Versa Capital Management today announced the completion of its acquisition of four community newspapers from Freedom Communications: The Telegraph in Alton, IL; The Journal-Courier in Jacksonville, IL; The Sedalia Democrat in Sedalia, MO; and The Lima News in Lima, OH. “These four publications are an important part of their communities and are well-recognized as valuable sources of local news and information,” said Gregory Segall, Versa CEO and founder. “We are pleased to welcome them into our growing community newspaper portfolio in the Midwest.” Versa also recently acquired the Wilkes-Barre Times Leader in northeastern Pennsylvania.
Among Versa’s portfolio companies is Ohio Community Media, which owns and operates 14 daily newspapers and 30 weeklies serving communities in northern and western Ohio. The company’s publications deliver news and feature stories about people, events, schools, businesses, sports, and government, as well as news in the areas of classifieds, entertainment, gas prices, lottery, movies, and stocks. Ohio Community Media was formerly known as Brown Publishing Company and changed its name to Ohio Community Media in September 2010. The company was founded in 1920 and is based in Tipp City, OH (www.ohcommedia.com).
“We are pleased to conclude the transaction and to add to our community newspaper platform. We look forward to continuing to serve the communities in which these papers operate with quality, locally-focused content and services, both in print and online,” said Scott Champion, Chief Executive Officer of Ohio Community Media.
Versa Capital Management invests in special situations involving middle market companies with revenues in the $100 million to $1 billion range or assets of $25 million to $500 million. The firm has$1.2 billion of capital under management and is based in Philadelphia, PA (www.versa.com).
