Guy Gannett Communications
Encyclopedia
Guy Gannett Communications -- no relation to the larger Gannett communications chain -- was a family-owned business consisting of newspapers in Maine
and a handful of television stations in the eastern United States
. The company was founded by its namesake, Guy P. Gannett, in 1921, and managed by a family trust from 1954 to 1998, when it sold most of its properties to The Seattle Times Company
and Sinclair Broadcast Group
.
, first published Comfort magazine in 1888 -- an eight-page advertisement for a patent medicine
-- but it was his son, Guy P. Gannett, who headed the push into daily journalism. After a stint helping with the magazine after his 1901 graduation from Yale University
, the junior Gannett went into local politics. By 1920, he was a prominent citizen in Portland and two daily newspaper owners -- representing the Portland Herald and the Portland Daily Press -- had asked him to buy them out. Gannett invested in both companies.
In 1921, he completed his purchase of the two Portland papers, merging them into one Portland Press Herald, and also bought the Waterville Morning Sentinel
in Waterville, Maine
. In 1925 he added, for US$550,000, the Portland Evening Express and Daily Advertiser and Portland Sunday Telegram. Four years later, Guy Gannett Publishing Co. tacked on the Kennebec Journal
in Augusta.
At first, the company expanded beyond newspapers with WGAN
radio (1938) and television (1954) stations in Portland only (WGAN-TV was renamed WGME in the 1980s). In 1967, Guy Gannett began to buy television properties outside Maine.
On February 1, 1991, succumbing to industry-wide declines in revenues at afternoon newspapers, Guy Gannett closed the Evening Express
and merged it with the Portland Press Herald
. Daily circulation of the Express was given at 22,000 to 23,000.
Although they entertained offers from Journal Register Company
and MediaNews Group
, which had strong properties in nearby Massachusetts
, Guy Gannett's managers decided to sell their newspapers to The Seattle Times Company
, which had previously operated only within the state of Washington. Seattle Times, run by the fourth generation of the Blethen family, which had its roots in Maine, won out because of shared values.
"Of all the companies in the newspaper business, The Seattle Times is one most like our company in the sense of independence, of family ownership, and commitment to the community," said Guy Gannett spokesman Tim O'Meara. Frank Blethen, the Seattle Times publisher, agreed: "One of our key phrases is that we make money to print newspapers, not the other way around," he said.
Blethen said he had developed "a real emotional connection" to the Maine papers after making several "family pilgrimages" to the home of his ancestor, Col. Alden Blethen, who had been a schoolteacher and lawyer in Maine before purchasing The Seattle Press-Times
in 1896. The Kennebec Journal, Maine Sunday Telegram, Morning Sentinel and Portland Press Herald, along with associated weeklies, were reorganized as Blethen Maine Newspapers, an independent division of The Seattle Times Company.
A week after the Blethen sale, Guy Gannett unloaded most of its television stations in a US$310 million deal with Sinclair Broadcast Group
.
s, including:
1 WGME and WTWC were the only two television stations built and signed-on by Guy Gannett Communications.
The newspapers and related companies were sold to The Seattle Times Company
and reorganized as a subsidiary company, Blethen Maine Newspapers. Six of the television stations were sold to Sinclair Broadcast Group
; WOKR was sold to Ackerley Group
.
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
and a handful of television stations in the eastern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The company was founded by its namesake, Guy P. Gannett, in 1921, and managed by a family trust from 1954 to 1998, when it sold most of its properties to The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company is a privately owned publisher of daily and weekly newspapers in the U.S. state of Washington. Founded in Seattle, Washington, in 1896, the company is now in its fourth and fifth generations of ownership by the Blethen family....
and Sinclair Broadcast Group
Sinclair Broadcast Group
The Sinclair Broadcast Group is an American telecommunications company that operates the largest number of local television stations in the United States. Headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland, it owns a total of 57 stations across the country in 35 primarily small and medium markets, many of...
.
History
William Howard Gannett, of Augusta, MaineAugusta, Maine
Augusta is the capital of the US state of Maine, county seat of Kennebec County, and center of population for Maine. The city's population was 19,136 at the 2010 census, making it the third-smallest state capital after Montpelier, Vermont and Pierre, South Dakota...
, first published Comfort magazine in 1888 -- an eight-page advertisement for a patent medicine
Patent medicine
Patent medicine refers to medical compounds of questionable effectiveness sold under a variety of names and labels. The term "patent medicine" is somewhat of a misnomer because, in most cases, although many of the products were trademarked, they were never patented...
