LITTLE ROCK — Halifax Media Holdings LLC, of which Little Rock investor Warren Stephens has controlling interest, has purchased 20 newspapers in Florida and North Carolina owned by Irvine, Calif.-based Freedom Communications.
Halifax, based in Daytona Beach, Fla., did not release the terms of the agreement, which is expected to close within 30 days. In December 2011, the firm purchased 16 regional newspapers owned by the New York Times Co. for $143 million.
Stephens Capital Partners LLC is Warren Stephens’ private equity investment firm. It is not affiliated with Stephens Media Group, which operates newspapers across the country, including more than 20 newspapers in Arkansas and is also owned by Warren Stephens.
“The purchase of Freedom’s Florida and North Carolina properties further demonstrates our commitment to newspapers, not only for their value as an investment, but for the value they provide to the communities they serve,” Halifax Chief Executive Officer Michael Redding said in a prepared statement released Friday. “These properties provide a perfect extension to our recently acquired New York Times Regional Newspaper Group papers and reflect our interest in preserving community journalism for many years to come.”
The papers include the Northwest Florida Daily News, based in Fort Walton Beach, Fla., with a daily circulation of 28,407 and a Sunday circulation of 33,386, according to the 2010 Editor and Publisher Yearbook.
Among the other newspapers are: The Daily News of Jacksonville, N.C., with a daily circulation of 19,155 and a Sunday circulation of 19,962; The Free Press of Kinston, N.C., with a daily circulation of 11,143 and a Sunday circulation of 11,874; The Gaston Gazette of Gastonia, N.C., with a daily circulation of 24,563 and a Sunday circulation of 27,259; The Sun Journal and The Shopper of New Bern,N.C., with a daily circulation of 14,202 and a Sunday circulation of 15,419; The Star of Shelby, N.C., with a 14,164 daily circulation and a Sunday circulation of 14,389; and The News Herald of Panama City, Fla., with a daily circulation of 23,773 and a Sunday circulation of 28,993.
The other 13 newspapers, which were not listed in the yearbook, are: The Times of Apalachicola, Fla.; The Holmes County Times Advertiser of Bonifay, Fla.; Times-News of Burlington, N.C.; The Havelock News of Havelock, N.C.; The Star of Port St. Joe, Fla.; The Walton Sun of Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.; the Washington County News of Chipley, Fla.; The Crestview News Bulletin of Crestview, Fla.; The Destin Log of Destin, Fla.; The Jones Post of Kinston, N.C.; The Santa Rosa Press Gazette and the Santa Rosa Free Press of Milton, N.C.; and The Topsail Advertiser of Surf City, N.C.
Business, Pages 21 on 06/05/2012