Wendy McCaw

{{Infobox person |name=Wendy P. McCaw |birth_name=Wendy Petrak |birth_date= |birth_place=Palo Alto, California, United States |occupation=Newspaper publisher |spouse={{marriage|Craig McCaw|1974|1997|end=divorced}} }} '''Wendy McCaw''' (née '''Petrak''') is a businesswoman and former owner of the ''Santa Barbara News-Press,'' a newspaper that [https://www.independent.com/2023/07/23/santa-barbara-news-press-files-for-bankruptcy/ filed for bankruptcy] on July 21, 2023.

== Early life and career == She was born Wendy Petrak in Palo Alto, California, in 1951. She attended Stanford University, where she majored in history and met Craig McCaw during their sophomore year. They married in 1974, a year after graduation. During their marriage, they grew McCaw Communications into McCaw Cellular, eventually selling to AT&T in 1994.

== ''Santa Barbara News-Press'' == {{further|Santa Barbara News-Press controversy|Labor relations at the Santa Barbara News-Press}} In 2000, McCaw purchased the ''Santa Barbara News-Press'', one of California's oldest newspapers, from ''The New York Times'' for $100 million.<ref name=Politico201610/>

In 2006, McCaw was accused of interfering with the newsroom editorial judgment at the ''News-Press''.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Paterno|first=Susan|date=2006-12-01|title=Santa Barbara Smackdown: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Turmoil That Engulfed the Santa Barbara News-Press after Owner Wendy McCaw and Her Top Lieutenants Flattened the Wall Separating the Executive Suite from the Newsroom|url=https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-156483654.html|journal=American Journalism Review}}{{dead link|date=February 2019|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Five editors and a columnist resigned over the controversy.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Burns |first1=Melinda|last2=Hobbs|first2=Dawn|url=https://www.independent.com/2016/07/06/news-press-mess-10th-anniversary/|title=News-Press Mess: The 10th Anniversary. A Black Day for Santa Barbara|work=Santa Barbara Independent|date=July 6, 2016|access-date=December 16, 2020}}</ref> A number of other publishers and editors have resigned since she purchased the paper in 2000 over differences with McCaw.<ref name=Politico201610/>

In December 2006, McCaw sued Chapman University professor Susan Paterno over her article in the American Journalism Review that had criticized her management of the paper.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-dec-19-me-mccaw19-story.html|title=Santa Barbara newspaper owner sues over critical article|last=Mehta|first=Seema|date=2006-12-19|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US|issn=0458-3035|access-date=2016-11-02}}</ref>

By 2016, staff at the newspaper had dropped from 200, from when she purchased the newspaper, to 20.<ref name=Politico201610/>

On October 7, 2016, the ''Santa Barbara News-Press'' was the first newspaper in the United States to endorse Donald Trump for president during the 2016 elections.<ref name=Politico201610/> It was one of only six newspapers in the country to do so, and alienated much of the left-leaning area.<ref name=Politico201610>{{Cite news|url=https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/10/donald-trump-newspaper-endorsements-214390/|title=These Are the Only 6 Newspapers in the Country to Endorse Donald Trump|newspaper=Politico Magazine|access-date=2016-11-02}}</ref>{{efn|Only four newspapers endorsed Donald Trump during the 2016 Republican primary for President of the United States: ''Santa Barbara News-Press'', the Jared Kushner-owned ''New York Observer'', the ''New York Post'', and the longtime supporter of Donald Trump the ''National Enquirer''.<ref name=Politico201610/> The six newspapers in the United States that endorsed Donald Trump during the 2016 United States elections for President are the ''Santa Barbara News-Press'' on October 7, 2016, ''St. Joseph News-Press'' of St. Joseph, Missouri, on October 20, 2016, ''Waxahachie Daily Light'' from a Dallas suburb, the ''Times-Gazette'' of Hillsboro, Ohio, Sheldon Adelson's ''Las Vegas Review-Journal'', and the ''Antelope Valley Press'' from Palmdale, California, on October 23, 2016.<ref name=Politico201610/>}} According to biographer Sam Tyler, there was no question McCaw was "behind the endorsement.<ref name=Politico201610/>

In April 2017, a federal judge ordered McCaw to offer reinstatement and around $2 million in back pay to former columnist Richard Mineards.<ref>{{cite news|last=Brantingham|first=Barney|url=https://www.independent.com/2017/04/26/wendy-wont-appeal/|title=Wendy Won’t Appeal|work=Santa Barbara Independent|date=April 26, 2017|access-date=December 16, 2020}}</ref>

