April – June 2025Back to News

DV&A tracked the sale of 43 newspaper titles across 14 deals in the second quarter.

Following a steady start to the year, Q2 2025 saw continued momentum in newspaper ownership transitions. While Q1 included 13 distinct transactions involving 32 individual titles, the second quarter recorded at least 14 deals affecting more than 43 titles across the country.
The quarter’s largest deal came from Times Media Group, whose acquisition of 21 Colorado newspapers (The National Trust for Local News’ Colorado Community Media) nearly matched Q1’s entire volume in a single transaction.
Q2 also saw a surge in local and non-traditional buyers, with nonprofits, family-owned groups, and civic organizations stepping in to preserve community journalism.
Notably, two of the most aggressive buyers in recent years have quieted their acquisition activity: Carpenter Media Group, which made multiple purchases through early 2025, shifted roles in Q2 with no new acquisitions and one sale; and CherryRoad Media, after adding eight Missouri newspapers on January 1, 2024, has not made any further acquisitions in 2025 as it focuses on its existing portfolio.
These developments reflect the evolving landscape of newspaper M&A activity, where consolidation by major media groups remains an important force, and is complemented by a range of nonprofit, local, and independent buyers.
Details of publicly disclosed first-quarter deals include:

April 2025

Cowles Family donates The Spokesman-Review
The Cowles Family announced plans to donate The Spokesman-Review to a local journalism foundation in April.
The agreement called for Publisher Stacey Cowles and his family’s Cowles Co. to transfer ownership of the Washington-based daily newspaper to the nonprofit Comma Community Journalism Lab. Founded by current Spokesman-Review Executive Editor Rob Curley in 2022, Comma was created to incubate community-centered journalism, amplify diverse voices, and share best practices with independent news organizations worldwide.
The agreement also includes a gift of $2 million, contingent on Comma raising a $2 million match.
Cowles is among the fourth generation of the Cowles family to publish the city’s daily paper and will stay involved with the newspaper as a member of Comma’s board of directors. Curley also will serve on the 11-member board, as well as lead the nonprofit as founder and president.

Street & Curb Publishing acquires The Carthaginian
Stephen Carvelli of Street & Curb Publishing acquired The Carthaginian, a weekly newspaper in Carthage, Mississippi. The seller was Waid Prather.
Street and Curb Publishing, a Tennessee-based corporation, is led by Carvelli, who resides in Florida. The transaction ended more than 150 years of local ownership.

Lake City Graphic acquired by former mayor and family
The Lake City Graphic, a Minnesota community newspaper, has been acquired by Mark Nichols.
Nichols, who recently completed his second term as mayor of Lake City, purchased the publication alongside his daughter and son-in-law, Emily and Justin Hawryluk.
The newspaper, which has been published under various names since 1861, was owned by the Schumacher family since 1970, when Dennis and Marian Schumacher acquired a half interest in the business. They became sole owners in 1992. Most recently, the paper was operated by their sons, Dean and Terry Schumacher.

North State Media acquires Stanly News & Press
North State Media, the parent company of North State Journal, acquired Stanly News & Press from Carpenter Media Group. North State Media plans to combine Stanly News & Press, which has been published in Stanly County under different names since 1880, with Stanly County Journal, the local edition of North State Journal that publishes weekly.
The merged publications will publish twice weekly, with the weekday edition also including the weekly edition of North State Journal, the statewide publication started by North State Media in 2016.
Carpenter Media Group owns four other community newspapers in North Carolina among its catalog of 240 titles across the country.

Boone Newsmedia, Inc. sells four Alabama newspapers to the Schumacher family
Boone Newsmedia, Inc. (BNI) sold four Alabama newspapers to Jeff and Michelle Schumacher. Included in the sale was the Andalusia Star-News, The Atmore Advance, The Demopolis Times and the Brewton Standard.
Catherine Boone Hadaway, BNI senior vice president, said that after decades of ownership, the BNI family is proud the Schumachers will continue as the stewards of the community newspapers in Andalusia, Atmore, Brewton and Demopolis with local ownership and management.

Van Zandt Newspapers acquires Kaufman Herald
The Kaufman Herald in Texas has been acquired by Van Zandt Newspapers, LLC, who publish several other newspapers, and diverse publications throughout North Texas.
For over five decades, the Herald had been under the stewardship of Hartman Newspapers, which took over following the ownership of Jack Callan in 1971.

