After my last review and having canceled the printed paper, somehow they had me in the digital auto-renewal. I needed to fight that with my credit card to get it resolved. I saw the Sunday paper today at Walgreens and decided to get a copy as I used to enjoy the paper. I thought when it rang up it said $9.99 but figured that must have been another item. When I left, I checked the paper ASAP and it was $9.99. I was a little shocked that the newsstand price was so expensive. At least there were some coupons inside and the comics. Yes, it was my fault I didn't look at the price before purchasing, I just never expected it to have increased so much. Who can afford to read this newspaper? read more

We were loyal paper customers for decades until they couldn't deliver their paper anymore. We have since tried to be online customers, what a train wreck technically. We both work in the technical world and somehow they can't ever associate our personal information to our account: so many times we try to get online and we can't login, we try to reset the password, it doesn't work or send the reset or recognise both emails. I don't know if it's technical incompetence or hyper paranoia about somebody getting something free, or some combination, but, you have a couple with an account. Both parties need to be able to access this account and it's just ridiculous that they can't figure out how to make this work. We've spent hours trying to figure it out and we give up. read more

Rip off. First month cheap then second month $17.15 a month for DIGITAL ONLY. That is ridiculous! Then you have to agree to this bullshit to cancel. (I will close my bank account instead) I understand that consent is a condition of purchase. New subscription offer available only for non-subscribers within the home delivery area. Any past due balance may be deducted prior to the subscription start. If you respond to this offer but do not qualify for introductory pricing, we reserve the right to reject your order or prorate your subscription term to reflect current subscription pricing. For your convenience, your subscription will automatically renew after the initial term at the current rate unless you tell us to cancel. Cancellations take effect at the end of your current subscription term. All subscription account payments are non-refundable and include applicable tax. Our content is delivered to you by various methods and formats. We reserve the right to substitute the delivery and format of your print subscription with an Edition subscription at any time. Notice of rate changes will be mailed or emailed to the subscriber billing/email address at least 30 days in advance of the change. By providing your phone number and email address, you give The News & Observer and its vendors consent to contact you consistent with our Privacy Policy. I hereby consent to receive autodialed and/or pre-recorded calls at the telephone number provided, including my wireless number, if applicable. Payments, credits, debits and price increases can adjust your expiration date. A $0.59 supply chain charge will be applied weekly. For subscribers that receive a mailed renewal bill, a $4.99 printed bill fee will apply for each renewal period. All home delivery subscriptions will include delivery of the Thanksgiving Holiday Edition. An additional $4.99 will be added to all subscriptions for each of these premium editions in 2025 for 4/13, 6/22, 8/24, 10/19 and 11/27. A $9.99 fee will be applied for each special premium edition on 5/11/25 and 12/7/25. An additional $9.99 will be added to all subscriptions for each of these premium editions in 2026 for 4/26, 7/26, 9/27, 11/26 and 12/27/26. You can cancel at any time by contacting Customer Service at 1-800-522-4205. Your subscription is subject to additional Terms of Service at https://www.newsobserver.com/terms-of-service read more

Subscription practices border on unethical While I enjoy the newspaper itself. I have had multiple problems with the subscription department - to point that I'm giving up on the paper. Some years ago after my subscription ended, apparently my digital subscription continued (without my approval) and I was charged about $100. It took some time to correct his including a personal call to the local subscription manager. After some time I subscribed again for $85/year. When the period ended a renewal was $160. I called the subscription number (18 minute hold time), told them I wanted to cancel and he offered me the following annual rates (as I refused each); $160, $150, $100, $85 - all during one call. I find this process to be unethical and certainly not transparent. If the renewal options were clear and consistent and there was no auto renewal, I would subscribe but at this point I'm giving up. Truly a disappointing outcome for a newspaper I've know for 60+ years. read more

Since Sunday, I have had to crawl under my car to get my paper. 3 out of 4 days is disgusting. At 75 yo, it is hard on knees and disrespectful. My sister is the subscriber, but I get up first. For a paper with very little to read, you can do better with delivery people read more

Watch out, N&O will rip you off. I had been a Sunday subscriber for years, and then out of the blue, when I was on vacation they hit me with $350 for half a year, explaining that the price for the Sunday paper had gone up to $12 dollars a week. Can you imagine paying 12 bucks a week for this newspaper? The customer service person I talked to swore up and down that they wrote to me, but I checked my mail and didn't see anything. Of course they weren't willing to refund any of it. From looking at other recent reviews this seems like a pattern. Buyer beware! read more

