The
Observer was founded by Frankie Randolph and
Ronnie Dugger in Austin in 1954 to address topics often ignored by daily newspapers in the state, such as those affecting working people and concerning class and racism. According to
Texas Public Radio (TPR), the early
Observer "represented the liberal wing of the once-conservative
Democratic Party" that was
dominant in Texas. During this period, the
Observer was critical of conservative or moderate Texas Democrats, including
Lyndon B. Johnson during his Senate tenure and Governors
Allan Shivers and
John Connally. In the 1970s,
Molly Ivins served as the ''Observer's'' co-editor and a political reporter. In 2010, the
Observer published an exposé on then-Governor
Rick Perry's "Enterprise Fund". The report found that 20 recipients of the 55 grants available through the fund were given to Perry campaign contributors or contributors to the
Republican Governors Association (RGA) after he became chairman. In March 2023, the board of the Observer's parent organization, the nonprofit Texas Democracy Foundation, voted to close the publication and lay off its 17 employees, including 13 journalists. A
crowdfunding campaign to save the publication raised over $300,000 in two days, spread mostly through word of mouth via
Mastodon. The campaign was successful. ==Notable staff and contributors==