Troy McQuillen
Founder of Aberdeen Insider & McQuillen Creative Group
“I don’t have the answer to all the things, so I find smarter, more experienced people to surround me.” Troy McQuillen’s dream of creating a newspaper focused on local news, the Aberdeen Insider, turned three this January. In the past three years, the weekly publication has grown to four eight-page sections and is now the newspaper of record for the city, county, and school board. Subscriptions are growing every week, with revenue streams stemming from both advertising and subscriptions, which have increased fivefold. The paper has also expanded into Watertown, with local residents running the branch.
But Troy’s entrepreneurial impact on the community begins well beyond the Aberdeen Insider. McQuillen Creative Group, his original endeavor, has continued to change, adapt, and grow. The team is currently working with the Dacotah Prairie Museum on video projects that capture culturally significant content for the region. This work has brought together different parts of the community, including Northern State University faculty. With the recent purchase of Max Media, a two-person ad agency, further expansion is on the horizon.
Running a journalism business without a degree in journalism has not phased Troy. He explains that he has been able to attract incredible people, the right people with passion and belief who live the vision of being a voice for the community. Troy shared how the changing landscape, both in technology and politics, has shaped the last three years. He emphasized his commitment to returning to civility and helping eradicate the growing division within communities. In the technological realm, with the advent of AI, Troy believes it can be a powerful tool when used well. His team has been experimenting with AI for script generation and for enhancing old photos, and he remains committed to understanding and integrating the technology when it is helpful.
The success of his ventures has also made room for accolades. Troy was inducted into the Central High School Hall of Fame in 2024. Aberdeen Insider also won Division III General Excellence in the South Dakota NewsMedia Association Better Newspapers Contest, a category for cities with populations of 15,000 or more. The publication has also earned awards in layout, writing, and photography over the past few years. Despite all of this, Troy explains that watching his dream grow has been the most gratifying part, going from nine staff members to 18, along with two interns, for a total of 20 employees in Aberdeen and five in Watertown. Watching the payroll grow, he admits, has been nerve-wracking in the best way possible.
Despite not attending art school or business school, Troy has become a pioneer in news media within the community. He has lived the idea of “don’t wait for permission or an invitation to do something.” His mission and his why remain the same: contributing back to the hometown he grew up in.
