New Media Investment Group Acquires the Oklahoma City (OK) OklahomanBack to News

Oklahoma City, OK – October 31, 2018 – New Media Investment Group added the state capital daily to its holdings in Oklahoma with the acquisition of the Oklahoman in Oklahoma City on October 1. In addition to the daily, the transaction included the NewsOK website, Big Wing digital marketing agency in Oklahoma City and a direct mail operation in the region.

The 90,000-circulation Oklahoman had been owned by The Anschutz Corp. since 2011. It had previously been owned by the Gaylord family.

Dirks, Van Essen, Murray & April, a media merger and acquisition firm based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, represented The Anschutz Corp. in the transaction.

New Media, through its subsidiary GateHouse Media, owns four other dailies in the state, including those in Bartlesville, Shawnee, Ardmore and Miami.

“The Oklahoman has served its readers with great ambition and integrity since before statehood. We’re proud that GateHouse Media will be able to continue The Oklahoman’s heritage,” said Kirk Davis, CEO, GateHouse Media.

“We are fortunate to own a small number of daily and weekly publications in Oklahoma, including The Journal Record in Oklahoma City. The Oklahoman not only bolsters our portfolio here, but will be among our largest newspapers in the country,” Davis said.

Davis went on to say, "The Oklahoman is known for its award-winning sports coverage and strong legislative and business reports, particularly in energy. The company has a strong news operation and has excelled at growing its digital audience and becoming an industry leader in multimedia innovation. This talented team will fit right into GateHouse Media, which was recently honored to receive The Associated Press Media Editors’ Innovator of the Year award, an award previously won by The Oklahoman. We’re excited to share ideas with the staff here and learn from them, as well."

GateHouse Media publishes 145 daily publications. It operates in more than 570 markets across 37 states, reaching more than 23 million people on a weekly basis and serving more than 220,000 business customers.