I can not rate. Problem trying to find the Wednesday and Sunday's addition of TheNews & Observer. It seems like the carrier does not leave very many copies her in Holly Spring at any of the store locations. We go early-sometimes around9:00 and no paper to be found we some times go to several places. And still no paper. We do not subscribe due to not receiving the paper at all. This really not good for the other towns outside of Raleigh. Please tell me the problem????? Notice by some of the other reviews on billing and the cost at the Newstands. What is happen to our State that a newspaper can not be published ? So will not be trying to find a newspaper at any more location in Holly Springs, and refuse to read on line. Carole J. And being force to rate with a stare it should be zero. read more

Some good journalism but the platform is awful and they make cancelling a subscription so difficult

The newspaper is not bad - some committed young journalists - but the platform is a mess. They constantly push you to the digital edition, presumably because they want to cancel the print edition (which no longer comes on Saturdays), but they have the worst ever online platform. It's extremely tedious to log on, and they make you log in each and every time you go to their site. As a result, when I want quick local news, I go to the WRAL website. And then there is their hopelessly bad customer service. The site to report (frequent) non-deliveries of the paper only works about half the time, and it is impossible to connect with an actual human. In short, the greedy corporate overlords are (intentionally?) killing what was once a decent local paper. Too bad! read more

This is how they deal with you. I subscribed for a year and sent a check for a one-year subscription. I did not renew. But they did. And they send a bill collector after me for payment of services I never authorized more submitted. I got an invoice for another year; this included a whopping price increase of about 30%. I did not send another check. NEVER EVER GIVE THEM A CREDIT CARD NUMBER. You will have a hell of a time to stop the billing. They are off my list for life. Nice screwup guys. read more

I've been a subscriber for over 40 years. In the past year, we've only had our paper delivered about 75% of the time this year. I've called multiple times, been directed to a foreign call center, and always received a promise the situation will be corrected; it's an empty promise. The people who bought the N&O complain about their circulation numbers falling off, with service like this, it's no wonder. read more

The News and Observer is harassing me! I subscribed to the N&O. They have the best reporting in this area. Good force for good! I have friends who work for the N&O. I like them even though the paper does not report on roller derby. I was looking at my bills and noticed that McClatchy (N&O's parent company) was charging me twice each month. One charge that was the expected subscription charge and another charge that changed every month. What is that?! I called a couple times asking what is that random charge. They could not figure that out. I asked them to stop charging me that and they said that they could not. After several hours on the phone I still could not figure out what the random fee was. I did cancel any payments to McClatchy by canceling my credit card. Those guys have called me 15 times to get me to resubscribe in the last 7 days. Each time I tell them that I do not trust them with my credit card. They are trying to sell me a subscription for less than $2 and they were charging me $40 to $60 a month before. Great paper, managed very poorly! read more

Do not subscribe to this newspaper. Their business model is to ignore your instructions to cancel your subscription, continue to bill you and send you to collections. This is a morally bankrupt business model. While I wish to support local news, I cannot do so with a newspaper with such egregious business practices. read more

I feel so sad about the N&O. I know that print newspapers have suffered terribly and I have surely wanted to support the N&O, as I have done for decades, including graduate school in Boston. I have been willing to pay the increased price, but no matter, what I do, I can't stop the paper for a vacation hold-call the subscription service, place a vacation hold via the paper's delivery options on the internet, text the delivery person directly, etc. It is a burglary waiting to happen. The delivery person tells me he just has so many papers to deliver he can't keep up with the holds. One star is for the poor attention to delivery issues. read more

The online format just changed and it is now unusable. They refused to refund the remaining amount of my subscription. Almost no local reporting. read more

Totally unethical billing and subscription services department, obviously handled by a third-party, out-of-country service. I called three weeks ago and canceled my subscription, which was supposed to run through 2/22/23 due to an enormous price increase. I requested to cancel before then. Today, I get a call from them saying my subscription ended on January 17, and they want to renew me at that new, ridiculously higher price. I repeated "NO", at which time they wanted to charge my credit card for a "balance due" of $26.00. I told them I was fully paid through 2/22/23, and there should be no balance due. They claimed I owed them (now $31 !!), for the papers that were delivered after January 17. I told them not to dare charge my card, and to cancel my subscription immediately. The nasty person on the phone said "we'll investigate" and then hung up. ANY CHANCE THERE WAS FOR ME TO CONSIDER CONTINUING MY SUBSCRIPTION was killed because of the way these people handled my requests. Done with this paper after four years. Their billing practices should be investigated! read more

