper Association's Better Newspaper Contest, for stories written between October 2018-August 2019, the PKN won 15 awards, including first place in General Reporting, Sports Reporting, Social Issues story (on vaping), Columnist Pete Radosevich and overall General Excellence.
Pine Knot News (218) 878-9332
122 Avenue C news@pineknotnews.com Cloquet, MN 55720