In July 2018, after several administrative and court decisions against McCaw and the News-Press, the National Labor Relations Board announced it would seek $2.2 million on behalf of dozens of newsroom employees who were mistreated by McCaw. McCaw would be ordered to pay $936,000 to “make employees whole” for illegally hiring nonunion temporary workers, $705,000 in back pay for two employees whom she illegally laid off or fired, and $222,000 for employees whose merit pay she illegally suspended.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Burns|first1=Melinda|last2=Hobbs|first2=Dawn|url=https://www.independent.com/2018/07/24/its-about-time/|title=It’s About Time: National Labor Board Wants Wendy McCaw to Pay $2.2 Million|work=Santa Barbara Independent|date=July 24, 2018|access-date=December 16, 2020}}</ref>

On Friday, July 21, 2023, the ''News-Press'' filed for bankruptcy. An email was sent by managing editor Dave Mason telling the staff: “I have some bad news. Wendy filed for bankruptcy on Friday. All of our jobs are eliminated, and the News-Press has stopped publishing. They ran out of money to pay us. They will issue final paychecks to us when the bankruptcy is approved in court."

== Personal == McCaw has called herself a defender of animal rights.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://wendy-mccaw.com/biography.html|title=Wendy McCaw Official Site|website=wendy-mccaw.com|access-date=2016-11-02}}</ref> McCaw and her ex-husband Craig McCaw said they gave $3.1 million in donations in the 1990s to help return Keiko, the orca star of "Free Willy," to the wild. Keiko died shortly after.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/whales/interviews/mccaw1.html|title=Interviews - Craig McCaw {{!}} A Whale Of A Business|website=PBS|access-date=2016-11-02}}</ref>

==Film== ''Citizen McCaw'' is a 2008 documentary by Sam Tyler that presents both the relationships with McCaw and her former editor, Jerry Roberts, and five other employees since July 2006 when they quit her staff at ''Santa Barbara News-Press'' and the direction the newspaper and her ethics has taken the newspaper since her ownership began.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1398971/|title=Citizen McCaw|work=IMDb|date=|access-date=December 16, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Citizen-McCaw-None/dp/B003GDO3SS/|title=Citizen McCaw|work=Amazon|date=March 7, 2008|access-date=December 16, 2020}}</ref><ref name=CitizenMcCaw>{{cite news|last=Palladino|first=D.J.|url=https://www.independent.com/2008/02/28/wendy-chronicles/|title=The Wendy Chronicles: Documentary Citizen McCaw Reports on the Trials and Tribulations of the News-Press|work=Santa Barbara Independent|date=February 28, 2008|access-date=December 16, 2020}}</ref><ref name=Diaz>{{cite news|last=Diaz|first=John|url=https://www.sfgate.com/opinion/article/A-fight-for-journalism-values-in-Santa-Barbara-3286629.php|title=A Fight for Journalism Values in Santa Barbara|work=San Francisco Chronicle|date=April 20, 2008|access-date=December 16, 2020|archive-date=April 22, 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080422201833/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/19/IN25105TDK.DTL}}</ref><ref name=filmmakers>{{cite web|url=http://citizenmccaw.com/filmmakers.html|title=Citizen McCaw: About the Filmmakers|work=Citizen McCaw website|date=|access-date=December 16, 2020|archive-date=August 28, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080828155716/http://citizenmccaw.com/filmmakers.html}}</ref> On March 7, 2008, it premiered in Santa Barbara's Arlington Theatre, was released on DVD, and has been shown at UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism and other journalism schools as well.<ref name=CitizenMcCaw/><ref name=Diaz/><ref name=filmpremiere>{{cite web|url=http://www.citizenmccaw.com|title=Citizen McCaw|work=Citizen McCaw website|date=|access-date=December 16, 2020|archive-date=March 1, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080301151315/http://www.citizenmccaw.com/}}</ref><ref name=filmNov>{{cite web|url=http://www.citizenmccaw.com/|title=Citizen McCaw|work=Citizen McCaw website|date=|access-date=December 16, 2020|archive-date=November 2, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081102200744/http://www.citizenmccaw.com/}}</ref>

==Notes== {{notelist}}

==References== {{reflist}} {{refbegin}} *{{cite AV media |people=Sam Tyler |date=March 7, 2008 |title=Citizen McCaw |medium=Motion Picture (DVD) 78 minutes |language=English |url=http://www.citizenmccaw.com |access-date=December 16, 2020 |format=NTSC |time= |location=Santa Barbara, California |publisher=SB Docs |id= |asin=B003GDO3SS |oclc= |quote= |ref=}} {{refend}}

==External links== * [http://wendy-mccaw.com/ Wendy McCaw Official Site] * [http://www.citizenmccaw.com ''Citizen McCaw''] website * [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1398971/ ''Citizen McCaw''] on IMDb * [https://www.amazon.com/Citizen-McCaw-None/dp/B003GDO3SS/ ''Citizen McCaw''] on Amazon

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCaw, Wendy P.}} Category:1952 births Category:Living people Category:21st-century American newspaper publishers (people) Category:Journalists from California Category:Stanford University alumni Category:Businesspeople from Palo Alto, California Category:Businesspeople from Santa Barbara, California Category:Mass media people from Santa Barbara, California