The Press Democrat
Brett Wilkison is an accomplished journalist with extensive experience in investigative and enterprise reporting. Currently serving as the Deputy Editor for Investigations and Enterprise at The Press Democrat since February 2010, Brett focuses on critical topics such as government, politics, and environmental issues in California's North Coast, particularly Sonoma County. In previous roles, including City Editor and Reporter at The Press Democrat, Brett led coverage on local government and significant events like the aftermath of the 2017 Northern California wildfires. Additionally, Brett holds the position of Senior Editor at Sonoma Magazine, overseeing feature stories, and has a background in reporting for various publications, including the Visalia Times-Delta and as a freelance reporter. Brett's academic credentials include a Master's degree in Journalism and a BA in History from the University of California, Berkeley.
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The Press Democrat
The very first newspaper in Santa Rosa, the parent of today's Press Democrat, was begun in 1857, just three years after Santa Rosa was chosen as the seat of Sonoma County and seven years after California became a part of the United States. Called the Sonoma Democrat this newspaper was a four-page weekly. Its name reflected the politicsof the Santa Rosa and Russian River valleys, which were settled in the 1840s and '50s by farmers from Missouri, Kentucky and Tennessee. The founding publisher was Alpheus Russell, a merchant with some newspaper experience who came to open a general store on Third Street. John Taylor, a prosperous rancher south of the new town, encouraged Russell to establish the paper, giving him a five-dollar gold piece for the first subscription. At the end of a year, Russell sold the paper to printer E.R. Budd, who sold it again in 1860. The new owner was Thomas Thompson, a young Virginian who had edited Petaluma's Sonoma County Journal five years earlier at the age of 17.