The Bulletin Bought by Mississippi-Based Media Group

Colossal media company, Carpenter Media Group, announced an agreement to acquire EO Media Group and its portfolio of over two dozen newspaper across Oregon and Washington, including local papers “The Bulletin” and “Redmond Spokesman.” Since 2019, The Bulletin has been owned and operated by EO Media Group – an Oregon-based publisher that operated numerous newspapers across Oregon and Washington.

“Over decades, our family has worked to build lasting connections with the communities we serve, especially in places like Pendleton and Astoria,” President and CEO of EO Media Group Stephen A. Forrester wrote in a press release.

According to a statement from Bulletin Projects Editor Jody Lawrence-Turner, the change may result in some differences, including a slightly different look online and in print and more bylines from Carpenter’s other publications.

The union representing reporters shared its thoughts with the Source Weekly on Friday.

“Central Oregon News Guild is disappointed The Bulletin is no longer locally owned, but we are looking forward to meeting Carpenter Media at the bargaining table next month. Our parent union, Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild, has experience negotiating with Carpenter Media,” Bulletin reporter Clayton Franke wrote in an email, on behalf of the union.

During a virtual meeting, Carpenter said it plans to retain all staff through the sale, other than several mailroom employees who were laid off last week, according to Franke.

“Carpenter categorized operations as ‘business as usual.’ We don’t know much more beyond that,” he said.

Reports of an impending evolution within EO Media Group and its publications began circulating in June, when the company announced changes in operations, resulting in layoffs and reductions in print frequency at several newspapers, including The Bulletin.

On June 3, 28 EO company employees were notified that they would be laid off and their jobs eliminated. The company also reduced hours for 19 employees in July and decreased the frequency of publication for The Bulletin – combining its Saturday and Sunday print edition and dropping its e-editions from seven to five per week.

Declining advertising revenues and rising operating expenses forced the company to make these changes to help stabilize its operations, according to EO Media Group in June.

After announcing the changes, EO Media retained a firm to evaluate its options and announced it was considering a nonprofit model.

“We did not do this lightly,” Heidi Wright, publisher of The Bulletin, told the Source Weekly in June. “We did it in a way that we intend to protect as much of the effort that goes into producing the paper.” Wright declined to comment on The Bulletin’s recent sale.

Carpenter Media, the Mississippi-based company which owns over 200 publications in the U.S. and Canada, expressed a commitment to continuing EO Media’s legacy.

“We plan to build on the foundations put down by the Forrester family as we continue to innovate and work to support true professional journalism for each community served,” read a statement from Carpenter Media Group Chairman Todd Carpenter.

Pamplin Media Group, the owner of about two dozen Oregon publications, sold its portfolio, including the Portland Tribune, to Carpenter Media in June. Soon after its purchase, Carpenter Media Group allegedly laid off an unknown number of employees, including some in its newsrooms, according to The Oregonian.

A Washington publication, the Daily Herald, announced a dozen layoffs in late June, including two editors, after being acquired by Carpenter Media group in late March.

This article appears in Source Weekly October 31, 2024.