| Argus Leader | |
| Type: | Daily newspaper |
| Format: | Broadsheet |
| Foundation: | 1881 (as the Sioux Falls Argus) |
| Owners: | Gannett |
| Headquarters: | 200 S. Minnesota Avenue Sioux Falls, South Dakota 57104 |
| Circulation: | 26,720 Daily 44,550 Sunday |
| Circulation Date: | 2015 |
| Circulation Ref: | [1] |
The Argus Leader is the daily newspaper of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. It is the largest newspaper by total circulation in South Dakota.[2] [3]
It is owned by Gannett and part of the USA Today Network.
The Argus Leader traces its history back to 1881 when the weekly Sioux Falls Argus began publication. The Argus-Leader (then hyphenated) was the result of the Sioux Falls Argus
The paper was aligned with the Democratic Party until the 1896 election when it switched to the Republican Party and was notably supportive of William McKinley.[5] (It is no longer aligned with any political party.)
Speidel newspapers bought the Argus Leader in 1963.
In 1977, Gannet purchased Speidel creating one of the largest holding companies of newspapers with 73 papers.[6] It was the second-largest newspaper purchase in U.S. history at the time.[7]
In 2021, the paper made the decision to shut down its print production plant in Sioux Falls and consolidate those operations with other Gannett-owned newspapers in Des Moines, Iowa.[8] This announcement led to speculation that the Argus Leader building itself may be for sale.[9] The following year, the Argus Leader building was sold.[10] At the time, the newspaper had an agreement which could be extended to continue occupying part of the building.
In November 2023, the newspaper announced it was moving its newsroom at 200 S. Minnesota Avenue in downtown Sioux Falls after nearly 70 years occupying the same space. The team of seven to 10 reporters will join the rest of its distribution team at 710 N. Western Avenue.[11]
The Argus Leader is South Dakota's largest newspaper in total circulation as of 2023. The weekday circulation for the newspaper was 23,721 as of October 2017.[12] The Sunday edition has a circulation of 32,981 as of October 2017.
Its website boasts the most traffic and unique visitors in its market, according to Comscore data.[13] The company claimed to have over 786,000 unique users visit the site every month in 2018.[14]
The newspaper publishes an economic weekly, the Sioux Falls Business Journal, as part of its Sunday publication.
The company estimates that it informs and engages 75% of adults in Sioux Falls MSA in a typical week and 84% over a month across its print and digital brands.[15]
In 2011, the newspaper sought information about the federal food stamps program through a Freedom of Information Act request.[16] The request was denied, and eight years later, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of the government by a 6–3 decision.[17]
The newspaper reported that the FBI had 'mined secrets about the past' of 1972 presidential candidate George McGovern in more than 1,400 files requested by a Freedom of Information Act.[18]