Landmark Media Enterprises, LLC (a spinoff of Landmark Communications, Inc.) is a
privately held
A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in the respective listed markets, but rather the company's stock is ...
media
Media may refer to:
Communication
* Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data
** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising
** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass e ...
company headquartered in
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia B ...
specializing in
newspaper
A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.
Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, spor ...
publishing
Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...
,
Internet publishing and
software
Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work.
At the lowest programming level, executable code consist ...
.
History
Norfolk Newspapers was founded in 1905 as a holding company for the newspaper properties of Samuel L. Slover, including the ''Norfolk Landmark''. They included papers which would eventually become today's ''
Virginian-Pilot
''The Virginian-Pilot'' is the daily newspaper for Norfolk, Virginia. Commonly known as ''The Pilot'', it is Virginia's largest daily. It serves the five cities of South Hampton Roads as well as several smaller towns across southeast Virgini ...
''.
Frank Batten, Slover's nephew, took over the company in 1955, and changed its name to Norfolk-Portsmouth Newspapers Inc. in 1957 (reflecting the merger of the Norfolk ''Ledger-Dispatch'' and ''Portsmouth Star''), then to Landmark Communications in 1967. It became Landmark Media Enterprises in 2008. Landmark is controlled by the Batten family.
Properties
Landmark owns more than 50 community newspapers and special-interest publications in 11 states. That includes seven publications that cover college sports at
Florida State University
Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...
,
University of Florida
The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...
,
Indiana University
Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana.
Campuses
Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI.
*Indiana Universi ...
,
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 co ...
(
Voice of The Hawkeyes),
University of Nebraska
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United State ...
,
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...
and
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United State ...
; and two daily newspapers: ''
Citrus County Chronicle'' of
Crystal River, Florida
Crystal River is a city in Citrus County, Florida, United States. The population was 3,108 in the 2010 census. According to the U.S. Census estimates of 2018, the city had a population of 3,162. The city was incorporated in 1903 and is the self p ...
and ''
The News-Enterprise
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'' of
Elizabethtown, Kentucky
Elizabethtown is a home rule-class city and the county seat of Hardin County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 28,531 at the 2010 census, and was estimated at 30,289 by the U.S. Census Bureau in 2019, making it the 11th-largest city ...
.
Landmark owns
Dominion Enterprises, which runs classified advertising websites for real estate, vehicles, travel, franchises and businesses for sale. Dominion also provides
software as a service
Software as a service (SaaS ) is a software licensing and delivery model in which software is licensed on a subscription basis and is centrally hosted. SaaS is also known as "on-demand software" and Web-based/Web-hosted software.
SaaS is co ...
products to real estate agents, auto dealers, and motorcycle dealers.
Former properties
One of Landmark Communications's holdings was TeleCable Corporation, a cable television service that began in a small Virginia town in the late 1950s. Landmark obtained franchise licenses to operate in about two dozen cities throughout the eastern half of the U.S., including
Overland Park, Kansas
Overland Park ( ) is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas. Located in Johnson County, Kansas, it is one of four principal cities in the Kansas City metropolitan area and the most populous suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. As ...
;
Plano &
Arlington,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
;
Bloomington, Illinois
Bloomington is a city and the county seat of McLean County, Illinois, United States. It is adjacent to the town of Normal, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington–Normal metropolitan area. Bloomingto ...
;
Racine, Wisconsin
Racine ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located on the shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Root River. Racine is situated 22 miles (35 km) south of Milwaukee and approximately 60 ...
;
Springfield, Missouri
Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Springfield metropolitan area, which had an esti ...
;
Wytheville &
Princeton, Virginia;
Selma, Alabama
Selma is a city in and the county seat of Dallas County, in the Black Belt region of south central Alabama and extending to the west. Located on the banks of the Alabama River, the city has a population of 17,971 as of the 2020 census. Abo ...
, and other cities. TeleCable was a progressive company that inspired HBO 2, Disney 2, and Showtime 2 in
Overland Park, Kansas
Overland Park ( ) is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas. Located in Johnson County, Kansas, it is one of four principal cities in the Kansas City metropolitan area and the most populous suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. As ...
