Freedom Communications

Freedom Communications logo

Freedom Communications, Inc. is a media conglomerate in the United States. It owns approximately 100 daily and weekly newspapers in the US, with a combined daily circulation of nearly one million subscribers, and also operates over seventy local news websites. The broadcast division includes eight television stations, including five CBS network affiliates, one CW Television Network affiliate, and two ABC network affiliates. Freedom also publishes specialty magazines and custom-published products. It is headquartered in Irvine, California. Freedom Communications is the 12th largest media conglomerate in the United States.

Freedom's flagship newspaper is the Orange County Register, based in Santa Ana, California with a circulation of approximately 250,000. The Register has won three Pulitzer Prizes. The Register's website is the largest, most in-depth of Freedom's websites, drawing the most daily traffic and unique visitors of all of the local news sites. It received both high interest and criticism for the website's open forums, allowing visitors to openly comment on stories and features. Freedom had acquired substantial debt in 2004 when private-equity firms Blackstone Group and Providence Equity Partners acquired a 40 percent share for about $460 million.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, August 31, 2009, that Freedom Communications was close to announcing a Chapter 11 reorganization. On September 1, 2009, they did, in fact, do so. The company left bankruptcy on April 30, 2010, under the ownership of investment firms Alden Global Capital, Angelo, Gordon & Co. and Luxor Capital Group. Lenders to the company also retained a stake in Freedom. The company announced on November 2, 2011 that it would sell its entire television division to Sinclair Broadcast Group in a move to eliminate the company's debt.

Leadership

Founder and chief executive officer R.C. Hoiles gained a one-third interest in his first newspaper (The Alliance Review in Ohio) sometime in the 1910s. He and his brother Frank bought many more local newspapers over the next several decades. In 1935 he moved his base of operations to Santa Ana, California, and in 1950 he incorporated his syndicate as Freedom Newspapers, Inc. After Hoiles' death in 1970, he was succeeded as CEO by his son C.H. Hoiles (until 1981), and then by

• D.R. Segal (1981–1992)
• James N. Rosse (1992–1999)
• Samuel C. Wolgemuth (1999–2002)
• Alan Bell (2002–2006)
• Scott N. Flanders (2006–2009)
• Burl Osborne (2009–2010)
• Mitchell Stern (2010–present)

Freedom Communications' self-proclaimed mission is "to advance human liberty." They publish articles on a "wide variety of topics and viewpoints," so long as they support what they consider "the two most important principles for a free country: individual liberty and the individual responsibility that entails."

Interactive

Freedom Interactive was formed in June 2006. This division, also headquartered in Irvine, California, is solely responsible for the online presence of Freedom's media properties. All interactive advertising, marketing, content, business development, finance, and technology management is centralized within this arm of the organization. Early partnerships with search giant Google, user submitted calendar program Zvents, and employment site Monster.com gained recognition for the newly formed interactive division in early 2007. Financially, Freedom Communications is an investor in USIS, the nation's largest investigative company for government-level security clearances.

Properties

Newspapers

• Appeal-Democrat of Marysville, California
• The Brownsville Herald of Brownsville, Texas
• Clovis News Journal of Clovis, New Mexico
• Colusa County Sun-Herald of Colusa, California
• Corning Observer of Corning, California
• The Daily News of Jacksonville, North Carolina
• Daily Press of Victorville, California
• Desert Dispatch of Barstow, California
• The Destin Log of Destin, Florida
• The Free Press of Kinston, North Carolina
• The Gaston Gazette of Gastonia, North Carolina
• The Gazette of Colorado Springs, Colorado
• The Havelock News of Havelock, North Carolina
• Hesperia Star of Hesperia, California
• Jacksonville Journal-Courier of Jacksonville, Illinois
• Jones Post of Trenton, North Carolina
• The Lima News of Lima, Ohio
• Lucerne Valley Leader of Lucerne Valley, California
• Mid Valley Town Crier of Weslaco, Texas
• The Monitor of McAllen, Texas
• The News Herald of Panama City, Florida
• Northwest Florida Daily News of Fort Walton Beach, Florida
• Odessa American of Odessa, Texas
• The Orange County Register of Santa Ana, California
• Orland Press-Register of Orland, California
• Portales News-Tribune of Portales, New Mexico
• Porterville Recorder of Porterville, California
• The Quay County Sun of Tucumcari, New Mexico
• Sedalia Democrat of Sedalia, Missouri
• The Shelby Star of Shelby, North Carolina
• The Star of Port St. Joe, Florida
• The Sun of Yuma, Arizona
• Sun Journal of New Bern, North Carolina
• The Telegraph of Alton, Illinois
• Times-News of Burlington, North Carolina
• The Topsail Advertiser of Surf City, North Carolina
• The Tribune of Seymour, Indiana
• The Walton Sun of Santa Rosa Beach, Florida
• Willows Journal of Willows, California
• Valley Morning Star of Harlingen, Texas

Television stations

All stations are in the process of being acquired by Sinclair Broadcast Group, pending Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and United States Department of Justice (DOJ) approval.

Current DMA #	Market	Station	Channel (DT)	Affiliation	Acquired	Notes
38.	West Palm Beach, Florida	WPEC	12 (13)	CBS	1996	Freedom's flagship station
39.	Kalamazoo, Michigan	WWMT	3 (8)	CBS	1998	The CW on DT2
56.	Albany/Schenectady, New York	WRGB	6 (6)	CBS	1986	This TV on DT2
		WCWN	45 (43)	The CW	2006	Operated by WRGB Universal Sports on DT2
86.	Chattanooga, Tennessee	WTVC	9 (9)	ABC	1983	This TV on DT2
112.	Lansing, Michigan	WLAJ	53 (51)	ABC	1998	Operated by WWMT The CW on DT2
140.	Medford, Oregon	KTVL	10 (10)	CBS	1981	Freedom's first broadcast property The CW on DT2
141.	Beaumont, Texas	KFDM	6 (21)	CBS	1983	The CW on DT2

External links

• Official website
• Freedom Interactive official site