Today, it was announced that David Smith, the owner of the Sinclair Broadcast Group, is also now the owner of The Baltimore Sun. According to reports, he will own the two companies as independent companies. The paper will not become a subsidiary of the Sinclair Broadcast Group.
“I’m in the news business because I believe … we have an absolute responsibility to serve the public interest,” Smith said in an interview with a report from the Baltimore Sun. “I think the paper can be hugely profitable and successful and serve a greater public interest over time.”
“I’m in the news business because I believe … we have an absolute responsibility to serve the public interest,” Smith went on to say in the interview. “I think the paper can be hugely profitable and successful and serve a greater public interest over time.
According to the announcement, the paper will focus on strong public service journalism. “We understand the importance of strong public service journalism and holding the region’s politicians and others in power accountable,” Trif Alatzas, The Sun’s publisher and editor-in-chief, said Monday. “That has been part of Baltimore Sun Media’s DNA for generations. We look forward to working together to make our organization even stronger.”
The Baltimore Sun reportedly has more than one million readers int he Baltimore-area each week.
Please follow us on Facebook and X for more news, tips, and reviews. Need cord cutting tech support? Join our Cord Cutting Tech Support Facebook Group for help.
Correction: An earlier version of this story mentioned the FCC rules limiting ownership of both a TV station and a newspaper. That was has since been repealed allowing TV station owners to own both a newspaper and a TV station in the same market.