Times Media Group, a Valley-based publisher of 15 local community news publications, acquired the East Valley Tribune and the Ahwatukee Foothills News from the papers’ previous owners, 10/13 Communications.
Times Media Group and its CEO, Steve Strickbine, will immediately assume day-to-day operations of both publications – a management scenario that Strickbine, a resident of Mesa for more than 10 years, describes as “a bit of a dream come true.”
“I started in this business almost 20 years ago because I wanted to help tell great stories and better connect people to the communities where they live,” Strickbine said. “I grew up in the Valley. I’ve been a reader of the Tribune and the Foothills News for years. I believe we can help make two great newspaper brands even better by expanding their resources, Times Media Group’s offerings and creating even more value for our readers and our advertisers.”
The East Valley Tribune, a Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper, served Valley communities since its founding as Mesa’s first newspaper in 1891. 10/13 Communications acquired the Tribune in 2009, after its owner, Freedom Communications, filed for bankruptcy. The twice-weekly Ahwatukee Foothills News, acquired by 10/13 in 2010, was founded in 1976. It’s website, Ahwatukee.com, also joins Times Media Group as part of the transaction.
Terms of the deal between Times Media Group and 10/13 have not been disclosed. 10/13 will continue to publish the Daily News Sun in Sun City, Surprise Today, Glendale Today, Peoria Today and the Clipper magazine.
Strickbine quit his job as a CPA in 1997 to start a small community newspaper in North Scottsdale. Today, Times Media Group publishes the Scottsdale Airpark News, the College Times, the Entertainer magazine, Lovin’ Life After 50, the San Tan Sun News, the Gilbert Sun News and more than a dozen other community newspapers, websites and magazines Valleywide. Times Media Group owns and operates Arizona Integrated Media, a statewide distribution and custom publishing company. The company also recently launched Phoenix.org, a citywide resource for residents and visitors.
While acquiring two newspapers in the midst of journalism’s increasingly digital age may strike some as contrarian, Strickbine sees it as a unique opportunity to expand the reach of the publications and his media company by creating more and better content – compelling stories that touch every aspect of East Valley life, from local heroes to government institutions held accountable, local sports coverage to features about the people who make Mesa, Ahwatukee and their neighboring communities tick.
“The more deeply journalism taps into the communities we serve, the better the stories we tell and the more people read, click and interact,” Strickbine said. “The Trib and the Foothills News are two quality institutions that have faced the same challenges every newspaper has faced over the past decade. I believe we will bring stability and a new excitement that will make two great newspapers even better. We can’t wait to get started.”
