Sale of Illinois newspaper group puts new state law to the test
[September 19, 2025]
By Ben Szalinski
SPRINGFIELD – A newspaper publisher in central and southern Illinois has
sold its papers to a Kentucky-based company, testing a new state law
designed to keep newspaper ownership local.
The Strengthening Community Media Act took effect on Jan. 1 as part of a
package of legislation aimed at boosting local journalism. Its
supporters said it was a response to growing news deserts that have been
worsened by national media companies purchasing and downsizing local
outlets.
The law requires Illinois media companies to provide the Department of
Commerce and Economic Opportunity, local county government, the
company’s employees and any Illinois nonprofit that might be interested
in buying the business with 120 days’ notice before the sale happens.
“The point was, of this law, to create the ability for local
stakeholders, anybody who might want to offer up competing bids for a
local news organization and maybe want to keep it local,” Matt Pearce,
director of public policy at the nonprofit advocacy organization Rebuild
Local News, told Capitol News Illinois.
No notice given
But employees and county clerks in several of the areas served by the
recently sold newspapers say the buyer did not provide the 120 days’
notice required by the new law.
Instead, some said they learned about it when Better Newspapers Inc.
announced earlier this month that they sold their eight newspapers to
Paxton Media Group — the fifth-largest newspaper company in the U.S.
that is based in Paducah, Kentucky.
But since the law doesn’t include any enforcement mechanisms or
penalties for noncompliance, it’s not immediately clear who, if anyone,
can force compliance.
“The next question here is if Better Newspapers or Paxton Media didn’t
give the 120 days’ notice required by law, does someone file a lawsuit?”
Pearce said. “Does the government investigate or pursue a complaint?
That’s actually the next step of the question here which is establishing
how does this law get enforced. How do you remedy the damage here?”
The Illinois attorney general does not enforce the law and referred
questions to DCEO.
Sen. Steve Stadelman, D-Caledonia, who is a former TV anchor in
Rockford, sponsored the law and said media companies may be unaware of
the law, meaning the state needs to do more to promote it. He said it’s
also possible the General Assembly strengthens it and establishes a way
for the department to enforce the law with follow-up legislation.
“I think that’s something I’ll have discussions with over the next weeks
and months to see what we need to do to update and review legislation to
make sure … that there are incentives for organizations to follow the
law,” Stadelman said.
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Sen. Steve Stadelman, D-Caledonia, listens to debate in the Illinois
Senate on May 30, 2025. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Jerry
Nowicki)
Paxton’s previous purchase
Paxton Media Group is the same organization that was part of a 2023 sale
that helped spur the law. Paxton purchased The Southern Illinoisian in
Carbondale from Lee Enterprises, then laid off all newsroom employees —
prompting concern that the recently sold papers will face the same fate.
The latest sale included The Morning Sentinel in Centralia, Union Banner
in Carlyle, Washington County News in Nashville, Greenville Advocate,
Salem Times-Commoner, The Breeze Courier in Taylorville, the Robinson
Daily News, and The Daily Record in Lawrenceville.
Five county clerks in areas served by Better Newspapers Inc. told
Capitol News Illinois they did not receive official notice from the
company about the sale. That includes the St. Clair County clerk’s
office, where Better Newspapers is headquartered.
Todd Marver, a reporter for the Washington County News, told Capitol
News Illinois he and his fellow employees were also not notified. DCEO
did not respond to questions from Capitol News Illinois, but Marver said
the agency told him it also did not receive any notice from Better
Newspapers.
“I would also add there have been some layoffs and I’m not part of that
but that’s also kind of concerning that’s happened without 120 days’
notice being given because people would have been given more time, four
months, to look for somewhere else to work,” Marver said.
Paxton Media Group eventually hired new reporters at The Southern
Illinoisian, but Stadelman said he’s generally concerned about the
impact newsroom layoffs at any media company have on its community. He
said the law isn’t intended to prevent out-of-state or larger companies
from buying a newspaper, but to allow a local owner time to make their
own offer.
“I really truly believe that local ownership, local involvement leads to
better coverage, more of a commitment to covering local news in a
community versus a corporation that may have other financial interests
and doesn’t necessarily care about what’s happening on the ground
locally,” Stadelman said.
Representatives for Better Newspapers and Paxton Media Group did not
respond to questions.
The General Assembly’s Local Journalism Task Force released a report
last year that one-third of Illinois’ newspapers have closed since 2005,
creating an 86% decline in newspaper jobs over that span.
Capitol News Illinois is
a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government
coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily
by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation. |
