Kilgore News Herald
Kilgore News Herald is an American daily newspaper serving Kilgore and the wider East Texas community.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Kilgore News Herald is an American daily newspaper associated with Kilgore, Texas, and the surrounding East Texas region. Its editorial coverage spans local affairs, government, community events, business, sports, and broader domestic, national, and international news. The paper developed in the context of the East Texas oil boom, a period that rapidly transformed Kilgore from a small town into a major oil-field community and created strong demand for timely reporting on energy, commerce, public institutions, and local life. The newspaper's history is linked to two earlier Kilgore publications. The Kilgore Daily News was established during the oil-boom era, with one account dating its origin to 1930 and other historical descriptions identifying the daily as established in 1931. The Kilgore Herald followed in 1935. These publications were consolidated to form the Kilgore News Herald, generally dated to 1940. During the Devall family's ownership, which lasted from 1940 through 1979, the newspaper operated as a daily broadsheet and reportedly reached peak circulation of more than 5,000 copies. Lyde Williford Devall and Charles K. Devall are identified with the paper's ownership and publishing during this period. Early coverage emphasized the oil industry and the rapid social and economic changes affecting Kilgore. The newspaper used civic and promotional language reflecting the area's self-image as the center of a major oil field, while also developing the general-news functions expected of a local daily. Its historical archive includes coverage of regional crime and public affairs, including reporting on Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker's movements in East Texas before their deaths. Such material illustrates the paper's role as a contemporary record of events that attracted attention beyond the immediate community. In 2018, Bluebonnet Publishing sold the newspaper to M. Roberts Media. The transaction was presented as a way to strengthen local journalism and support the publication's transition toward digitally integrated operations while preserving its long local history. In 2024, the newspaper was acquired by Carpenter Media Group, a newspaper ownership group with a portfolio of local and regional publications. The acquisition placed the Kilgore News Herald within a larger community-newspaper network while retaining its local identity. The newspaper has received recognition in Texas press competitions. Its reported honors include awards in advertising, headline writing, sports coverage, page design, general excellence, sports photography, news writing, and feature writing in Texas Press Association contests during the 2018–19 and 2019–20 competition periods. It also received recognition from the North and East Texas Press Association in 2023. The Kilgore News Herald therefore combines a traditional local-print role with digital distribution and remains focused on community reporting for Kilgore and East Texas.
History
Kilgore News Herald emerged from the newspaper culture created by the East Texas oil boom. Kilgore grew exceptionally quickly as oil production transformed the local economy and attracted workers, businesses, public officials, and investors. The resulting community needed a regular source of information about oil operations, civic administration, commerce, crime, social events, and the rapid changes taking place across the region. The paper's predecessor history is described with slightly different dates in available accounts. The Kilgore Daily News is variously identified as having been established in 1930 or 1931, while the Kilgore Herald was founded in 1935. The two publications were consolidated into the Kilgore News Herald, generally dated to 1940. Early editions of the predecessor daily were strongly connected to the oil economy and used language presenting Kilgore as the center of a major oil field. This orientation reflected both the newspaper's audience and the central role that petroleum played in the town's development. From 1940 to 1979, the Devall family controlled and published the newspaper. Lyde Williford Devall and Charles K. Devall are associated with this period of ownership. Under the Devalls, the publication operated as a daily broadsheet and reportedly achieved circulation above 5,000 copies at its peak. Its remit expanded beyond oil reporting to include local government, community institutions, regional business, sports, public safety, and general news. The paper also documented events with wider public interest, including reporting on Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker's movements in East Texas in the years before their deaths. The newspaper later became part of Bluebonnet Publishing. In 2018, Bluebonnet sold the Kilgore News Herald to M. Roberts Media. The announced rationale emphasized maintaining and improving local journalism while adapting the publication to a digitally integrated media environment. This change reflected a broader transition among community newspapers from a primarily print-based business to a model combining print editions, websites, digital content, advertising, and archival access. In 2024, Carpenter Media Group acquired the newspaper. The change in ownership connected the Kilgore News Herald with a larger group focused on local and regional newspapers. Despite ownership changes, the publication has retained its community identity and its emphasis on Kilgore and East Texas reporting. The newspaper's professional recognition includes awards from the Texas Press Association. In the 2018–19 Better Newspaper Contest, it received first-place honors in advertising and headline writing, second-place awards for sports coverage, page design, and general excellence, third-place awards for sports photography and news writing, and a fourth-place award for feature writing. It also received two awards in the 2019–20 Texas Press Association contest and recognition from the North and East Texas Press Association in 2023. These honors cover both editorial and commercial newspaper functions and indicate the publication's continued participation in the Texas community-press network.
- 2024
Acquired by Carpenter Media Group
[1]Carpenter Media Group acquired the Kilgore News Herald.
- 2018
Acquired by M. Roberts Media
[1]Bluebonnet Publishing sold the newspaper to M. Roberts Media.
- 1979
End of Devall family ownership period
[1]The Devall family's reported ownership and publishing period ended after nearly four decades.
- 1940
Kilgore News Herald formed
[1]The Kilgore Daily News and Kilgore Herald were consolidated to create the Kilgore News Herald.
- 1935
Kilgore Herald founded
[1]The Kilgore Herald was established as the second major predecessor publication.
- 1931
Alternative founding date for Kilgore Daily News
[1]Another historical description dates the Kilgore Daily News to 1931, creating a source discrepancy about the predecessor's exact founding year.
- 1930
Kilgore Daily News established
[1]One historical account dates the predecessor Kilgore Daily News to 1930, during the East Texas oil boom.
Products and positioning
A community-focused East Texas daily newspaper combining local reporting, public-affairs journalism, sports, business coverage, advertising, and digital news distribution.
Daily newspaper · 1940
Kilgore News Herald daily edition
The core publication is a daily newspaper serving Kilgore and the wider East Texas area. It combines local reporting with coverage of government, business, sports, community events, and selected national and international subjects.
Online journalism
Digital news coverage
The newspaper maintains a digital publishing presence designed to extend local reporting beyond the print edition. Digital coverage supports timely distribution of news and reflects the publication's post-2018 move toward digitally integrated operations.
Digital archive
Historical newspaper archive
Digitized archival material preserves historical issues and reporting connected with Kilgore, the East Texas oil boom, regional crime, public affairs, and community life.
Brand decisions
2024
Acquisition by Carpenter Media GroupM&ABackground
The newspaper became part of a broader periodical-publishing group focused on local and regional media properties.
Action taken
Carpenter Media Group acquired the Kilgore News Herald.
Aftermath
Carpenter Media Group became the newspaper's parent ownership group; further operational effects are not specified in the available material.
2018
Sale to M. Roberts MediaM&ABackground
Bluebonnet Publishing transferred ownership of the newspaper amid the continuing shift in local publishing toward stronger digital distribution and sustainable community-news operations.
Action taken
M. Roberts Media acquired the Kilgore News Herald and assumed responsibility for its operation.
Aftermath
The transaction was associated with efforts to enhance local coverage and develop a more digitally integrated publishing model.
Sources2 sources
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