J. Louis “Louie” Mullen has acquired Creston Publishing Company (CPC) in south-central Iowa from Shaw Media. The acquisition includes The Creston News Advertiser, Osceola Sentinel-Tribune, The Weekly, Adair County Free Press and The Fontanelle Observer. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
Dirks, Van Essen & April, a media merger and acquisition firm based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, represented Shaw Media in the transaction.
The Creston News Advertiser serves a seven-county region of south-central and southwest Iowa and has been owned by Shaw Media since 1946. Today, it is published daily online with a twice-weekly print edition.
The Osceola Sentinel-Tribune, serving Clarke County, was acquired by Shaw Media in 2006 along with The Weekly, a total-market shopper serving the same area. The Adair County Free Press and The Fontanelle Observer have been part of the Shaw Media portfolio since 2017.
This transaction marks Shaw Media’s exit from Iowa as the company sharpens its strategic focus on its core Illinois markets.
Mullen’s company, Harlan Publishing, LLC, assumed ownership effective May 1.
Founded in 1851 and based in Dixon, Illinois, Shaw Media is one of the nation’s largest independent newspaper publishers and the third oldest continuously owned and operated family newspaper company in the United States. The company operates a multi-platform media portfolio in Illinois spanning print, digital and radio.
“With our business expanding elsewhere we wanted to ensure a great future for our products in the Creston region. We believe Louie Mullen and his commitment to journalism and business in local communities will be a great fit,” said Don T. Bricker, chief administrative officer at Shaw Media.
J. Louis “Louie” Mullen, part of a second-generation newspaper family, owns more than 40 newspapers across seven states. He currently serves on the board of the National Newspaper Association.
“I’d like to thank Shaw Media and Don Bricker, in particular for their stewardship of local journalism in Iowa. They have been a great leader in continuing the legacy of our industry. I look forward to the new challenges and the future as we move forward,” Mullen said.