Still need an option to choose ZERO stars. My trial subscription thru Groupon has ended and now my patience is on trial. After my trial ended N&O continued to send me a paper for several weeks even though I called them to point out I didn't order or want it. Eventually they stopped the deliveries and started sending me bills!! OK wait ... it gets better! Now they are calling several times a week either harassing me about "my"? past due bill OR begging me to subscribe! I've now got at least a dozen supposed N&O phone numbers blocked and yet the calls keep coming. My advice, DO NOT GET INVOLVED WITH THIS COMPANY unless you enjoy harassing never ending telemarketing calls! read more

I don't know who still reads this printed version. But Crosswords and coupons yay! This paper has won a Pulitzer Prize for a series on the hog industry. Based on the reviews it looks very expensive to keep up on local news from this newspaper. read more

BEWARE!!! Worst Customer Service! Will turn you into collections without a notice of past due amount on your account!!!! July '22 - Subscribed for daily delivery by mistake and tried to reach out to have it changed to just the Sunday paper so I could get the coupons. (or lack there of, which really isn't their fault). No response to either calls or emails. The one email that was answered, I had a follow up question, and that one was not answered. Missing papers multiple times. Asked to have delivery location changed to a different door out of sight. (They have to pull in to deliver regardless). Reached out via their website customer complaint option. No response. November '22 - Received notice that my subscription was up for renewal. I emailed to have the subscription cancelled. Received an automated response only. April '23 - Received a bill 5 months later that I now owe them $29.16. At this point I don't even know why. I assumed it was because I changed my subscription within the first week. NOT EVEN A WEEK LATER - Received a call from a collections agency. Sent payment information along with a letter stating all of the issues with my subscription and customer service. Received a letter that it was taken care of and that my payment information was being disposed of. I threw the letter out.... June '23 - Received numerous calls again from the collection agency. Received yet another bill that still I owe them $29.16. I reached out again via their complaint option on their website. FINALLY received an email back stating that I owe the money due to their terms of service and the "grace period" where they deliver more papers if they aren't contacted to cancel- WHICH NO PAPERS WERE DELIVERED DURING - AND I CONTACTED THEM TO CANCEL) They stated that they didn't show a record of it being paid, but if I had a receipt that I could provide they would get it fixed. WHICH PROVES THEY DIDN'T READ MY ORIGINAL EMAIL. As of today, I have emailed them back and provided copies of the original letter I sent, a copy of all emails sent that were not responded to, as well as made them aware that I am sending a payment for $29.16 and do not want to be contacted by them ever again. I have also filed a complaint with the BBB. I don't appreciate them not making me aware of a past due amount before handing it over to any type of collection agency, much less one that calls and leaves creepy voicemails whispering my name. I have been in customer service for almost 20 years. I would never handle a customer this way. Nor would any of the companies I have worked for. Poor customer service and business management. read more

Dishonest billing practices. I called to say I wasn't going to renew (at a 50% increase) and they cancelled my subscription despite the fact that i had month left on the previous subscription. read more

I got my subscription to support local and also keep up with what I thought was good, fair, balanced, and non bias journalism... well I was wrong. Canceling this subscription, it's very one sided and doesn't give a good perception of what is going on locally. Journalism these days is now just becoming opinionated journalism. If I wanted peoples opinions, I would go sit at a bar and talk to the local drunk. I also hate how an article will start on 2B then will say "continue on 7B." Very disorganize. read more

i have subscribed to the paper since June of 1970 and about ready to cancel my subscription. Twice this week, I have not received a paper--including today, Sunday of all days. I call and they say they will give to me credit for no paper but NEVER DO. I still pay the same price over and over and that may soon stop when I cancel. As a native of eastern NC I have always read the paper but am get so frustrated at the problems with it that that may come to an end SOON. I also do not understand why new subsceribers get the paper for $120 a year and I pay much more. read more

