New Local Section for Inland Empire

The Times today launched a new local news section in the growing Inland Valley region of eastern Los Angeles and western San Bernardino counties.

The Inland Valley Our Times will appear in about 45,000 copies of The Times circulated Monday through Saturday in Chino, Chino Hills, Claremont, Diamond Bar, Fontana, La Verne, Montclair, Ontario, Pomona, Upland, Rancho Cucamonga and San Dimas.

The section replaces the Ontario Our Times weekly that began publication last year.

The new daily section will have an editorial staff of 30 journalists based in offices near Ontario Mills Mall, where the San Bernardino and Ontario freeways intersect. Coverage will include detailed news about local governments, schools, public safety, youth sports and community events.

“The Inland Valley Our Times represents an important step in our commitment to serve readers and advertisers in the Inland Empire,” said Robert G. Magnuson, Times senior vice president for regions. “It adds an important community dimension to our world-class newspaper.”

The Times publishes 12 other weekly or weekday Our Times sections in various parts of Southern California, but the Inland section is the first to appear every day but Sunday. Our Times sections are produced by a Times affiliate, Times Community News.

Inland Valley Our Times was created “in response to requests from readers, businesses and community leaders for more local coverage of the Inland Valley region,” said Steve Lee, Times regional president for the Inland Empire and San Gabriel Valley.

Inland Valley Our Times Editor Patricia Barnes is an experienced Inland Empire journalist and resident of Riverside. Before joining The Times, she was city editor of the Desert Sun in Palm Springs.

“This is a vibrant, tight-knit area and our readers want more news about their communities, about their schools, about things that shape their lives,” Barnes said.

Added Los Angeles Times Editor Michael Parks, “The Los Angeles Times and Our Times will be a very strong combination.”