. Prior to the 1980s, technology enabled subscribers to receive only 12 channels on a CATV system. TeleCable built two CATV systems in one when the franchise was granted in Overland Park in the late 1960s. Customers had A/B switches at their TVs so they could select either set of channels. This gave TeleCable of Overland Park twice as many channels (24) as other CATV companies. With advances in technology, TeleCable of Overland Park was able to double the number offered to 48 channels. In the early 1980s, there were very few satellite channels, and the pay cable channels typically signed off the air before midnight on weeknights (later on the weekends). Customers complained to TeleCable of Overland Park that they missed the 7 p.m. movie start due to late working hours, dinner, or children's activities. TeleCable management contacted
HBO,
Showtime, and
The Disney Channel
Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Com ...
to ask to receive the
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico, Panama, Colombia, mainland Ecuador, Peru, and a smal ...
satellite feed of their programs for its Central Time Zone operation. TeleCable officials planned to charge customers who requested this expanded service an extra 50 cents per month. The movie channels dismissed the idea, believing no one would pay for that option. After several months, management had the full attention of the networks, as thousands were signing up. The sole benefit for customers was a one-hour earlier start for movies and other programs. But HBO and Showtime soon decided to create separate services for those channels. Disney followed suit a few years later.
Landmark's predecessor, Norfolk Newspapers, entered broadcasting in 1930, when it bought Virginia's oldest radio station,
WTAR
WTAR (850 AM) is a commercial radio station licensed to Norfolk, Virginia, and serving the Hampton Roads (Norfolk-Virginia Beach-Newport News) radio market. WTAR is owned and operated by Sinclair Telecable, Inc. It broadcasts a hot adult cont ...
. It later added Virginia's second television station (and
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James, Nansemond and Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's Point where the Chesapeake Bay flows into the Atlantic ...
' first), WTAR-TV (now
WTKR
WTKR (channel 3) is a television station licensed to Norfolk, Virginia, United States, serving the Hampton Roads area as an affiliate of CBS. It is owned by E. W. Scripps Company alongside Portsmouth-licensed CW affiliate WGNT (channel 27). ...
) and an FM station (now
WVKL). It acquired
WFMY-TV
WFMY-TV (channel 2) is a television station licensed to Greensboro, North Carolina, United States, serving as the CBS affiliate for the Piedmont Triad region. Owned by Tegna Inc., the station maintains studios on Phillips Avenue in Greensboro, ...
in Greensboro as part of its purchase of the
Greensboro, North Carolina newspapers in 1965. However,
U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) cross-ownership rules forced Landmark to sell off WFMY in 1976 and WTAR-TV in 1981. Under the rules then, a company could not own both a newspaper and a television station in the same market.
Landmark was an owner of
KNTV
KNTV (channel 11), branded as NBC Bay Area, is a television station licensed to San Jose, California, United States, serving as the San Francisco Bay Area's NBC network outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television ...
in
San Jose, California
San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popu ...
from 1978 to 1990. During its 12-year ownership of the station, KNTV (then affiliated with
ABC and serving the
Monterey
Monterey (; es, Monterrey; Ohlone: ) is a city located in Monterey County on the southern edge of Monterey Bay on the U.S. state of California's Central Coast. Founded on June 3, 1770, it functioned as the capital of Alta California under bot ...
/
Salinas media market) was its only station that was not an affiliate of the
CBS network. Landmark briefly owned
WDBJ-TV in
Roanoke, Virginia
Roanoke ( ) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 100,011, making it the 8th most populous city in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the largest city in Virginia west of Richmond. It is ...
, but was forced to sell it immediately due to FCC restrictions. Landmark owned
The Travel Channel
Travel Channel (stylized as Trvl Channel since 2018) is an American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, which had previously owned the channel from 1997 to 2007. The channel is headquartered in New York, New York, United S ...
from 1992 to 1996, when it was sold to
Paxson Communications
Ion Media (formerly known as Paxson Communications Corporation and Ion Media Networks) was an American broadcasting company that owned and operated over 71 television stations in most major American markets (through its television stations group ...
.
The company owned ''
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
'' magazine from 1990 to 1995, when it was sold to
Primedia
Primedia is a South African media group, headquartered in Sandton, Johannesburg.
History
Primedia was established in 1994 and its listing on the JSE Securities Exchange was completed in April 1995. Primedia remained listed on the JSE until 1 O ...
. At one time, Landmark owned a minority share of the
''Washingtonian'' magazine, until its rights were traded to Eleanor Merrill, widow of its publisher
Philip Merrill
Philip Merrill (April 28, 1934 – June 10, 2006) was an American diplomat, publisher, banker, and philanthropist.
Career
Born Philip Merrill Levine, he was a graduate of Cornell University and Harvard Business School. At Cornell, he was manag ...
, in exchange for full ownership of the ''
Annapolis Capital'' and five other
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
newspapers.
Landmark owned the hobby publisher
Antique Trader Publications
An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...
until its sale to
Krause Publications in 1999. In December 2001, Landmark announced it would close its subsidiary
Church Impressions, based in
Greenville, North Carolina, which published church directories, portraits, and other print and web media products.