I've been a subscriber to the News and Observer since I got out of college--more than 50 years. I think my association is coming to an end. I used to pay by the year--until they said they were "reserving the right to go all digital". A digital paper is NOT a newspaper--I want a hard copy I can read with my morning coffee/clip out articles/etc. I switched to a quarterly payment. Over the past two years, that paper has gone down to about 16 pages a day--for six days a week rather than seven--and the price has increased by more than 50%! Plus, they want to charge me for a bill??? I called today to renew for another three months--one day after I got my bill. I wanted to tell them that i WILL NOT pay a fee to get the bill. I was told that even though I never got a bill either on line or by mail, there would be an extra $10 charge for being late? I was told that I should keep track of when my subscription expired??? I was also told that I could not cancel my subscription by phone. Then they insisted that they had to put the bill on a credit card. I normally pay bills by computer directly from my bank--and I don't trust the N&0 not to charge what they want when they want. The newspaper was one of the little luxuries I allowed myself as a senior on a fixed income. I'll now get my news from TV or on line--unless they change their billing practices and once more become "The Old Reliable" read more

I have been getting the N&O subscription for a few years now, and I am going to admit, I don't always read the paper. But I do get the paper for a few reasons. 1) In today's harsh economic climate, I started to get the paper just for the coupons. I ain't gonna lie, I am thrifty. 2) As a subscriber to the N&O they have a special rewards zone just for subscribers where you are eligible for FREE stuff, and get discounts and other places. 4) It is cheaper to get a subscription if you sign up at one of those little booths, than getting the paper out the machine. 5) I save more with the paper subscription, than I actually spend on the paper, even if I don't read it. Because you know, the only thing I was going to read anyway was the funny pages. read more

The News & Observer - Print Media Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

The N&O has been a decent local newspaper, with a pleasantly progressive tilt - we've had the print edition delivered for 14 years. It appears, however, that they are phasing out the printed paper. Our deliverer retired and has not been replaced - the N&O just decided, without giving us notice or a refund, to stop delivering the paper! I spend my work days on a computer, so the last thing I want to do is be on a screen with my morning coffee. If the print edition is gone, I will no longer subscribe. Frankly, for a quick look at local news the WRAL website is far superior to the N&O's. read more

These people are the worst and very unethical. Subscribed for a 15 week trial. As explained to me that at the end of that period I would be notified if I wanted to continue. Did not receive any notification, and thought that this was over. I just received a notice collection because of non payment. Spent several hours today to try and straighten it out, but to no avail (several call centers, the Raleigh office did not PU). I feel they misrepresented the entire subscription process. Please beware. read more

Terrible paper and horrid customer service. There is no way to cancel your subscription online. They ask you to send them an email or call customer service. Well - they do not answer emails and they put you on hold for 30 minutes all for one crappy little newspaper subscription. One star only because zero stars is not an option. read more

Apparently, this is the same issue others have had. See S.S. review. I had them for 1 year for coupons. When I attempted to discontinue the paper on 12/19/2019, I called and they said they couldn't locate my account. Then, in January, I called multiple times and either the system was down or there was another issue which prevented me from closing my account. I tried cancelling on-line and I always received a 404 error. It took me 2.5 months to get them to recognize I wanted to cancel. SO BUYER BEWARE-DO NOT SUBSCRIBE. Now, they sent me to collections for $32.03 which I plan to fight and will be contacting the Better Business Bureau as well. With customer service like this, no wonder N & O is dying. read more

It's really sad that there is virtually no customer service at the N&O anymore. We were billed for an entire year. My wife called and canceled and they said no problem you'll get a refund in 30 days or so. Several months go by and my wife calls in again. This time they say it's too late and they can't refund. So my wife said fine, send me all the papers you didn't send then! They restarted sending us papers but now for no reason they stopped sending them again!! We call in again and they said they are sending a refund. It's like Groundhog Day with these people. Customer Service is outsourced and the people on the phone just speak from a script with no power to actually help you. read more

Zero stars. This newspaper is a scam. I purchased a year subscription at discounted rate. upon that year ending I canceled by subscriptions because the price went up 10 times what i originally paid. Then they charged me an additional couple weeks that went past the ending of the one year. Ok fine, i sent a check into them, before i know it I am getting collection letters in the mail regarding the 19$ that I owed them. i called and said i sent a check in the email and their response was that checks take a long time to process. Then why did you send to to collections so soon?! I finally saw the check get cashed so i logged into the News and observer account to make sure it was zero and finished and I see another charge in their for 11 dollars and it says my account is active! They are literally trying to force me to subscribe. Now i need to call and deal with their sketchy customer service, possibly get a lawyer if this doesn't end. Their news paper is trash as well, I use it to start the fireplace and that's about it. Stay away. read more

This is messed up, why won't you let me read the articles? I DISABLED the adds, the stupid thing still pops on the screen blocking the article? Why would you people shoot yourselves in the foot like this? What a shame! read more

