Newspaper veteran Scott Olson recently started up a new weekly newspaper in Springfield, Ore., called Springfield Times.

A native of Salem, Olson has held just about every role at a newspaper.

After graduating from Oregon State University, Olson started his career as a sports reporter at The Dalles Weekly Reminder in 1989. He got married in 1990 and moved to Yakima, Wash., where he became managing editor of the Selah Opitmist.

He moved to Aberdeen, Wash., working for the Aberdeen School District, while his wife, Jeanne, worked at the Aberdeen operations of Weyerhaeuser.

Olson became editor and publisher of The Montesano Vidette in 1996 and purchased the weekly newspaper in 1999.

Three years later, he sold The Vidette when his wife took a new position with TrusJoist in Eugene. Scott, Jeanne and their four children, Allison, Tanner, Megan and Kelsey, now reside in Pleasant Hill.

Olson purchased the Burns Times-Herald in 2003, splitting time between his home in Pleasant Hill and the paper in Burns, Ore. He sold the paper in 2005.

"I loved my time in Burns, but I sold the Burns Times-Herald in 2005 so I could spend more time with my family," Olson said.

Olson was named advertising director of the Canby Herald and Wilsonville Spokesman newspapers in 2007. Later that year he was promoted to general manager of the Spokesman.

Yearning for an opportunity to work closer to home, Olson went to work for The Creswell Chronicle in the spring of 2008, where he sold advertising and handled circulation of the paper.

Having learned that The Springfield Beacon had ceased operations earlier in the year, Olson began thinking about starting up another paper in Springfield. He contacted Craig Murphy, one of his former employees at The Vidette, to see if he would be interested in becoming the editor for a startup paper.

As luck would have it, Murphy and his wife, Julie, were anxious to move back to the Pacific Northwest after spending the last few years in Iowa.

"Once I had Craig on board as my editor, I began putting the other pieces in place for the newspaper," Olson said. "Craig is an excellent journalist and has been highly respected everywhere he has worked.

"This seems like the perfect fit for me," Olson added. "I love community newspapers and I know how important they can be to a community like Springfield. I feel Craig Murphy and I can fill the void in Springfield which has been missing for a long time."

Murphy said the Springfield Times will focus on covering local sports, schools and events in the city while also featuring Springfield residents. The paper's website, www.springfieldtimes.net, will be utilized and updated on a regular basis.

"Between the weekly print publication and the constantly updated www.springfieldtimes.net site, our goal is to give the people of Springfield a complete news package," Murphy said.

After graduating a semester early from Washington State University's renowned Edward R. Murrow School of Communication in December 1998 to take his first newspaper job, Murphy joined Olson at The Vidette in August 1999.

"It was great being able to work with Scott Olson at The Vidette for three years," Murphy said. "We share a common vision of community newspapers and really covering all aspects of a community."

When Olson sold The Vidette, Murphy stayed on as editor of the paper for nine months until leaving to embark on a freelance journalism career, working with several publications around the Northwest as well as auto racing publications. Murphy moved to Iowa in January 2006 after getting married, and continued his freelance career.

In May 2007, Murphy took a job as sports reporter at the Newton Daily News in Newton, Iowa. In addition to covering prep sports, Murphy also had the opportunity to cover national events such as the Indianapolis 500.

"As much as I enjoyed getting to cover both prep sports and big events, the opportunity to return to my Northwest roots was one I couldn't pass up," Murphy said. "Being able to work with Scott again, and getting to start something from the ground up, it's a dream come true.

"We are aware of the recent newspaper issues in this town," Murphy added. "We want the people of Springfield to know we look forward to chronicling Springfield for many years to come, and we look forward to being the town's paper."

The Springfield Times office is located at 741 Main St. in Springfield. Olson can be contacted at publisher@springfieldtimes.net, while Murphy can be contacted at editor@springfieldtimes.net. They can also be contacted at 541-741-7368.