Chicago Public Media Closes On Sun-Times Acquisition

Chicago Tribune photo

Backed by $61 million from foundations and individuals, the Chicago Sun-Times on Monday became part of the parent company of public radio station WBEZ in a venture setting out to strengthen local journalism despite steep losses in traditional revenue sources.

With the closing of the noncash sale of the Sun-Times to Chicago Public Media, the newspaper becomes a nonprofit for the first time in its history. Executives said the philanthropy is pledged over five years and will help the Sun-Times broaden its reporting, expand digitally and maintain its print product.

Chicago Public Media said it will continue raising other funds to ensure sustainable financing for the Sun-Times. It said WBEZ, which is 60% listener-supported, will continue to rely on community funding for its news operations

Matt Moog, CEO of Chicago Public Media, told the Sun-Times the cash infusion will be managed with an “invest and grow” strategy, with a focus on digital growth. The combined organizations have about 300 employees, and Moog said he expects that to expand by 40 to 50 people across all functions. “There will be hiring in virtually every area of both places,” he said.

The $61 million is the largest philanthropic amount committed to local reporting in the U.S. known to the Institute for Nonprofit News, said the group’s communication director, Sharene Azimi.

Rick Edmonds, analyst at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, agreed that the philanthropic involvement is huge. He compared it to businessman Stewart Bainum Jr.’s commitment of $50 million to a nonprofit news outlet in Baltimore after his offer for the Baltimore Sun was rejected.

Edmonds also said newspapers or their digital sides have partnered elsewhere with public radio stations. “This one takes it to a much higher level,” he said of the Sun-Times-WBEZ union.

Subjects to get greater coverage will be decided by the newsroom leaderships, Moog said in an interview, but he suggested arts and culture and the environment as areas to consider. Both the Sun-Times and WBEZ are in search of executive editors to lead their newsgathering.

In a news release announcing the deal’s closing, Moog said, “The response from the philanthropic community has been tremendous, and we are deeply indebted to this community of donors leading the way to invest in and protect journalism in Chicago. With their support, our talented team will tell the stories that matter and serve more people than ever before with human-centered, solutions-oriented journalism. We aim to connect Chicagoans more deeply to each other, to their communities, and to the issues and solutions that shape their lives.”

The sale, plans for which were announced in September, creates one of the largest nonprofit news organizations in the country. Together, the Sun-Times and WBEZ will reach more than 2 million people a week and their content can be shared across various platforms, executives said.

Across the country, many newspapers have closed or barely have a presence in their communities as advertising and readership have moved elsewhere. Some, such as the Chicago Tribune, are now owned by hedge funds that have slashed staffs.

The Sun-Times has endured years of financial travails as it passed through several owners and a bankruptcy in 2009. Sun-Times executives said the paper has narrowed its financial losses in recent years, making it an attractive partner for WBEZ.

Since 2017 and until Monday, the paper has been owned by private investors, unions and the Chicago Federation of Labor. Sacks and W. Rockwell “Rocky” Wirtz, owner of the Chicago Blackhawks, later invested. The partnership continued the daily print publication while spending to achieve more digital revenue. The paper added to its editorial staff, ending years of cuts under prior owners.

The long-unprofitable Chicago Sun-Times, which sold just over four years ago for $1, has been reborn as a nonprofit newspaper with $61 million in backing through a potentially groundbreaking merger with public radio station WBEZ-FM 91.5.

Founded in 1948 by Marshall Field III, the Sun-Times has had a succession of owners, including media baron Rupert Murdoch, who bought it in 1984. Murdoch was forced to sell the Sun-Times in 1986 after acquiring WFLD-Ch. 32 because of Federal Communications Commission cross-ownership restrictions.