Chicago Public Media raises $61 million to acquire Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Public Media has announced the acquisition of the Chicago Sun-Times, making it one of the largest nonprofit news organizations in the country.
After signing a non-binding agreement in September to make the Sun-Times a subsidiary, Chicago Public Media raised $61 million in multiyear philanthropic commitments for the acquisition and to transition the publication to nonprofit ownership. Previously announced donors for this effort include investor Michael J. Sacks, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the Pritzker Traubert Foundation. Additional donors announced as part of the closing include Builders Initiative; the Chicago Community Trust; and the Walter and Karla Goldschmidt, Joyce, John S. and James L. Knight, and Mansueto foundations; as well as Robin Steans, Leonard Gail, and an anonymous donor.
Under the banner of Chicago Public Media, public radio station WBEZ and the Sun-Times will reach a weekly audience of more than two million people a week in the Chicago area across broadcast, print, and digital channels. Both WBEZ and the Sun-Times will continue to serve their respective audiences, and the newsrooms will operate separately with their own editors and maintain their editorial independence. In collaboration with Koya Partners, an executive search firm focused exclusively on mission-driven leadership, WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times each will launch a nationwide search for an executive editor to lead their respective newsrooms.
“The response from the philanthropic community has been tremendous, and we are deeply indebted to this community of donors leading the way to invest in and protect journalism in Chicago,” said Chicago Public Media CEO Matt Moog. “With their support, our talented team will tell the stories that matter and serve more people than ever before with human-centered, solutions-oriented journalism. We aim to connect Chicagoans more deeply to each other, to their communities, and to the issues and solutions that shape their lives.”
(Photo Credit: Getty Images/artisteer)
