LANCASTER, Pa. — Lancaster's family-owned daily newspaper and its weekly affiliates have been gifted to the public broadcasting station operator WITF in a move designed to safeguard the future of the publication, the companies announced Tuesday.
LNP Media Group, the publisher of LNP | LancasterOnline, will be given to WITF at no cost, according to the announcement made by leadership with Steinman Communications Tuesday on LancasterOnline.
WITF will oversee the Lancaster-based media company, which will be converted to a public benefit corporation, leaders with both companies said.
LNP Media Group's two weekly newspapers, The Ephrata Review and The Lititz Record-Express, are also part of the donation to WITF, as is The Caucus, a publication focused on accountability in state government.
Lancaster Farming, a weekly farm-focused newspaper serving the northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions, and the Lancaster-based printing facility Susquehanna Printing will remain under the control of LNP Media Group, leaders with both companies said.
LNP | Lancaster Online, the Review and the Record-Express are expected to continue their normal publication schedules and maintain or increase their current staffing for at least the next five years, according to Steinman Communications co-chairman and CEO Robert Krasne, who called WITF "the perfect partner."
“To advance their legacy of supporting local journalism and media literacy, the Steinman family sought to pair LNP with another locally based media organization – one with a self-perpetuating community board and a track record of strong leadership,” Krasne told LancasterOnline. “The family identified the perfect partner in WITF.”
To support the activities of both media outlets, Steinman Communications and WITF announced the creation of the Steinman Institute for Civic Engagement, which will also be overseen by WITF and funded by a donation from The Steinman Foundation. Krasne will serve as chair of the Institute.
“LNP has a long history of local journalism in Lancaster County,” said WITF’s president and CEO Ron Hetrick in an announcement on WITF's website. “WITF has a long history of local journalism and education throughout central Pennsylvania in the 19 counties that we serve. So, we’re coming together to explore how we can be better together around local news and information – and also importantly in terms of community engagement and how we can better connect and reflect the communities that we serve.”
Hetrick will retain his title as WITF's president and CEO, and will oversee the combined organizations.
LNP | LancasterOnline, which LNP Media Group says is the second-largest seven-day-a-week newspaper in the state, has a circulation of approximately 42,000 on Sundays and 35,000 on weekdays. LancasterOnline has nearly 12,000 paid subscribers and generates about 4 million page views a month, according to the company.
“LNP | LancasterOnline's editorial decision-making process will not change. Its mission of improving the quality of life in the communities that make up Lancaster County, through quality, independent journalism remains unwavering,” said Tom Murse, executive editor of LNP | LancasterOnline, said in the company's announcement.
The Steinman family has owned and operated newspapers in Lancaster for 158 years, beginning when Andrew Jackson Steinman began his tenure as editor and publisher of the Intelligencer Journal in 1836.
LNP | LancasterOnline is the result of the 2014 merger of three daily newspapers owned by the family: The Intelligencer-Journal, the Lancaster New Era, and The Sunday News.
LNP | LancasterOnline operates with 150 employees, including 70 reporters and editors. The media company is based at 101 N Queen St. in Lancaster.
The Ephrata Review, the Lititz Record Express and Lancaster Farming will continue to operate from offices in downtown Ephrata.
WITF, which has 70 full-time and 25 part-time employees, is based in Harrisburg. The company, which was founded by educators in 1963, operates a TV station, a radio station, and two websites focused on news, arts, and history. It airs programming from National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting Service as well as its own original content.
