In February 1911, when the Sentinel began publishing, Chicago was dominated by Yiddish newspapers including the Yiddishe Presse, Yiddisher Arbeiter Welt and the Yiddisher Courier. The Sentinel, which described itself as a magazine, managed to outlast most of its competitors, including one (the Midwest Jewish Week) which folded in September 1995.
Over the past 10 years the Sentinel’s certified circulation gradually dwindled from 7,763 copies in 1986 to 5,416 in 1996.
Chicago is now served by the JUF News, founded in 1938 and published by the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago, and by two independent publications. They are the Chicago Jewish Star, founded in 1991, and the Chicago Jewish News, founded in 1994.