What? Is The Cynthiana Democrat for sale? Maybe. At least, the parent company, Landmark Communications, is looking into possibly selling off some of it’s subsidiaries:
Landmark’s CEO, Frank Batten Jr., said in a statement Thursday that the privately held company has retained JPMorgan and Lehman Brothers to help it explore possible sale scenarios.
Landmark’s companies include The Weather Channel, two television stations, a marketing and design firms, a broadband Internet service provider, and a handful of publishing firms; including Landmark Community Newspapers, Inc., which publishes 54 newspapers nationwide (parent company to The Cynthiana Democrat).
While no official word of any interested buyers, or whether Landmark will sell off any portion of it’s interests has been released, the Associated Press has quoted Batten as saying, “At this early stage, we cannot speculate on where this process will lead.” No further comments from Batten have been made. (Landmark, 2008)
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The Cynthiana Democrat has been published since 1868. After numerous sales and acquisitions through the years, The Cynthiana Democrat and Cynthiana Publishing Company were purchased by Landmark Community Newspapers in 1974. (The Cynthiana Democrat, 2008)
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Landmark Communications’ history is rooted in Samuel Slover’s (Batten’s Great-uncle) acquisition of the Newport News-Times Herald, and acquisitions of other newspapers in the Norfolk, VA area which led to the formation of Norfolk Newspapers in 1905. Norfolk was later renamed by Slover’s nephew Frank Batten, Sr. in 1967, shortly after being named successor and chairman of the family business that year. (Hoovers, 2008)
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Online:
Landmark Communications: http://www.landmarkcom.com
Landmark Community Newspapers: http://www.lcni.com
The Cynthiana Democrat: http://www.cynthianademocrat.com
The Weather Channel: http://www.weather.com
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REFERENCES
Hoover’s, Inc. (2008) Landmark Communications, Inc. company history. Retrieved January 3, 2008 from
Jacobs, G. (n.d.) Our History. The Cynthiana Demorcat. Retrieved January 3, 2008 from http://www.lcni5.com/cgi-bin/storyviewnew.cgi?081+section+ServicesAbout
Landmark Communications Explores A Sale (2008) Associated Press. Retrieved January 3, 2008 from
I just clicked through the Democrat’s site, and found an editorial written by George Jacobs, Publisher for The Cynthiana Democrat.
In his writing, Mr. Jacobs states how he was informed, and how he and his staff felt upon hearing the news.
Jacobs concludes his article by saying:
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