Shaw Media to acquire Record Newspapers, comprising Putnam County Record and the Tonica News, at end of November, expanding its reach in northwestern Illinois

Sandy Yang

DIXON, Illinois , November 23, 2012 (Daily Gazette (Sterling, IL)) – Shaw Media, which owns and operates Sauk Valley Media, plans to close a deal to acquire Record Newspapers, which includes the Putnam County Record and the Tonica News, at the end of the month, expanding its reach in northwestern Illinois.

Sam Fisher, publisher of Shaw's Bureau County Republican in Princeton, will oversee the operations.

The deal between the Arnold family, which has operated Record Newspapers since 1878, and Shaw Media is scheduled to close Nov. 30.

The Bureau County Republican has been printing the two papers at its Princeton press facility for more than 10 years, Fisher noted, and a good working relationship developed.

"Just like the Arnolds, the BCR as an organization is committed to serving its communities and its customers. Given the proximity of the markets, we have a tremendous opportunity to leverage existing resources to the benefit of the Record and News and also to the Bureau County Republican. It's a great fit," Fisher said.

Those resources include print, website and niche publications, as well as a staff of professionals whose goal is to provide excellent customer service. Both the News office in Tonica and the Record office in Granville will remain at their present locations.

Tom Shaw, president and CEO of Shaw Media, said the company is pleased to bring Record Newspapers into its growing family of dedicated, community-based, information companies.

"We absolutely look forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship with these new communities we will be serving," Shaw said.

Shaw Media, which has been owned by the Shaw family since it was founded in 1851, operates properties in suburban Chicago, northern Illinois and Iowa.

___

(c)2012 the Daily Gazette (Sterling, Ill.)

Visit the Daily Gazette (Sterling, Ill.) at www.saukvalley.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services

* All content is copyrighted by Industry Intelligence, or the original respective author or source. You may not recirculate, redistrubte or publish the analysis and presentation included in the service without Industry Intelligence's prior written consent. Please review our terms of use.