Outlet profile

Lynnwood Times

U.S. local right-leaning

Owned byMario Lotmore, founder and publisher (independent, privately owned)

FundingPrimarily local advertising revenue; the outlet is developing a $5 million endowment fund for long-term stability and explicitly states it is not state-funded

On the administrationmixed

Background

The Lynnwood Times was founded in April 2019 by Mario Lotmore, who was motivated by feedback from roughly 5,000 doors he knocked on during his 2018 Republican campaign for Washington's 21st District state Senate seat — residents told him the area lacked adequate local news coverage. The paper launched as a biweekly print publication alongside a website, covering local government, community events, education, arts, and public safety in Lynnwood and nearby Snohomish County cities. It grew to a print circulation of about 10,000, distributed at over 140 locations across Edmonds, Lake Stevens, Lynnwood, Marysville, Mill Creek, Mukilteo, and Snohomish. In 2025, Lynnwood residents named it the number-one local news source in the city's National Community Survey. The outlet is funded primarily through advertising and has pursued an endowment model for sustainability. Lotmore's Republican political history has drawn scrutiny: the former executive editor of The Seattle Times publicly observed that Lotmore's biography on the site omitted his party candidacy and volunteer work, and some readers have described the paper as consistently tilted toward Republican and right-wing perspectives. Lotmore has also filed campaign finance complaints against local Democratic officials, which critics said blurred the line between journalism and partisan advocacy. No major media bias rating organizations have formally rated the outlet.

Sources

Profile compiled 2026-07-24; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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