The Indiana Publisher

Page 2 February 2021 Staff Reports Plain Dealer & Sun (North Vernon) Starting Feb. 2, the Plain Dealer & Sun will be published and owned by the Paxton Media Group out of Paducah, Kentucky. The King family, who moved to North Vernon in 1954 to operate the two local newspa- pers, have sold the company to privately held Paxton who owns numerous daily and weekly papers across Kentucky, Indiana and the south- ern U.S. Barbara King, youngest daughter of Burlin and Viola King, has led the papers since she moved back to her hometown in 1982. She followed her father and then her mother as publisher and has served as editor two different times. "Basically, it is time for me to retire," said Barbara. "My husband John (Roche) and I have reached that point in our lives where we need to step back from the daily grind. And in the local newspaper business, that 'daily' is just about that — every day. "My two sisters, Susan and Madelon, and myself felt it was important to transfer ownership of the business to a company that shared many of the same goals and operating principles as ours. The Paxton Group, currently run by that family's fifth genera- tion, fulfills that desire. The new owner also brings new resources to the weekly papers. Over the past several years and with the additional financial impact of the COVID-19 pan- demic, more than 2,000 news- papers across the U.S., primarily smaller family-owned operations, have closed. We did not want our newspapers to go that route. By virtue of its size and resources, the Paxton Media Group will consoli- date some of the work we did here at our East O&M location and cut some of the costs we formerly bore alone. This will help ensure Jennings County continues to have a local community newspaper and web site. Yes, there will be changes but in the end we believe the papers will be better than ever. We want to take this time to thank our many faithful subscribers over the years; our advertisers who placed their trust in us; those elect- ed officials who shared our belief in open government; all those who brought us news items and sugges- tions for stories; the many people who were willing to answer what they probably felt sometimes were endless questions; and everyone who put up with those pesky folks at the newspaper office. "I have been so lucky over the past 38 years to have a job that has always been interesting. I've cov- ered and come to know five may- ors, countless city councilors, and a slew of county officials. In our view, the vast majority of these people truly have the best inter- est of their community in mind, whether Democrat or Republican. "I've covered and written about award ceremonies, win- ners, losers, fires, crimes, funerals, openings and closings. I have been present at some of the worst moments and some of the best moments. I have interviewed countless interesting people who have graciously shared their sto- ries with me. Thank you. "I never thought I would be interested to learn how a wastewater system works or how a gravel pit is trans- formed into a reservoir, the best way to make an icy road safe or the ins and outs of tax incentives. "Along the way I've encoun- tered criticism and compliments; anger and contentment; some hatred but mostly acceptance that a newspaper needs to tell it like it is, both the good and the bad. "As our family closes this chapter in our lives, we want to especially single out our staff, without whom the paper could not have been produced. It hasn't always been easy meeting those deadlines, but we could always depend on their commitment to get the paper out to you, our readers." Paxton Media Group buys North Vernon Plain Dealer & Sun from King family King I've been working with Paxton Media for 13 years and have direct responsibility for five other regional news- papers including my role as Publisher for the Madison Courier which is just a 30 minute drive away. While I may not live in the North Vernon/Jennings County area, my desire is to maintain the strong commu- nity newspaper this town has loved and embraced. As with any transition, there will be some changes. Our office will now be open to walk-in custom- ers from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Monday-Friday and the paper will be available on Thursday mornings instead of Wednesday afternoons. Although some of the design elements may also look different, we still intend to provide the local cover- age and content everyone has come to expect from the Plain Dealer & Sun. — Angela Mayes "We want to take this time to thank our many faithful subscribers over the years; our adver- tisers who placed their trust in us." — Barbara King, former co-owner, North Vernon Plain Dealer & Sun Barbara Mayes named publisher of Plain Dealer &Sun HSPA Board of Directors Mark Miller, The News-Banner (Bluffton)

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