May 2025

Boone Newsmedia, Inc. acquires The Argus-Press
Boone Newsmedia, Inc. has acquired The Argus-Press, a long-standing daily and weekly newspaper operation based in Owosso, Michigan, from the Campbell family.
The Argus-Press has been a cornerstone of news and information in Shiawassee County for over 170 years, making it one of the longest-running independent, family-owned newspapers in Michigan. Tom Campbell, owner, president and publisher, had led the newspaper alongside his wife, Cathy Campbell, who served as advertising director.
Boone Newsmedia, Inc., based in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, owns and/or manages more than 60 newspapers, magazines and digital properties across seven states, including Michigan.

Sample News Group acquires Cortland Standard
Sample News Group purchased the Cortland Standard, a long-standing family-run daily in New York, after it ceased operations. The company resumed publication shortly after the acquisition.
Sample News Group, publisher of more than 75 titles in five states acquired the assets through the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of New York. The Cortland Standard newspaper had ceased publication March 13 as a result of a bankruptcy filing.
Sample News Group is a privately held publishing company based in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, with 18 daily newspapers and more than 38 weeklies and specialty magazines. The company owns and operates 30 local websites and six centralized production facilities, in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Vermont and New Hampshire.

The Texas Tribune acquires Austin Monitor
The Texas Tribune has acquired the Austin Monitor, a nonprofit digital news outlet focused on civic affairs in Austin. The acquisition brings deeper city coverage under the Tribune’s statewide nonprofit news model.

Forum Communications acquires MetroSports TV
Forum Communications Company, headquartered in Fargo, North Dakota, has acquired the Sioux City, Iowa-based MetroSports TV. The move expands Forum’s local sports broadcasting and digital video offerings.
MetroSports TV will become Midwest Sports+ with a soon-to-launch streaming app and website (midwestsportsplus.com).
Forum Communications is a family-owned media company with more than 35 newspapers, TV stations, websites and apps across the Upper Midwest.

MediaNews Group aquires Sonoma Media Investments
MediaNews Group has purchased Sonoma Media Investments (SMI), which includes California publications The Santa Rosa Press Democrat, Sonoma Magazine and five other North Bay titles.
The Press Democrat was founded in 1897 and owned by the New York Times Company for a time. It earned a Pulitzer Prize for local news coverage in 2018.
MediaNews Group is controlled by the New York-based hedge fund Alden Global Capital. Alden Global Capital owns 68 daily newspapers, including The Chicago Tribune and New York Daily News, and more than 300 weekly publications.

Colorado Nonprofit sells 21 titles to Times Media Group
The National Trust for Local News has sold 21 local newspapers in Colorado to Times Media Group (TMG), a for-profit media company based in Arizona. These publications, formerly operated under Colorado Community Media, include titles like the Arvada Press, Littleton Independent, and Parker Chronicle. The sale marks a transition from nonprofit to for-profit management.
TMG will continue operating the newspapers under the Colorado Community Media brand. Meanwhile, the National Trust will retain seven newspapers and a community printing press, the Trust Press, which TMG will now use for printing.
TMG will also provide shared services to the Colorado Trust for Local News (COTLN), a subsidiary of the National Trust, to support remaining operations. The Trust remains focused on preventing “news deserts” in small communities.
TMG President Steve Strickbine, who has ties to Colorado, emphasized a commitment to strong local journalism and advertiser outreach.

June 2025

Hoffmann Family of Companies acquires The Missourian
The Hoffmann Family of Companies has acquired Missourian Publishing Co. based in Washington, Missouri. The purchase includes the bi-weekly Missourian newspaper, its digital platform (eMissourian.com), associated real estate, and commercial printing operations.
The Missourian, founded in 1860 and owned by the Miller family since 1937, serves Franklin County and surrounding areas. Hoffmann Media Group plans to invest in digital upgrades, including a new website and app, and modernize printing facilities.
Existing leadership, including Publisher Bill Miller Jr., is expected to assist in the transition. The acquisition is part of Hoffmann’s broader efforts to expand its media holdings and maintain local journalism operations.

Tuskegee newspaper purchased by Macon County
The Tuskegee News, a 160-year-old weekly newspaper serving Macon County, Alabama, will continue operating under new ownership after facing the risk of closure.
With longtime owner Gayle Davis retiring after 42 years and the editor-publisher also stepping down after 32 years, the paper had no private buyers. In response, the Macon County Economic Development Authority (MCEDA) formed Tuskegee Media LLC to acquire and manage the publication, a move believed to be the first of its kind by an economic development agency in Alabama or nationally.