CNHI, LLC (formerly Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc.) is an American
publisher
Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...
of
newspaper
A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, 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 poli ...
s and advertising-related publications throughout the United States. The company was formed in 1997 by Ralph Martin,
[Company History: Community Newspaper Holdings Inc.](_blank)
a
Answers.com
(accessed March 31, 2010) and is based in
Montgomery, Alabama
Montgomery is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama. Named for Continental Army major general Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River on the Gulf Coastal Plain. The population was 2 ...
(after moving from
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...
in September 2011). The company is financed by, and is a subsidiary of, the
Retirement Systems of Alabama
Retirement Systems of Alabama is the administrator of the pension fund for employees of the state of Alabama. It is headquartered in the state capital Montgomery, Alabama. David G. Bronner is the chief executive officer.
Under Bronner's leade ...
(RSA).
History
The company has been formed by acquisitions. It started by acquiring many of the smaller former
Park
A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...
papers from
Media General
Media General, Inc. was an American media company based in Richmond, Virginia. The company's origins can be traced back to 1887 when Richmond attorney Joseph Bryan acquired ''The Richmond Daily Times'', which later became ''The Richmond Times-D ...
. Two years later, it bought several papers from
Hollinger International
Hollinger Inc. was a Canadian media company based in Toronto which was established in 1985 by businessman Conrad Black. At one time, the company was the third-largest media empire in the world. In 1996, through stock purchases, it took over co ...
. In 2000, it acquired another batch of papers from the
Thomson Corporation
Thomson Corporation was one of the world's largest information companies. It was established in 1989 following a merger between International Thomson Organization and Thomson Newspapers. In 2008, it purchased Reuters Group to form Thomson Reut ...
.
In 2002, CNHI paid $182 million for 4 daily newspapers and other non-daily publications from Ottaway Newspapers Inc., the community newspaper group of Dow Jones & Co. Inc., that Ottaway had determined not to be growth markets. In 2006, the company acquired 6 more newspapers from Ottaway. Ottaway used $144 million of the 2002 sale to buy
''The Record'' newspaper in Stockton, California, in 2003. In September 2013, Dow Jones, which had renamed the properties as Dow Jones Local Media Group, sold the entire remaining group of 33 community newspapers to Newcastle Investment Corp. for a total of only $87 million. In 2007, CNHI sold the ''
Santa Cruz Sentinel
The ''Santa Cruz Sentinel'' is a daily newspaper published in Santa Cruz, California, covering Santa Cruz County, California, and owned by Media News Group, which is controlled by Alden Global Capital.
History
The paper was owned by the McP ...
'', a former Ottaway publication, to
MediaNews Group
MNG Enterprises, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Digital First Media and MediaNews Group, is a Denver, Colorado, United States–based newspaper publisher owned by Alden Global Capital. As of May 2021, it owns over 100 newspapers and 200 ass ...
.
CNHI owned 90 daily newspapers and more than 200 non-daily newspapers in 22 states. George Wakefield is CNHI chairman; Donna Barrett is president and
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization.
CEOs find roles in variou ...
. CNHI newspapers are clustered in groups that cross-sell packages to advertisers
and occasionally feature shared editorial content.
In 2009, CNHI implemented mandatory
furlough
A furlough (; from , "leave of absence") is a temporary cessation of paid employment that is intended to address the special needs of a company or employer; these needs may be due to economic conditions that affect a specific employer, or to thos ...
s for most non-sales staff, requiring employees to take a mandatory week off without pay every quarter. these DOWOP (days off without pay) were still in effect. Also in 2014, most CNHI newspaper sites put a paywall into place, requiring readers to subscribe after reading 5 articles.
On June 24, 2010, the company announced that it would relocate its headquarters and about 70 jobs to
Montgomery, Alabama
Montgomery is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama. Named for Continental Army major general Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River on the Gulf Coastal Plain. The population was 2 ...
, into the
RSA Dexter Tower Building when that building is complete in late 2011 or early 2012.
Like its former headquarters in Birmingham, the new building is owned by
RSA, which is the principal source of investment funding for CNHI.
David G. Bronner, CEO of
RSA, said the move will be good for the community and the company. ''The Montgomery Advertiser'' newspaper reported that Bronner was a key player in the move. With CNHI's Birmingham lease expiring, the decision to bring the company to Montgomery "was something that I strongly suggested," he said, according to the newspaper. The city and Montgomery County offered $300,000 in incentives to pay moving costs for the company.
