In November 1929, B.W. Barnes founded the
Hobbs News, the first newspaper published in Hobbs, New Mexico. Stanly Sigler soon acquired the publication and was associated with C.N. Wimberly. In 1930, during a local oil boom, J.R. Ostrom invested in the
Hobbs Weekly News to expanded it into a daily paper. At that time the paper had been operated by S.H. Wimberly and Franklin Townley. A year later J.R. Ostrom chartered the Hobbs Publishing Company with Lawrence E. Ostrom. The paper soon reverted back to a weekly during the
Great Depression. In April 1936, the
Hobbs News was purchased from the Ostroms by Sun Publishing Co. Editor S. Boyd Hilton, formerly manager of the
Las Cruses Daily News, was a stockholder, along with Col. Clyde D. Woolworth and state Senator George T. Harris. On May 1, 1936, the weekly was expanded into a morning daily called the
Hobbs Daily News. In July 1936, the company launched an afternoon paper called the
Hobbs Sunset News. In January 1937, Hilton bought out Woolworth and Harris. On March 27, 1937, Hilton suspended the
Sunset, which was renamed to the
Sun, after merging it with the
News. A few months later the newly formed
Hobbs News-Sun switched from morning to afternoon publication. In December 1937, Thomas G. Summers was named manager and replaced E.J. Kurre. Hilton soon exited the business. In February 1938, part owner Arthur W. Cooley, of
Chicago, sued Hilton for violating a
Non-compete clause and force him to sever his business connections to the
Hobbs Morning-Post. Cooley later amended his suit to seek $18,344 in damages. That September, Hilton reached a settlement and agreed to not work in the Hobbs publishing industry for a decade. Robert L. Summers eventually joined his brother as co-publisher. In 1948, the two were sued for
libel by Mrs. J.A. Clinton, who sought $100,000 in damages. In 1962, R. L. Summers was elected president the New Mexico Press Association. In 1977,
Secretary of the Army Clifford Alexander Jr. appointed R.L. Summers as his "civilian aide" for New Mexico. In 1980, T. G. Summers died. In 1983, state Rep. Bob Moran introduced a bill to repeal the existing gross receipts tax exemption on newspaper sales after the
News-Sun published a photo of Moran receiving a local award on page 20 instead of page 1. Lt. Gov.
Mike Runnels cast the tie breaking vote in favor, with Gov.
Toney Anaya vetoing the bill, calling it punitive legislation. In March 1987,
MediaNews Group, owner of the
Del Rio News-Herald, purchased the
News-Sun from R.L. Summers and Thomas B. Shearman. In August 1987, Shearman reacquired the paper, becoming it's sole owner. Previously Shearman, owner of the
Roswell Daily Record, had been a minority stock-owner in Sun Publishing for decades. and died a year later. Shearman died four months after him, and his family continued to operate the
News-Sun. In 1990, former publisher George Moore sued the paper for libel. Moore was fired after 18 months in the position and his lawsuit dragged on for years. In 2010, the
Lea County Tribune was merged into the
News-Sun. In 2020, the paper ended it's Saturday edition. ==
Hobbs Daily Flare ==