Landmark once owned four
career training schools that focus on health-related career education:
Glendale Career College,
Certified Careers Institute
Certification is the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestation or confirmation of certain characteristics of a ...
,
Nevada Career Institute and
Virginia Career Institute.
On September 19, 2007, it was announced that Continental Broadband (CB), a Landmark Communications (Landmark Media Enterprises) company, sold its South Florida business unit, WebUnited, to Host.net, the leading provider of data center (colocation) and managed network services in Florida. On May 15, 2009, CB sold its Chicago business unit, ANET, to
Cogent Communications
Cogent Communications is a multinational internet service provider based in the United States. Cogent's primary services consist of Internet access and data transport, offered on a fiber optic, IP data-only network, along with colocation in data ...
, a global Internet service provider. On January 23, 2010, CB divested its Richmond Business Unit, NET Telcos, to
Cavalier Telephone
Cavalier Telephone is an American Local Exchange Carrier (NRCLEC) company, owned by parent company Windstream Communications operating in 16 states and DC throughout the eastern US. Cavalier founded in 1998, is an internet and telecommunication ...
, a full-service provider of telecommunications solutions.
In early 2008, the Landmark confirmed that it was exploring the sale of the entire company. Two separate
investment banks
Investment banking pertains to certain activities of a financial services company or a corporate division that consist in advisory-based financial transactions on behalf of individuals, corporations, and governments. Traditionally associated wit ...
,
JPMorgan Chase
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered in New York City and incorporated in Delaware. As of 2022, JPMorgan Chase is the largest bank in the United States, the ...
and
Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. ( ) was an American global financial services firm founded in 1847. Before filing for bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth-largest investment bank in the United States (behind Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, a ...
, were hired to help with the sale of
The Weather Channel
The Weather Channel (TWC) is an American pay television channel owned by Weather Group, LLC, a subsidiary of Allen Media Group. The channel's headquarters are in Atlanta, Georgia. Launched on May 2, 1982, the channel broadcasts weather foreca ...
and the newspapers.
Landmark's best-known media outlet was the Weather Channel, based in
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...
. As part of its divestiture, the company announced in July 2008 the $3.5 billion sale of its Weather Channel properties, which included its share of
The Weather Network
The Weather Network (TWN) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English language, English-language weather information specialty channel available in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. It delivers weather information on television, ...
and weather.com, plus
Weather Services International and
MétéoMédia, to a consortium comprising
NBCUniversal
NBCUniversal Media, LLC is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate corporation owned by Comcast and headquartered at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States.
NBCUniversal is primaril ...
and the
private equity
In the field of finance, the term private equity (PE) refers to investment funds, usually limited partnerships (LP), which buy and restructure financially weak companies that produce goods and provide services. A private-equity fund is both a t ...
firms
Blackstone Group
Blackstone Inc. is an American alternative investment management company based in New York City. Blackstone's private equity business has been one of the largest investors in leveraged buyouts in the last three decades, while its real estate bu ...
and
Bain Capital
Bain Capital is an American private investment firm based in Boston. It specializes in private equity, venture capital, credit, public equity, impact investing, life sciences, and real estate. Bain Capital invests across a range of industry se ...
. Landmark and NBC Universal completed the sale on September 12, 2008.
On July 14 of that year, it was announced that
WTVF
WTVF (channel 5) is a television station in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is owned by the E. W. Scripps Company alongside Ion Television owned-and-operated station WNPX-TV (channel 28). WTVF's studios are locate ...
in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...
would be sold to
Bonten Media Group
Bonten Media Group was a New York City-based owner of television broadcast stations in the United States. It was formed by Randall D. Bongarten and Diamond Castle Holdings in November 2006. Its first acquisition was 14 stations from Bluestone T ...
,
but that sale did not close. Landmark eventually sold the station to
Journal Communications
Journal Media Group (formerly Journal Communications) was a Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based newspaper publishing company. The company's roots were first established in 1882 as the owner of its namesake, the ''Milwaukee Journal'', and expanded into br ...
in 2012.
In October 2008, the company suspended further sales of its properties, citing the ongoing credit crisis, with the exception of ''
The Virginian-Pilot
''The Virginian-Pilot'' is the daily newspaper for Norfolk, Virginia. Commonly known as ''The Pilot'', it is Virginia's largest daily. It serves the five cities of South Hampton Roads as well as several smaller towns across southeast Virgini ...
'' newspaper.