The News & Observer - Print Media Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

ripped off ripped off. they gave me a teaser rate and then charged my credit card for a one year subscription at full price without any notification or the ability to delete auto renewal. bad business. i called for a refund and asked them to delete my account. they refused. this company uses deception to lure in readers. read more

I would give it 0 stars if i could. I never read it but my husband got it to keep up with local sports, news and puzzles. So expensive, liberal, bias and poor communication with the company. I just received my bill and the cost increased $100 for a 6 month subscription... $100!!!!!!! Are they nuts for that junk! I said, that's it... cancelled immediately! Would love a suggestion for another local newspaper for my husband. Thanks for allowing me my 1st Amendment right to voice my opinion! read more

I spent over an hour with the News & Observer's Customer Service department this morning, and most of that was on hold. The other 10 minutes were an incredibly infuriating conversation with a customer service rep that clearly had no intention of providing any service whatsoever. I have always been a huge proponent of journalism and supporting local. So naturally, I was incredibly excited when I could scrape together just enough money to get my own Sunday subscription to the N&O as a young professional. It's a shame that my hopes were quickly dashed. I received my subscription four times. That's only one month of Sunday papers. Confused, I double-checked my subscription. Sure enough, I had paid for a year's worth of papers. The first couple of times, I chalked it up to a neighbor stealing my copy (as I live in an apartment complex). I finally called after a month of not receiving my subscription. I got an answering machine, so I left a message and submitted a complaint through the contact form on the website. No one ever followed up with either. I began calling incessantly, trying desperately to get someone on the phone, but each time I called I got no one, so I would submit something through the website again. Still, no one followed up. I was in this cycle for about 6 months before I finally gave up and accepted the fact that the N&O had stolen my money and had no intention of fixing it. Then, about a week ago, I received a bill saying that my subscription had auto-renewed. Obviously, I called customer service yet again to get this cancelled once and for all. When I (FINALLY) got ahold of someone, she told me that I owed them $14, and then she proceeded to argue with me about whether or not I had contacted the paper to complain about my previous subscription. If you're wondering why the younger generation is not holding the same loyalties to local news outlets, this is exactly why. You've turned even a loyal follower into a frustrated and cynical adversary. P.S. Their "unsubscribe" link in their emails is ineffective as well. I have been trying to unsubscribe for about 6 months now, and I am still getting spammed with their emails. read more

No delivery of the paper for three weeks. Calling in the problem to the automated phone system is no help. No one follows up or actually talks to you. read more

I would give negative stars if possible. My mother has a subscription paid thru April. The last paper that I received was on Friday, January 14 2022. Nothing since.I have gone a full week with no delivery I have called and emailed their off-shore based customer service numerous times. No answers. This is outright theft. read more

I live in Havelock. At one time I had 7 day delivery but the paper first said they would no longer deliver then they got me to sign up for a mail delivery on Sunday and Wednesday. I have never received the paper and was told by some customer service agent that I wasn't eligible for a refund because I haven't registered enough complaints. Customer service has apparently been outsourced to India. The customer service was never very good and now it is virtually nonexistent. I only read newspapers in print and I manage to receive the Sun Journal, Wall Street Journal, and New York Times with no problem. But apparently the Raleigh paper has just gone down the toilet. read more

We were very happy with our News & Observer print service for 7 years, with only minimal service interruptions which were always quickly remedied. Our annual subscription fee gradually increased every year, and over doubled from when we first subscribed. We tried to cancel our subscription just as it auto-renewed, but were too late. Customer Service was very accommodating though and shift our subscription plan to the lowest digital only option, noting the difference in the plan costs and the amount we would be refunded for the difference. We were told to expect the refund in 7-10 business days. It has been 5 weeks since the initial conversation, multiple conversations with Customer Service confirming the refund amount and being told about additional departmental approvals required. Today I spoke with a representative and then a supervisor who both said the refund was again being processed, but the amount to be refunded was less than what had been agreed to in all previous conversations. Shame on you News & Observer for not following through with what you tell you customers and your commitments to them! read more

I am so disappointed with the News and Observer. I will never have the paper again. I have tried to talk to customer service, but they will not answer. I have been billed even after I have paid. I recommend that if you want a paper, subscribe to any paper in the world instead of the News and Observer. read more

The article about low turnout at the Trump rally is a lie. I guess they're as confused as Brandon LMAO read more