In April 2012, along with
GateHouse Media
GateHouse Media Inc. was an American publisher of locally based print and digital media. It published 144 daily newspapers, 684 community publications, and over 569 local-market websites in 38 states. Its parent company, New Media Investment Group ...
,
Lee Enterprises
Lee Enterprises, Inc. is a publicly traded American media company. It publishes 72 daily newspapers in 25 states, and more than 350 weekly, classified, and specialty publications. Lee Enterprises was founded in 1890 by Alfred Wilson Lee and is b ...
and the
E. W. Scripps Company
The E. W. Scripps Company, also known as Scripps, is an American broadcasting company founded in 1878 as a chain of daily newspapers by Edward Willis "E. W." Scripps and his sister, Ellen Browning Scripps. It was also formerly a media conglom ...
, CNHI invested in Find n Save, an online company which offers local media an online shopping platform.
On September 25, 2017,
Raycom Media
Raycom Media, Inc. was an American television broadcasting company based in Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery, Alabama. Raycom owned and/or provided services for 65 television stations and two radio stations across 44 markets in 20 states. Raycom ...
announced that it would merge with CNHI. Both companies are already principally owned by
RSA, and there were to be administrative and content synergies between the properties. CNHI continued to operate as a subsidiary of Raycom. To comply with FCC newspaper cross-ownership restrictions, CNHI was to divest papers in the seven markets where Raycom also owns television stations.
In January 2018, CNHI announced it would be moving to a regional editor system where a small number of editors would oversee coverage of regions and states.
On June 25, 2018,
Gray Television
Gray Media, Inc., doing business as Gray Television, is an American publicly traded television broadcasting company based in Atlanta. Founded in 1946 by James Harrison Gray as Gray Communications Systems, the company owns or operates 180 statio ...
announced it would be acquiring Raycom's television assets. CNHI was not included in the sale to Gray and CNHI is currently seeking to sell off its newspapers, as a whole or piecemeal. With the completion of the purchase on January 2, 2019, the newspapers were re-organized to a direct subsidiary of
RSA as Raycom ceased to exist.
In May 2024, CNHI sold ten newspapers across Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi, along with a print facility, to Carpenter Media Group.
In January 2025, CNHI furloughed 46 employees, roughly 3% of the company's workforce.
CNHI newspapers
As can be inferred by its former name of Community Newspaper Holdings Inc., CNHI tends to acquire newspapers in smaller markets and
suburb
A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...
s of larger cities. , few of its
dailies
In filmmaking, dailies or rushes are the raw, film editing, unedited footage shot during the making of a motion picture. The term "dailies" comes from when movies were all shot on film because usually at the end of each day, the footage was dev ...
had circulations above 20,000, including:
* ''
The Eagle-Tribune
''The Eagle-Tribune'' (and ''Sunday Eagle-Tribune'') is a morning daily newspaper covering the Merrimack Valley and Essex County, Massachusetts, and southern New Hampshire. It is the largest-circulation daily newspaper owned by Community Newspa ...
'' of
North Andover, Massachusetts
North Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 30,915.
History
Native Americans inhabited what is now northeastern Massachusetts for thousands of years prior to European colonizati ...
—49,700
[Audit Bureau of Circulation](_blank)
"eCirc" data for six months ending September 30, 2006. Accessed December 10, 2006. Figures are approximate.
* ''
The Tribune-Democrat
''The Tribune-Democrat'' is a five-day morning daily newspaper published in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. It is owned by CNHI LLC.
The newspaper's coverage area includes all or parts of Blair, Bedford, Cambria, Indiana, Somerset and Westmoreland ...
'' of
Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown is the largest city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 18,411 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located east of Pittsburgh, it is the principal city of the Metropolitan statistical area ...
—41,200
[, figures for an undetermined date, accessed January 17, 2007. Figures are approximate.]
* ''
The Joplin Globe
''The Joplin Globe'' is a seven-day digital edition and five-day print edition daily newspaper published in Joplin, Missouri, United States, covering parts of 14 counties in southwestern Missouri. Ottaway Community Newspapers owned the ''Globe' ...
