St. Petersburg Times VS. Tampa Tribune: West Pasco County, Florida Newspapers Compared

When I first moved to Florida, it was to Tampa Bay. So what newspaper did I purchase? Of course it was the Tampa Tribune. This was just fine, and covered all the local news, as well as national, and a little International news.

After about six months we moved north to the next county, Pasco County. We continued with the Tampa Tribune, for a couple of years. At this point I was unhappy with this newspaper, due to the fact, that they mainly covered East Pasco news and we live in West Pasco.

After a telephone call from the St. Pete’s Times, as it is called locally, with a special offer. 13 weeks of home delivery, 7 days a week for just $13. Now I am talking about 16 years ago, I jumped at it.

Both these papers are very similar in content. They really go hand in hand, with the individual papers, making up the whole paper.

The St. Pete’s Times has several papers in one:
The Pasco Times.
St. Pete’s Times.

Local & State.

Floridian.
Money.
Sports
Classified.

Latitudes.

On other days homes, real estate, travel, perspective, weekend, jobs, classified, and the television guide, on a Sunday.

The sports and the T.V. guide are the only parts of this newspaper my husband Len reads.

For about 10 years I had the St. Pete’s Times delivered daily, and paid on a yearly basis. This ran on promotion around $109. The newsstand price is 35 cents for weekdays, and $1.50 for the huge Sunday paper, with all the pull-outs and coupons.

When I moved house, a few years ago, I decided to go to just Sundays. I was finding that, the whole week’s newspapers would be sitting by my chair, when Sunday rolled along again. Within a month, I had a telephone call from them asking to take up the yearly subscription again. I told them that I was not reading it on a daily basis. What did they do, because I had been with them so long? They have been sending me the Saturday, Sunday, and Monday papers for the price of just the Sunday paper. It actual fact this year I have just renewed for the year for around $31 and that includes delivery.

This paper is nothing like the newspapers I was used to in England, all the daily newspapers cover World news, British news, with far less advertisements. Local papers are normally weekly. Some you pay for and others are free.

What I like

The Pasco Times section have some great writers and columns. They also have:

Living in retiree country we get the list of ‘meals on wheels’.

With the drought, the days we are allowed to water outside. Huge fines if we ignore them.

Local golf courses.

Churches and service times.

School menus to help “Mom”.

Crime report. This comes from our police department and keeps everyone on their toes.

Obituaries, which seem to get longer everyday. Even with people living into their 90’s.

St. Pete’s Times gives us the main news reports and stories. This is where I do find a limited amount of International news.

Florida Metro has the back page on weather, local, Florida, U.S.A. and World. Gives lots of details, and one of the pages I turn to first. Also gives the weeks outlook.

Local & State gives Movie times, your stars, and a crossword puzzle, plus lots more.

Sunday’s paper was loaded with pullouts from Walgreen, C.V.S, K-Mart, Sears, and so many more, also comics, and coupons galore.

They offer job opportunities too on their website. If you live in the area, they do have vacancies. Contact them at www.tampabay.com

If I didn’t live in this area I would not purchase this newspaper, not enough of what is going on in the World for me. When on vacation in Orlando, I have received complimentary U.S.A. today. I am not used to the format, but found the editorial’s to be very enlightening.

If you happen to be staying in ‘our neck of the woods’, I would recommend this newspaper to you. It is a must so that you know what is going on locally.