-- but it was his son, Guy P. Gannett, who headed the push into daily journalism. After a stint helping with the magazine after his 1901 graduation from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, the junior Gannett went into local politics. By 1920, he was a prominent citizen in Portland and two daily newspaper owners -- representing the Portland Herald and the Portland Daily Press -- had asked him to buy them out. Gannett invested in both companies.
In 1921, he completed his purchase of the two Portland papers, merging them into one Portland Press Herald, and also bought the Waterville Morning Sentinel
Morning Sentinel
The Morning Sentinel is a seven-day morning daily newspaper published in Waterville, Maine, USA. From 1998 to 2009, it was owned by Blethen Maine Newspapers, a subsidiary of The Seattle Times Company. It was then sold to MaineToday Media. The newspaper covers cities and towns in parts of Kennebec...
in Waterville, Maine
Waterville, Maine
Waterville is a city in Kennebec County, Maine, United States, on the west bank of the Kennebec River. The population was 15,722 at the 2010 census. Home to Colby College and Thomas College, Waterville is the regional commercial, medical and cultural center....
. In 1925 he added, for US$550,000, the Portland Evening Express and Daily Advertiser and Portland Sunday Telegram. Four years later, Guy Gannett Publishing Co. tacked on the Kennebec Journal
Kennebec Journal
The Kennebec Journal is a seven-day morning daily newspaper published in Augusta, Maine. From 1998 to 2009, it was owned by Blethen Maine Newspapers, a subsidiary of The Seattle Times Company. It was then sold to MaineToday Media. The newspaper covers the capital area and southern Kennebec...
in Augusta.
At first, the company expanded beyond newspapers with WGAN
WGAN
WGAN is an American AM radio station licensed to Portland, Maine and owned by Saga Communications. It is located at 560 on the AM band. The current format is News/Talk, with local news being provided by a small local staff and national news provided by CBS and CNN Radio.The station was founded in...
radio (1938) and television (1954) stations in Portland only (WGAN-TV was renamed WGME in the 1980s). In 1967, Guy Gannett began to buy television properties outside Maine.
On February 1, 1991, succumbing to industry-wide declines in revenues at afternoon newspapers, Guy Gannett closed the Evening Express
Evening Express (Portland, Maine)
The Evening Express was a daily evening broadsheet-format newspaper published in Portland, Maine, United States. It was owned by Guy Gannett Publishing Co. from 1925 until 1991. As of February 1991, the Monday-Saturday circulation was 22,700....
and merged it with the Portland Press Herald
Portland Press Herald
The Portland Press Herald publish daily newspapers in Portland, Maine, USA...
. Daily circulation of the Express was given at 22,000 to 23,000.
Sales
In early 1998, the family trust decided to sell the company, leading to worries among some, such as Press Herald managing editor Curt Hazlett, that the Guy Gannett papers could lose the qualities he associated with family-owned journalism:Although they entertained offers from Journal Register Company
Journal Register Company
The Journal Register Company is an American media company, serving an audience of 21 million Americans in 992 communities. The company operates more than 350 multi-platform products in 992 communities. The company is led by CEO John Paton who openly blogs about the changes he is making to transform...
and MediaNews Group
MediaNews Group
MediaNews Group, based in Denver, Colorado, is one of the largest newspaper companies in the United States. It is privately owned and operates 56 daily newspapers in 12 states, with combined daily and Sunday circulation of approximately 2.4 million and 2.7 million, respectively...
, which had strong properties in nearby Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, Guy Gannett's managers decided to sell their newspapers to The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company is a privately owned publisher of daily and weekly newspapers in the U.S. state of Washington. Founded in Seattle, Washington, in 1896, the company is now in its fourth and fifth generations of ownership by the Blethen family....
, which had previously operated only within the state of Washington. Seattle Times, run by the fourth generation of the Blethen family, which had its roots in Maine, won out because of shared values.
"Of all the companies in the newspaper business, The Seattle Times is one most like our company in the sense of independence, of family ownership, and commitment to the community," said Guy Gannett spokesman Tim O'Meara. Frank Blethen, the Seattle Times publisher, agreed: "One of our key phrases is that we make money to print newspapers, not the other way around," he said.
Blethen said he had developed "a real emotional connection" to the Maine papers after making several "family pilgrimages" to the home of his ancestor, Col. Alden Blethen, who had been a schoolteacher and lawyer in Maine before purchasing The Seattle Press-Times
The Seattle Times
The Seattle Times is a newspaper serving Seattle, Washington, US. It is the largest daily newspaper in the state of Washington. It has been, since the demise in 2009 of the printed version of the rival Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Seattle's only major daily print newspaper.-History:The Seattle Times...
in 1896. The Kennebec Journal, Maine Sunday Telegram, Morning Sentinel and Portland Press Herald, along with associated weeklies, were reorganized as Blethen Maine Newspapers, an independent division of The Seattle Times Company.