'' of
Joplin, Missouri
Joplin is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, Jasper and Newton County, Missouri, Newton counties in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Missouri. The bulk of the city is in Jasper County, while the southern portion is in Newton County. J ...
—30,600
* ''
Cumberland Times-News'' of
Cumberland, Maryland
Cumberland is a city in Allegany County, Maryland, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 19,075. Located on the Potomac River, Cumberland is a regional business and comm ...
—30,200
* ''
The Salem News
''The Salem News'' (formerly ''The Salem Evening News'') is an American daily newspaper serving southern Essex County, Massachusetts. Although the paper is named for the city of Salem, its offices are now in nearby Danvers, Massachusetts. The ...
'' of
Salem, Massachusetts
Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem was one ...
—30,000
* ''
The Register-Herald
''The Register-Herald'' is a six-day morning daily newspaper, Monday through Friday, with a weekend edition delivered on Saturday mornings. It is based in Beckley, West Virginia, United States. It also covers surrounding communities in Fayette, ...
'' of
Beckley, West Virginia
Beckley is a city in Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States, and its county seat. The population was 17,286 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in West Virginia, ninth-most populous city in th ...
—28,700
* ''
Tribune-Star
The ''Tribune-Star'' is a seven-day morning daily newspaper based in Terre Haute, Indiana, covering the Wabash Valley area of Indiana and Illinois. It is owned by Community Newspaper Holdings. Counties within the newspaper's coverage areas in ...
'' of
Terre Haute, Indiana
Terre Haute ( ) is a city in Vigo County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 58,389 and Terre Haute metropolitan area, its metropolitan area had a populati ...
—27,900
* ''
The Herald Bulletin
''The Herald Bulletin'' is a daily newspaper serving Anderson, Indiana, and adjacent areas northeast of Indianapolis. It is owned by CNHI.
History
''The Bulletin'' was established as a daily in 1883, adding a weekly edition on Saturday in 1885 ...
'' of
Anderson, Indiana
Anderson is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Indiana, United States. The population was 54,788 at the 2020 census. It is named after Chief William Anderson. The city is the headquarters of the Church of God and its Anderson ...
—24,300
* ''
Kokomo Tribune
The ''Kokomo Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Kokomo, Indiana, United States. It is owned by CNHI.
History
The ''Kokomo Tribune'' can trace its history back to October 1850, when the weekly ''Howard Tribune'' was founded in Kokomo to c ...
'' of
Kokomo, Indiana
Kokomo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Indiana, United States. Its population was 60,093 according to the U.S. Census Bureau 2024 estimate. It is the principal city of the Kokomo, Indiana metropolitan area, Kokomo metropol ...
—21,900
* ''
Mankato Free Press
''The Free Press'' is an American, English language daily newspaper published in Mankato, Minnesota.
History
The first newspaper published in Mankato, the ''Mankato Weekly Independent'', began publication in 1857. Six years later, it was bought ...
'' of
Mankato, Minnesota
Mankato ( ) is a city in Blue Earth County, Minnesota, Blue Earth, Nicollet County, Minnesota, Nicollet, and Le Sueur County, Minnesota, Le Sueur counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is the county seat of Blue Earth County, Minnesota. The ...
—21,700
* ''
The Herald'' of
Sharon, Pennsylvania
Sharon is a city in western Mercer County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city, located along the banks of the Shenango River on the state border with Ohio, is about northeast of Youngstown, about southeast of Cleveland and about northwe ...
—20,400
* ''
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
The ''Bluefield Daily Telegraph'' is a newspaper based in Bluefield, West Virginia, and also covering surrounding communities in McDowell, Mercer and Monroe counties, West Virginia; and Bland, Buchanan, Giles and Tazewell counties, Virgin ...
'' of
Bluefield, West Virginia
Bluefield is a city in Mercer County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 9,658 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Bluefield micropolitan area extending into Virginia, which had a populatio ...
—20,400
See also
*
Concentration of media ownership
In chemistry, concentration is the abundance of a constituent divided by the total volume of a mixture. Several types of mathematical description can be distinguished: '' mass concentration'', '' molar concentration'', '' number concentration'', ...
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
CNHI News website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Community Newspaper Holdings
Newspaper companies of the United States
Mass media companies of the United States
Privately held companies of the United States
Companies based in Montgomery, Alabama
Publishing companies established in 1997
1997 establishments in Alabama