Kane County Chronicle converting to weekly newspaper; Shaw Media buys Kaneland newspapers
The Kane County Chronicle will end its five-days-a-week publication and debut three weekly newspapers in St. Charles, Geneva and Batavia on April 14, owners Shaw Media announced Wednesday.
In addition, Shaw said it will acquire Kaneland Publications Inc., which publishes the Elburn Herald and Sugar Grove Herald, from owner Ryan Wells for an undisclosed amount. The deal is expected to close early next month.
"We believe that a vibrant local weekly newspaper, combined with an aggressive local digital strategy, is the ideal way to serve certain suburban communities," Shaw Media President John Rung said in a statement. He declined further comment when reached by phone.
Such consolidation in the newspaper industry has been common in recent years and will continue as more news sources expand online. But not many daily newspapers have switched back to weekly publications, said Douglas M. Arthur, managing director of Huber Research Partners, a Greenwich, Connecticut-based research firm following the publishing, advertising, information services and local media industries.
"(We) have seen some dailies stop publishing on specific days, such as Mondays and Saturday, and just updating content online," he said.
Such consolidation, Arthur said, is "driven by declining print advertising and the need to cut costs and gain better platform and economies of scale."
Another reason is a decline in circulation, which has been happening to print newspapers nationwide.
The Chronicle is no different. It has covered the Tri-Cities and western Kane County for about 135 years. But its average circulation for Tuesday through Friday was 10,521 in the 2-year period ending March 31, 2015, or a 16 percent drop, compared to 12,593 for the 2-year period ending March 31, 2013. During those same periods, paid circulation was 6,555 in 2015, or a 12 percent drop, compared to 7,464 in 2013, according to audit reports from Arlington Heights-based Alliance for Audited Media.
Shaw Media owns the St. Charles-based Chronicle and other newspapers, websites and niche publications in the Chicago suburbs, northern Illinois and Iowa.
J. Tom Shaw, company vice president and general manager of Shaw's suburban group, said in a letter to readers that his family acquired the Chronicle publications from the Paschal family in 1989, noting a "tremendous change in media and technology over the past 27 years."
The changes, he added, "will allow us to focus even greater resources to providing you real-time news updates on your computer and mobile devices." He declined further comment when reached by phone.
With the addition of the Elburn and Sugar Grove papers, and the conversion of the Kane County Chronicle to three separate weekly publications, Shaw Media will publish 31 weekly newspapers in the suburbs. The company also continues to publish daily newspapers in Crystal Lake, DeKalb and Joliet.
Rung's statement said there would be no staff reductions. "By reducing our print frequency in Kane County, we can create a showcase edition each week in print while devoting greater resources to our digital efforts," he said.
Subscribers of the five weekly papers will receive Kane County Magazine mailed with their newspaper each month. The magazine covers local lifestyle topics, including dining, fashion and the social scene.
Kaneland Publications owner Ryan Wells said in an online statement that he was excited to join Shaw.
"As friendly competitors in our local market for many years," Wells said, "I know how much they focus on community news, and I think this will be a great fit for all of us at Kaneland Publications."
Last June, Shaw acquired weekly newspapers in Oswego, Yorkville, Plano and Sandwich. In October 2012, Shaw also bought 22 suburban Chicago weekly publications from GateHouse Media.