Tribune Publishing Shareholders to Vote on Alden Deal This Week
Industry watchers are looking toward the May 21 shareholder vote on Alden Global Capital $633 million bid to purchase Tribune Publishing. People opposed to the deal protested at union-organized “Save Local News” rallies in Florida, Maryland, Virginia and Connecticut, the Chicago Tribune reported. Along with the Chicago Tribune, Tribune Publishing owns The Baltimore Sun; the Hartford (Connecticut) Courant; the Orlando (Florida) Sentinel; the South Florida Sun Sentinel; the New York Daily News; the Capital Gazette in Annapolis, Maryland; The Morning Call in Allentown, Pennsylvania; the Daily Press in Newport News, Virginia; and The Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk, Virginia. The state treasurers of Illinois, Connecticut and Maryland sent a joint letter to Tribune Publishing last week pushing the board to require a Tribune-Alden merger keep newspaper staffing level for five years and “pursue in good faith” deals to sell the papers to local buyers, said the Chicago Tribune. Three shareholders have filed suits seeking to stop the acquisition, Poynter reported.
Future of Local News Act Reintroduced
The Future of Local News Act was reintroduced last week, Poynter and others reported. The bill was first introduced last fall. The bill would lead to the formation of a committee “to examine and report on the role of local news gathering in sustaining democracy in the United States and the factors contributing to the demise of local journalism, and to propose policies and mechanisms that could reinvigorate local news to meet the critical information needs of the people of the United States in the 21st century,” says the bill. The bill’s co-sponsors include Sens. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Penn.) and Marc Veasey (D-Texas).
Meanwhile, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) told members of America’s Newspapers May 11 that she will seek about $2.3 billion worth of tax credits and grants for local newspapers and broadcasters as part of President Biden’s infrastructure plan, America’s Newspapers reports.
Legacy.com Has 38 New Obit-Hosting Partnerships
Legacy.com has new obituary-hosting relationships with 38 local media organizations. “This last year has only reinforced what Legacy has long believed: local news matters,” says Stopher Bartol, CEO of Legacy.com. Legacy is headquartered in Chicago. See the 38 local media organizations here.
Paper Delivery to Change for Courier Times, Doylestown Intelligencer
The Bucks County Courier Times and Doylestown Intelligencer (Pennsylvania) are shifting distribution to the Philadelphia Inquirer, says the Courier Times. Newspaper carriers are losing jobs as a result of the shift. There will be opportunities for some to join the new operation, said the Courier Times. Gannett owns the Bucks County Courier Times and Doylestown Intelligencer.
Atlanta Journal-Constitution Launches 2-in-1 app with PageSuite
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has upgraded their replica-only app to PageSuite’s new platform, which enables them to combine replica editions with the latest articles from their website, says a press release from PageSuite. This offers readers multiple ways to consume their content, catering for different reading habits, says PageSuite. “We’re delighted to upgrade the Atlanta Journal-Constitution to our latest platform,” said Ross Murphy, CEO at PageSuite. “As a long-standing client of PageSuite, it’s important they benefit from the latest features and are able to offer readers a superior app product. By moving to our latest platform they’ll also be able to take advantage of our quarterly product enhancements too.” PageSuite is headquartered in Kent, England, and has an office in Boston.
Future Acquires Marie Claire US
London-based Future has acquired the joint venture to produce Marie Claire US. Future has entered into a license to produce Marie Claire US for the next five years. The site and its accompanying print offering were previously run as a joint venture between Hearst Magazines and Marie Claire international. “With nearly 17.5 million visitors a month, this is a flagship women’s lifestyle brand and I’m delighted that we are adding it to our already strong women’s lifestyle vertical,” said Zillah Byng-Thorne, CEO of Future. Marie Claire US joins Future’s stable of women’s lifestyle brands including Marie Claire UK, Woman&Home, GoodToKnow and MyImperfectLife.com. The New York Post has a story here.
More News
- Axel Springer and Facebook have agreed on a joint global cooperation aimed mainly at distribution. Content produced by Axel Springer is to be increasingly distributed in various Facebook offerings, including Facebook News, says Axel Springer.
- Belgium-based Agfa and Hybrid Software are partnering. Agfa announced that it plans to expand its cooperation with Hybrid parent Global Graphics group beyond RIP technology.
- WAN-IFRA has moved the dates of its World News Media Congress in Taipei, Taiwan, from Sept. 28–30 to Dec. 1–3, 2021.
- The next edition of Pack Print International, a packaging and printing exhibition, will be postponed to Feb. 9–12, 2022, at BITEC in Bangkok, Thailand. The move to next year from the original September 2021 dates will allow for optimum international participation, says organizer Messe Dusseldorf.
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