PINEDALE, Wyo. — Six days after News Media Corporation closed down the Pinedale Roundup and seven other local newspapers in rural Wyoming, a deal has been reached and the papers will be revived and resume publication immediately.
The Pinedale Roundup posted an announcement to Facebook on Tuesday, Aug. 12, accompanied by a photo of the door to the newsroom opening once again.
According to the post, Wyoming newspaper icons Robb and Jen Hicks and Rob Mortimore reached an initial agreement with News Media Corporation to purchase the eight Wyoming news outlets and restart printing right away. Robb Hicks said the agreement calls for rehiring all the newspapers’ staff, which was estimated at 30 people.
“We are honored to assume stewardship of these legacy community newspapers,” said Robb Hicks. “Our foremost priority has been to ensure that these counties are not left without a credible, enduring source of local journalism.”
On Aug. 6, CEO of News Media Corporation JJ Tompkins announced the sudden and immediate closure of the company’s eight Wyoming publications, as well as its newspapers in other states.
“The news of the papers’ closure was met with shock and sadness in the communities the papers serve,” reads Pinedale Roundup’s social media post. “In Facebook comments, community members lamented the loss to their communities and questioned whether there might be options to reopen the publications.”
Mortimore has over 20 years of experience in the news industry and was News Media Corporation’s group publisher for the Wyoming publications prior to the closure. According to the post, Mortimore will remain at the helm for the bloc of papers. Robb and Jen Hicks have owned and operated the Buffalo Bulletin since 1996 and have “multigenerational ties to Wyoming newspapers that date back over seven decades.”
