New Times Media, the publisher of Denver’s Westword newspaper, announced today that it will acquire the parent company of the Village Voice.
The deal creates the nation’s largest alternative newspaper chain, with 17 free weekly newspapers and 1.8 million in combined circulation.
The proposed merger has sparked concerns from both both federal regulators and industry members, some of whom say the combined company will be too large to uphold the watchdog role of alternative newspapers.
“The deal is pretty controversial in our industry,” said Richard Karpel, executive director for the Association of Alternative News Weeklies, a trade group that represents 126 papers. “There is no consensus among our members.”
However, Jack Shafer, media critic for the Slate, an online news magazine, said New Times has a track record of delivering “brillant watchdog journalism.”
“Every (paper) they have purchased has improved and gone after established political and business interests,” Shafer said.
New Times, the privately held Phoenix-based company that purchased Westword in 1983, is the acquiring company but will use name Village Voice Media. It already owns 11 alternative newspapers and will add Village Voice’s six papers.
New Times chief executive Jim Larkin will head the company, and New Times executive editor Michael Lacey will hold the same position at the merged company.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the combined companies are valued at $400 million, according to published reports.
The merger, pending federal regulatory approval, is expected to close early next year.
In Denver, the deal’s affect will probably be “nil,” said Patty Calhoun, Westword’s editor.
“We are so local, and that wouldn’t change,” said Calhoun, who founded the alternative paper in 1977.
New Times has made about 10 acquisitions during its ownership of Westword, Calhoun said, and few of those deals substantially changed the paper’s editorial content.
Westword employs about 70, including 18 full-time workers in the editorial department. The paper has free weekly circulation of 105,000, Calhoun said.
The Village Voice, which launched in 1955 as a quirky source for all that is New York, quickly emerged as a model for alternative newspapers. It pioneered “point-of-view” reporting, a type of journalism where writers more freely reveal their personal opinions compared to traditional media.
“They are the granddaddy,” industry spokesman Karpel. “A lot of alternative newspapers were inspired by the Village Voice.”
Staff writer Will Shanley can be reached at 303-820-1260 or wshanley@denverpost.com
