A Tennessee publishing company doubled in size last week with the acquisition of five middle Tennessee newspapers. Richardson Media Group, which publishes the Jackson Post, announced this week the acquisition of five newspapers formerly owned by Holler Media, LLC and then Apex Media, LLC. This acquisition, completed on March 1, marks the culmination of an eight-month process and period of uncertainty for the newspapers.
The newspapers joining the Richardson Media Group family are The Shelbyville Times-Gazette, The Fentress Courier, The Jackson County Sentinel, The Livingston Enterprise, and The Citizen-Statesman. Each of these publications holds a unique and storied place within their respective communities, boasting histories that reflect the richness of local journalism in Tennessee.
“This is a great time for RMG and for these publications,” Richardson Media Group founder Daniel Richardson said of the acquisition. “I’ve been working with the staffs of these newspapers for several months now and their great people. I’m glad to officially have them as part of our team.”
In July of 2023, these publications were shuttered by former owner Holler Media, LLC. Apex Media, LLC (formed out of Apex Bank to hold the newspapers), purchased the newspapers in a foreclosure sale on September 28. Early on in this process, Apex Bank officials and Holler Media management reached out to Richardson Media Group founder Daniel Richardson for assistance in getting the publications back up and running. Richardson got to work in early August, bringing most of the Upper Cumberland newspapers staffs back onboard and publishing again after only missing one week. The Shelbyville Times-Gazette proved more difficult to relaunch as the newspapers building had been sold and access to files, documents, and archives were restricted. The Times-Gazette began publishing again in November. The Marshall County Tribune, also shuttered by Holler Media in July and included in the acquisition by Richardson Media Group, has yet to see print again but plans are in place to return the newspaper to full functionality this summer.
These five publications join four other newspapers in RMG, including the Courier (Savannah), the Martin Post, the Enterprise (Dresden), and the Jackson Post. For Richardson, the timing of the transition made for a busy week. On Wednesday, Feb. 28, Daniel and his wife Lena welcomed their fifth child, Evelyn Grace Richardson, into the world two weeks earlier than expected at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Union City. With closing documents signed and shipped, and physical checks passed by mother and infant, the family returned home Thursday night just in time to celebrate the acquisition and Daniel’s 35th birthday on Friday. Some readers may be surprised to read that those who came to celebrate the three events over the weekend seemed mostly interested in only one of the three.
