Straight Arrow News Ceases Operations
The Omaha-based national news organization founded by Joe Ricketts has shut down, and its staff have lost their jobs.
Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Media
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Straight Arrow News, an Omaha-based national news organization founded by Joe Ricketts, has ceased operations. CEO Joe Ricketts confirmed the closure in a statement posted to the organization's website on Friday afternoon.
Why it matters
The closure eliminates a national news outlet and costs its staff their jobs. Ricketts stated that belief in a mission does not by itself make a business sustainable, and that after considerable investment and effort he decided to cease operations.
Straight Arrow News began hiring in 2021 before closing on Nov. 6, a timeline the company has not explained in financial terms. Joe Ricketts, whose estimated net worth is $8.8 billion according to Forbes, has not disclosed the losses that led to the decision, and the number of affected staff remains unreported.
The players
Joe Ricketts
Joe Ricketts is the founder and CEO of Straight Arrow News and a billionaire businessman who previously shut down the DNAinfo and Gothamist websites in 2017.
Straight Arrow News
Straight Arrow News is an Omaha-based national news organization that Joe Ricketts founded and which has now ceased operations.
The details
Krystal Nurse, a general assignment reporter for Straight Arrow News, announced the closure on social media platform X hours before the official statement was posted. Nurse declined to comment on the shutdown.
Timeline
2017: Ricketts shut down the DNAinfo and Gothamist websites after employees voted to unionize.
2021: Ricketts began hiring for Straight Arrow News.
Nov. 6, 2026: Straight Arrow News closure was confirmed on Friday afternoon.
Market Landscape
Ricketts's 2017 decision to shut down the DNAinfo and Gothamist websites after employees voted to unionize established an earlier precedent for ending news operations he controlled. The closure of Straight Arrow News extends that pattern, which the source ties to his stated view that a mission alone does not sustain a business.
For readers who followed Straight Arrow News, the closure ends access to the outlet's coverage and removes one national news source from the market. Staff losses also mean fewer working journalists covering national news in the United States.
The takeaway
A news outlet's founding mission does not guarantee its survival, so readers should weigh where their national news comes from and how it is financed. Following multiple independent sources can help readers stay informed when a single outlet closes.
Further reading
Explore more on the Media industry in the United States.
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