Based in downtown San Jose, which had been in a state of decline for two decades, Metro championed arts, independent cinema, small theater and retail revitalization in the city's core.
Metro's investigative journalism was responsible in 2013 for the prosecution and conviction of Santa Clara County Supervisor George Shirakawa Jr. on multiple felony corruption charges.
[9] The newspaper also sparked state Fair Political Practices Commission and Grand Jury investigations of San Jose City Councilman Xavier Campos' campaign activity[10] and has reported over the past decade on the financial relationship between the nonprofit Working Partnerships USA and the South Bay Labor Council.
[17][18] Over the next decade, Pulcrano oversaw the purchase and startups of five more community weekly newspapers in Santa Clara County, including the Saratoga News, Cupertino Courier, Sunnyvale Sun, Willow Glen Resident and Campbell Reporter.
In 2000, he rebranded the publication North Bay Bohemian to support the Santa Rosa paper's expanded coverage of Napa and Marin counties.
[20] [21] In May 2015, Pulcrano negotiated the purchase of the oldest alternative weekly in the Western U.S., the Pacific Sun, and told the Silicon Valley Business Journal that the group's circulation had grown from 110,000 to 190,000 over a 14-month period.
[26][27] On May 3, 2022, Weeklys purchased the 157-year-old Healdsburg Tribune after its shutdown, which its non-profit owners had announced "is ending its coverage of the community, ceasing all newsgathering activities and closing its downtown office, effective immediately."
Pulcrano's team published a revived edition days later, which one writer described as "a crazy-quick, totally-out-of-the-blue sale and turnaround of our beloved local paper.
"[28][29][30] "We are surprised, gratified and a little astonished," said Nancy Dobbs, president of the board of directors of Sonoma County Local News Initiative, which sold the newspaper's assets to Weeklys.