Paddock Publications, the parent company of the Daily Herald, on Thursday announced the sale of the newspaper to the Chicago Tribune.
According to a memo addressed to employees from the Paddock board of directors, many factors were considered in approving the sale, including the ongoing secular decline in the newspaper business, the need for future cost-cutting and the overall future trends in the industry. A closing is scheduled for June 22. Terms were not disclosed.
The Daily Herald has a 154-year history covering the suburbs of Chicago. The paper started in 1872 and was independently owned and run by four generations of the Paddock family. In 2018, Paddock family members sold their interest in the company to its employees and reorganized into an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP).
From Dirks, Van Essen & April:
Paddock Publications, Inc., parent company of the Daily Herald, announced Thursday, May 21, that it has entered into an asset purchase agreement to sell the newspaper to the Chicago Tribune.
The Daily Herald has served the suburbs of Chicago for 154 years, tracing its roots to 1872. The paper was independently owned and operated by four generations of the Paddock family before family members sold their interest to employees in 2018 when the company was reorganized as an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP).
Dirks, Van Essen & April, a media merger and acquisition firm based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, represented Paddock Publications in the transaction. Terms were not disclosed. All ESOP shareholders will be asked to vote on the sale prior to closing, which is scheduled for June 22.
Paddock Publications filed a public disclosure statement in January announcing that it was considering a sale of the Daily Herald, as required under Illinois’ Strengthening Community Media Act, which took effect in January 2025. Shortly thereafter, the Chicago Tribune ran a full-page advertisement expressing interest in acquiring the publication.
Paddock Publications will continue operating as an ESOP following the transaction, concentrating on its niche publishing division, Town Square Publications, and its weekly newspapers in downstate Illinois.
The Chicago Tribune is owned by Tribune Publishing, which has been owned by Alden Global Capital since 2021.
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