The Telegraph is passionate and committed to its role as the watchdog and trusted a source of news, entertainment and advertising for the Alton community and the River Bend region of Madison, Jersey, Calhoun, Macoupin, and Greene counties in Illinois.Since its founding on Jan. 17, 1836, The Telegraph has been the main news outlet for the region through its daily publication and now its print and online presence at thetelegraph.com. The Telegraph strives to maintain a high standard of accuracy and integrity in its reporting and has received nearly 300 awards since 1997. The Telegraph is owned by Hearst Newspapers, a company with more than 4,000 employees spread across 24 dailies and 64 weeklies across the nation.