Small Missouri Town Gets A New Newspaper Called ‘The Uranus Examiner’

The tourist attraction of Uranus, Missouri — located in the rural area of Pulaski County — has a new newspaper with a name that every 12-year-old boy in the nation would appreciate — the Uranus Examiner.

The independent newspaper was launched this week after media conglomerate GateHouse Media purchased the local newspaper, the Daily Guide, and announced it was closing it down. As the Associated Press reported, an employee for the soon-to-be-shuttered newspaper said she wanted to start a “fun” alternative that would promote the small town packed with tourist attractions for travelers along Route 66.

The end result was the Uranus Examiner, which the Associated Press pointed out is pronounced just as any schoolboy would expect.

The alternative comes as GateHouse Media has been closing papers across Missouri, the Associated Press reported. Just two weeks before announcing that the Daily Guide was shutting down, the company also closed the Carthage Press, with a nearby paper picking up its coverage area.

GateHouse Media had the same plans for the Daily Guide, the report noted.

“GateHouse Media says the final edition of the Daily Guide was Friday. GateHouse says the Rolla Daily News will cover Waynesville news. Subscribers to the Daily Guide will receive refunds within 30 days for the balance of their subscriptions.”

But Natalie Sanders had another idea. The new managing editor of the Uranus Examiner said she wanted to keep a newspaper that would give local coverage.

The name of the paper took a little more work. Sanders told KY3 that the staff thought about other alternatives, but kept coming back to Examiner, even with its chuckle-inducing connotation.

“We had thought about Constitution, but most of our, the people who love us, and who were part of coming up with the name, liked the ‘examiner’ better,” Sanders said.

The Uranus Examiner is coming to this Missouri town. Yes, really. https://t.co/RKy7kDcCFT

— The Kansas City Star (@KCStar) September 13, 2018

Not everyone is on board with calling the new paper the Uranus Examiner. Luge Hardman, mayor of nearby Waynesville where the Daily Guide had been based, believes it will only cause people to make fun of the small town.

“No. I’m sorry. But, the innuendo of that title puts my city up for public ridicule, and I will not be a part of it,” Hardman told KY3.

Hardman says she is behind Sanders, who was actually her former student, but will not be recognizing the paper and will not publish the town’s legal notices in the paper, KY3 reported.

But given the national attention that the launch of the Uranus Examiner has brought to the area, Sanders’ objective may have worked.