Beginning with its Sept. 17, 2020 edition, the Catholic Standard newspaper of the Archdiocese of Washington will be adopting a monthly printing schedule. The El Pregonero Spanish-language newspaper of the archdiocese will also have a monthly schedule beginning in September. The change in frequency from biweekly to monthly publications is part of a series of cost-cutting measures adopted by the archdiocese in the wake of the coronavirus economic downturn that has also impacted individual Catholics and families and Catholic parishes, schools and agencies.
Here is the printing schedule for the Catholic Standard and subjects planned for those editions for the next year:
- September 17, 2020 – Back to School section
- October 15, 2020 – Vocations stories and All Souls Day stories
- November 12, 2020 – Black Catholic History Month special features
- December 10, 2020 – Christmas edition, Christmas card contest, Year in review
- January 21, 2021 – Catholic Schools Week edition, March for Life preview
- February 18, 2021 – Lent begins
- March 18, 2021 – Profiles of people becoming Catholic
- April 15, 2021 – Coverage of Easter and Holy Week
- May 27, 2021 – Graduation section
- June 24, 2021 – Profiles of new priests, coverage of ordinations
- July 15, 2021 – Keeping the faith in the summer
- August 19, 2021 – Preparing for the new school year
- Sept. 16, 2021 – Back to School section
In addition to its monthly newspaper, the Catholic Standard’s website at cathstan.org will be updated throughout the week with new content. The Catholic Standard will continue its coverage of Catholic parishes and schools, the outreach of Catholic agencies and archdiocesan ministries and stories about the faith of local Catholics, along with its coverage of the Catholic Church across the United States and around the world. A special priority for the newspaper and website will be its continuing coverage of the impact of the coronavirus. Another priority will be covering the issue of racial justice, including a series on Black Catholic voices and coverage of the archdiocese’s upcoming initiative to oppose racism. Columns by Archbishop Wilton Gregory and by Msgr. John Enzler, the president and CEO of Catholic Charities, will continue to be featured in the Catholic Standard newspaper and on its website.
Mark Zimmermann, the Catholic Standard’s editor, noted, “Through its website, social media and newspaper, the Catholic Standard will continue its mission of telling the story of how Jesus’s love, hope and truth is unfolding today in our Catholic family of faith in the Archdiocese of Washington, just as it has since the Catholic Standard began in 1951. I believe the work of our Catholic media is more important now than ever during this challenging time, and we are blessed as Catholic journalists to share this story with our readers and do our best to reach them where they are, through our traditional and digital media.”
The Catholic Standard newspaper and website received 17 awards in the 2020 Catholic Media Contest, including first place for best newspaper in its division. The awards from the Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada were announced July 2.
For story ideas for the Catholic Standard or questions, Zimmermann can be reached via email at mark@cathstan.org.
Irieska Caetano, the Catholic Standard’s business manager and advertising sales director, can be reached at irieska@elpreg.org.
For information about subscribing to the Catholic Standard, contact Sylvia Bedon at sylvia@cathstan.org.