A week after the Blethen sale, Guy Gannett unloaded most of its television stations in a US$310 million deal with Sinclair Broadcast Group
Sinclair Broadcast Group
The Sinclair Broadcast Group is an American telecommunications company that operates the largest number of local television stations in the United States. Headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland, it owns a total of 57 stations across the country in 35 primarily small and medium markets, many of...
.
Properties
At the time of its sale in 1998, Guy Gannett Communications consisted of three daily newspapers in Maine, a few related publishing products, and seven television stationTelevision station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
s, including:
- KGANKGANKGAN is the CBS-affiliated television station for Eastern Iowa licensed to Cedar Rapids. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 51 from a transmitter in Rowley near the junction of Buchanan, Benton and Linn Counties. The station can also be seen on Mediacom channel 2 and in...
, Channel 2, of Cedar Rapids, IowaCedar Rapids, IowaCedar Rapids is the second largest city in Iowa and is the county seat of Linn County. The city lies on both banks of the Cedar River, north of Iowa City and east of Des Moines, the state's capital and largest city...
(CBSCBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
affiliateAffiliateAn affiliate is a commercial entity with a relationship with a peer or a larger entity.- Corporate structure :A corporation may be referred to as an affiliate of another when it is related to it but not strictly controlled by it, as with a subsidiary relationship, or when it is desired to avoid...
) - WGGB, Channel 40, of Springfield, MassachusettsSpringfield, MassachusettsSpringfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
(ABCAmerican Broadcasting CompanyThe American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
affiliate) - WGME-TVWGME-TVWGME-TV is the CBS-affiliated television station for Southern Maine and Northern New Hampshire that is licensed to Portland. The station broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 38 from a transmitter on Brown Hill west of Raymond...
, Channel 13, of Portland, MainePortland, MainePortland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
(CBS affiliate, flagship station)1 - WICSWICSWICS is the ABC-affiliated television station for Springfield and Decatur, Illinois. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 42 from a transmitter south of Dawson and I-72/US 36. The station can also be seen on Comcast channel 2 and Suddenlink channel 10...
, Channel 20, of Springfield, IllinoisSpringfield, IllinoisSpringfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...
and semi-satellite WICD, Channel 15, of Champaign, IllinoisChampaign, IllinoisChampaign is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, in the United States. The city is located south of Chicago, west of Indianapolis, Indiana, and 178 miles northeast of St. Louis, Missouri. Though surrounded by farm communities, Champaign is notable for sharing the campus of the University of...
(NBCNBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
affiliates) - WOKRWHAM-TVWHAM-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for Rochester, New York. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 13 from a transmitter on Pinnacle Hill on the border between Rochester and Brighton. The station can also be seen on Time Warner channel 13 and in high definition...
, Channel 13, of Rochester, New YorkRochester, New YorkRochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
(ABC affiliate) - WTWC-TVWTWC-TVWTWC-TV is the NBC affiliate television station for Tallahassee, Florida, owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group.-History:The station was started on April 21, 1983 by Guy Gannett Communications. This made Tallahassee one of the last markets in the country with full service from all three networks...
, Channel 40, of Tallahassee, FloridaTallahassee, FloridaTallahassee is the capital of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County, and is the 128th largest city in the United States. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2010, the population recorded by...
(NBC affiliate)1
1 WGME and WTWC were the only two television stations built and signed-on by Guy Gannett Communications.
The newspapers and related companies were sold to The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company
The Seattle Times Company is a privately owned publisher of daily and weekly newspapers in the U.S. state of Washington. Founded in Seattle, Washington, in 1896, the company is now in its fourth and fifth generations of ownership by the Blethen family....
and reorganized as a subsidiary company, Blethen Maine Newspapers. Six of the television stations were sold to Sinclair Broadcast Group
Sinclair Broadcast Group
The Sinclair Broadcast Group is an American telecommunications company that operates the largest number of local television stations in the United States. Headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland, it owns a total of 57 stations across the country in 35 primarily small and medium markets, many of...
; WOKR was sold to Ackerley Group
Ackerley Group
The Ackerley Group was an American media company that owned several television stations that was taken over by Clear Channel Communications in 2001. Its chairman was Seattle-based businessman Barry Ackerley.-Stations list :...
.