Peter Oberfest News Today

The front page of the newspaper has yellowed into a sepia tone in the frame that hangs in my office overlooking Vineyard Haven Harbor, but the words feel like they are still unusually current. That piece of our archive, preserved behind glass, holds the inaugural edition of The Martha’s Vineyard Times, dated May 3, 1984.  […]

Now, 40 years since its founding, The Martha’s Vineyard Times once again doubles down to its news-gathering overwatch on Islanders’ behalf. And once again, although a new crowd is at the controls, the job is the same, and it is a familiar one.  Newspapering is comfortably at home on Martha’s Vineyard. And because Islanders are […]

At 7:30 am, it’s a chilly 29°. The first workday in the New Year. Early morning light glistens as Stephen Bernier rolls a pushcart out to the parking lot of Cronig’s Market in West Tisbury, and with a push broom and dustpan, begins sweeping up. It’s a ritual he has done every morning except Sundays […]

Vineyard Haven residents Peter and Barbara Oberfest didn’t come into ownership of The Martha’s Vineyard Times with a background in newspapers. The two were looking to move to the Vineyard full-time from Philadelphia.  But in the mid-1990s, the Oberfests became the publishers of the paper anyway, and for nearly three decades, they shepherded it through […]

The ownership of the Martha’s Vineyard Times is changing hands. Longtime publishers and owners Peter and Barbara Oberfest are selling the Island news organization to Steve Bernier, West Tisbury resident and longtime owner of Cronig’s Market, who is well-known for his community service and quiet support for philanthropic causes. The sale is expected to be […]

The first Islanders Write was held at the Grange Hall on a sweltering August day in 2014. From the beginning we wanted to make Islanders Write free to attend; it would be a gift to the community from the MV Times. There was no advance registration for the event, which meant we had no idea […]

After you’ve filled up on fried dough, taken a spin on the Ferris wheel, and marveled at the fireworks, The MV Times invites you to switch gears and join us at Featherstone Center for the Arts for Islanders Write 2023. The writers’ festival, which explores the art, craft, and business of writing, will begin on […]

As some of you have already noticed, we have closed our online Comments feature for some redesign and renovation. We think that comments are very important, because they can give a voice to all of our readers in an unusual and immediate way, and we are a better news organization for hosting the conversation. But […]

Former director of publications for The Martha’s Vineyard Times Connie Berry is taking the captain’s chair as she transitions into her new role as managing editor. Berry has worked in various capacities during her approximately six-year tenure with the Times, and she has always used her leadership skills to facilitate the growth of the newspaper, […]

A newspaper that bills itself as the daily newspaper of the Cape and Islands allowed a right-leaning nonprofit to purchase a full-page ad trolling one of the Islands it purports to cover. The Cape Cod Times ran a full-page ad from Citizens for Sanity, which mocked Martha’s Vineyard’s response to the nearly 50 migrants who […]