The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is being bought by the nonprofit parent organization of The Baltimore Banner.
The Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism announced Tuesday that it reached a deal with the Post-Gazette’s owner, Block Communications, to buy and run the 240-year-old newspaper effective May 4.
Block Communications owned the Post-Gazette starting in 1927. The paper will now be the second publication run by the nonprofit.
“The Block family has worked to find the best possible source for responsible local journalism for the Pittsburgh region and we believe we have succeeded,” Block Communications Chairperson Karen Johnese said in a release.
The deal’s financial details were not disclosed.
The Post-Gazette announced in January that it would close its doors on May 3.
Block Communications CEO Allan Block told The New York Times that although the Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism was not the highest bidder for the Post-Gazette, Block’s board determined the nonprofit would be the best at running the paper.
The Post-Gazette newsroom and local business staff will remain in the Pittsburgh area, while technology and wider business operations will be shared with the Banner.
In addition, David Shribman, who was executive editor of the Pittsburgh paper from 2003 to 2019, will join Venetoulis’ board.
The newsroom at the Post-Gazette could be downsized, though the paper will continue to be published on Thursdays and Sundays.
In January, when Block Communications first said the Post-Gazette would close in May, the paper had an average paid circulation of 83,000, according to The Associated Press.
Venetoulis Institute Chairman Stewart Bainum told the Pittsburgh paper’s staff of 100 that “the Post-Gazette’s current business model does not support the size of the current newsroom. We’re going to have to thoughtfully address that.”
The union workers at the Post-Gazette have not yet weighed in publicly on the purchase deal.
Members of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh, part of the Communications Workers of America, went on strike for three years starting in 2022, calling for the restoration of previously bargained terms, including a health care plan.
The January announcement of the Post-Gazette’s closure came on the same day the Supreme Court declined an appeal by the paper’s management to stop a National Labor Relations Board order mandating that it abide by the health care terms in the expired agreement with the Post-Gazette’s union, according to AP.
Following the January announcement that the Post-Gazette would close, members of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh partnered with community members to form the Pittsburgh Alliance for People-Empowered Reporting (PAPER).
At a town hall Wednesday, PAPER announced that a “co-operative news publication would best meet its goals, and that it was seeking the creation of that business.”
Post-Gazette journalist Steve Mellon said on Friday, “We’ve decided to pursue a news organization that’s owned by its workers, and the community. A co-op. That’s the most exciting part of this. The structure more closely connects the organization to the community, it’s democratically run, and it offers greater accountability.
Regarding the previous labor issues, Banner CEO Bob Cohn told the Post-Gazette that “we are aware of the history and importance of these issues at the newspaper, and our approach is to treat everyone with dignity and fairness and work toward solutions that both support journalism and the long-term sustainability of the Post-Gazette.”
For the Venetoulis Institute, acquiring the Post-Gazette is the latest area of growth.
Mr. Bainum told The New York Times that he and his wife, who donated $50 million to help launch The Banner in 2022, would now be donating an additional $30 million for further growth of the Baltimore paper and help revitalize the Post-Gazette.
The Banner, originally focused on the Baltimore area, expanded to the Washington-area suburb of Montgomery County, Maryland, in 2025. The paper plans to expand coverage into neighboring Prince George’s County this spring.
“Prince George’s represents a key puzzle piece in The Banner’s ambition to serve readers across Maryland. … We’ll be covering the six most populous jurisdictions in the state (Baltimore City, plus the counties of Montgomery, Prince George’s, Baltimore, Anne Arundel and Howard), a swath across Central Maryland that accounts for more than 70 percent of the state’s residents,” Mr. Cohn told staff in an internal email in February.
In addition, following the shuttering of The Washington Post’s sports section in February, the Banner announced it would be adding beat reporters to cover the NFL’s Washington Commanders and MLB’s Washington Nationals, along with “enterprise reporters” to cover the NHL’s Washington Capitals, NBA’s Washington Wizards and University of Maryland teams.
The Banner has already hired former Post Nationals beat writer Andrew Golden to work on the paper’s baseball coverage.
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