Landmark sold the ''
News & Record
The ''News & Record'' is an American, English language newspaper with the largest circulation serving Guilford County, North Carolina, and the surrounding region. It is based in Greensboro, North Carolina, and produces local sections for Greensbo ...
'' newspaper in
Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, North Car ...
to
Berkshire Hathaway
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. () is an American multinational conglomerate holding company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. Its main business and source of capital is insurance, from which it invests the float (the retained premiu ...
on January 31, 2013. In May 2013, Landmark sold the ''
Roanoke Times'', the metropolitan newspaper serving
Roanoke, Virginia
Roanoke ( ) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 100,011, making it the 8th most populous city in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the largest city in Virginia west of Richmond. It is ...
, also to Berkshire Hathaway.
Landmark sold its Maryland newspapers to ''
The Baltimore Sun
''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries.
Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by T ...
'' Media Group on May 1, 2014.
CBS affiliate
KLAS-TV
KLAS-TV (channel 8) is a television station in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, affiliated with CBS and owned by Nexstar Media Group. The station's studios are located on Channel 8 Drive near the northern portion of the Las Vegas Strip in the ...
, based in
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...
, was acquired by Landmark in 1978 from a trust left by
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...
upon his death. On November 21, 2014,
Nexstar Broadcasting Group announced that it planned to purchase KLAS for $145 million.
The sale closed on February 13, 2015.
In 2016,
Dominion Enterprises sold Dominion Marine Media (BoatTrader.com, YachtWorld.com, Boats.com) to funds advised by Apax Partners. The company is now
Boats Group
Boats Group is a Miami, Florida, United States, based advertising and software company for the marine industry with niche titles: YachtWorld, BoatTrader.com, boats.com, Annonces du Bateau, Boten te Koop, Cosas de Barcos, Boatshop24, Boats and ...
.
In 2017,
Dominion Enterprises sold Dominion Web Solutions (CycleTrader.com, RVTrader.com, CommercialTruckTrader.com, EquipmentTrader.com) to
Eurazeo and West Street Capital Partners VII, a fund managed by the Goldman Sachs Merchant Banking Division. The company is now called Trader Interactive.
On Sept. 12, 2017,
CoStar Group
CoStar Group, Inc. is a Washington, DC-based provider of information, analytics and marketing services to the commercial property industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Spain. Founded in 1987 by Andrew C. ...
agreed to purchase the ForRent apartment advertising division of
Dominion Enterprises.
In May 2018, Landmark sold ''
The Virginian-Pilot
''The Virginian-Pilot'' is the daily newspaper for Norfolk, Virginia. Commonly known as ''The Pilot'', it is Virginia's largest daily. It serves the five cities of South Hampton Roads as well as several smaller towns across southeast Virgini ...
'' and its associated publications and websites to
Tribune Publishing.
In October 2019, Landmark sold Expedient Data Centers to
AMP Capital
AMP Capital is a large global investment manager headquartered in Sydney, Australia. Its owner, AMP Group, was established in 1849, and is one of Australia's largest retail and corporate pension providers. AMP Capital has a strategic alliance ...
.
In November 2020, Landmark sold its seven+ remaining Colorado newspapers -- Brighton Standard Blade, Fort Lupton Press, Commerce City Sentinel Express, Metro Advertiser, Canyon Courier, Clear Creek Courant and 285 Hustler to Colorado Community Media.
In April 2021, Landmark announced the sale of Homes.com, a unit of its Dominion Enterprises subsidiary, to CoStar Group Inc. for $156 million.
In May 2021, Landmark Community Newspapers was sold to
Paxton Media Group.
Television stations
Stations are alphabetically by state and
city of license
In American, Canadian, and Mexican broadcasting, a city of license or community of license is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator.
In North American br ...
.
* (**) - ''indicates a station that was built and signed-on by Landmark.''
Financial news
In 2008, Landmark announced that it would terminate its pension fund, which covered some of its retirees and current employees. The plan was fully funded. The pension beneficiaries were able to choose between a lump-sum distribution or an annuity provided by an insurance company.
References
External links
Who Owns What: Landmark Communications from the ''
Columbia Journalism Review
The ''Columbia Journalism Review'' (''CJR'') is a biannual magazine for professional journalists that has been published by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism since 1961. Its contents include news and media industry trends, an ...
''
LCNI buys Pageland paper a June 2005 article about Landmark's purchase of the ''
Pageland Progressive-Journal''
{{The Weather Channel
Mass media companies of the United States
Newspaper companies of the United States
Privately held companies of the United States
Companies based in Norfolk, Virginia
Publishing companies established in 1905
1905 establishments in Virginia