Congressional Quarterly
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Publishing, Media |
| Founded | 1945 |
| Founder | Nelson Poynter, Henrietta Poynter |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. , United States |
| Owner | CQ Roll Call (owned by FiscalNote as of 2018) |
| Website | www |
Congressional Quarterly, commonly known as CQ, is a U.S.-based publication owned by the private entity CQ Roll Call, focusing on coverage of the United States Congress. In 2009, it was purchased by the U.K.-based The Economist Group and subsequently merged with Roll Call to become CQ Roll Call.
20th century
Established in 1945 by Nelson Poynter and Henrietta Poynter, CQ was created to bridge local newspapers with political developments in Washington.
In 1955, Thomas N. Schroth, who had previously served as managing editor of the Brooklyn Eagle, assumed the roles of executive editor and vice president. Under his leadership, the publication expanded its unbiased reporting and increased annual revenues from $150,000 to $1.8 million. Schroth also initiated a book publishing division and brought on board distinguished journalists such as David S. Broder, Neal R. Peirce, and Elizabeth Drew. His tenure ended in 1969 following editorial conflicts with Poynter.
Explaining the motivation behind its founding in 1965, Poynter stated: "The federal government will never set up an adequate agency to check on itself... So it had to be a private enterprise beholden to its clients." Although originally titled Congressional Quarterly, it maintained a quarterly release schedule for only one year before transitioning to weekly, then daily editions due to increasing demand.
Innovating in timely information dissemination, CQ launched a dial-up service in 1984 and has since become a leader in online legislative tracking. It produces specialized digital newsletters including CQ Homeland Security, CQ BudgetTracker, and CQ HealthBeat.
21st century
In 2005, the flagship publication known as the Weekly Report was revamped as CQ Weekly, broadening its coverage to encompass "government, commerce, and politics." Additionally, CQ Today, a daily release during congressional sessions, primarily competes with Atlantic Media's CongressDaily.
The year 2008 saw the acquisition of CQ Press by SAGE Publishing. Despite continuing under the "CQ Press" brand—a trademark of Congressional Quarterly—it no longer maintains an affiliation with Congressional Quarterly.
Prior to 2009, ownership of CQ rested with Times Publishing Company based in St. Petersburg, Florida, which also publishes the Tampa Bay Times and other media outlets. Times Publishing is controlled by the Poynter Institute, a journalism education organization founded by Nelson Poynter. In 2009, The Economist Group purchased CQ and merged it with Roll Call, though financial details were not disclosed.
In July 2018, FiscalNote announced its acquisition of CQ Roll Call from The Economist Group.
Awards
A total of ten reporters from CQ have been honored with the "Everett McKinley Dirksen Award for Distinguished Reporting of Congress" presented by the National Press Foundation. Recipients include Alan Ehrenhalt (1983), Joan Biskupic (1991), Janet Hook (1992), George Hager (1996), Jackie Koszczuk (1997), Sue Kirchhoff (2000), John Cochran (2003), Jonathan Allen (2008), Matt Fuller (2015), and John M. Donnelly (2018).