The 168-year-old Press Democrat currently operates out of offices at 416 B St. in Santa Rosa. [Photo by Jason Walsh]
The saga of the Santa Rosa Press Democrat sale to Alden Global Capital in May raised more questions than answers. But the primary question goes like this: Why would an ownership group trumpeting the importance of community journalism sell its respected local daily to a company described as “the most reviled newspaper owner in the business”?
Other colorful descriptors of Alden Global include “the grim reaper of American newspapers” and a company “seemingly intent on destroying local journalism.”
In his message to the employees announcing the sale, former PD majority owner Darius Anderson promised Alden Global would ensure the “highest-caliber local journalism for future North Bay generations.”
But no one familiar with Alden Global’s reputation for draconian cost cutting and layoffs was buying it.
It’s been four months since the sale sent shockwaves through the Press Democrat building at 416 B St. in Santa Rosa—and the tale is even less clear now than when it was completed.
Since the deal was announced May 1, NorthBay biz has spoken with many sources at the Press Democrat and beyond in an effort to piece together the puzzle of how a Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper was sold off to a New York investment firm carrying a brutal journalistic reputation.
[Reporter’s Note: NBb reached out to more than a dozen sources for this story. Almost all of them wouldn’t allow their name to be used for fear of reprisal from Alden Global or SMI. Some cited non-disclosure agreements. Others simply feared for their jobs.]
The PD’s many suitors
To fully understand how an independent newspaper went from local ownership to being one of hundreds owned by the second largest owner of newspapers in the country, let’s go back to 2024. At that time Hearst Corp., owner of the San Francisco Chronicle among other publications, was in discussion with SMI and its group of local investors led by managing partner Darius Anderson about acquiring the Press Democrat. Hearst performed almost seven months of due diligence, according to a former PD employee. But the deal fell out of bed for unknown reasons.
SMI then approached North Bay developer and Poppy Bank founder Bill Gallaher about submitting an offer. Gallaher put a group together and offered $15 million, according to a source involved in the offer—but nothing came of that effort either. [Gallaher is bound by a non-disclosure agreement and would not discuss that offer with NBb.]
But in 2025 Hearst wanted a second bite at the apple, approaching SMI early in the year about a sale with $9 million emerging as a potential offer. Hearst told the PD its distribution needed improvement and its union needed to essentially abandon its contract, according to sources familiar with the talks. While unhappy regarding the potential loss of the union contract, the PD staff was willing to discuss changes to the contract for the sake of being acquired by Hearst, which at least had deep journalism experience. In addition to the San Francisco Chronicle, its other media properties include SF Gate, the Houston Chronicle, plus Cosmopolitan and Esquire magazines.
Meanwhile, Steve Falk, former publisher and CEO of SMI who retired in 2022, was brought in by SMI to get a sale done. Falk advised the PD staff that if the union didn’t agree to concessions, SMI would be forced to sell to another party—and that party could be Alden Global Capital.
An Alden Global sale was treated by the staff as a threat given Alden’s dismal reputation in journalism circles.
Then the Hearst deal once again disappeared. After SMI managing partner Darius Anderson reached out to Gallaher again, the Poppy Bank founder put a group together, and this time the bid was $12 million, all cash.
But that wasn’t the only offer SMI was entertaining. Alden Global heard the PD was on the block and submitted an unsolicited offer of $10 million.
[Disclosure: The publisher of NorthBay biz, Lawrence Amaturo, was part of the Gallaher group that made the $12 million offer to buy the SMI assets. And while Amaturo was among a group of sources who spoke both on the record and off for this story, this article was written independently.]
An editorial employee at the PD said while the staff had no say in who would ultimately buy the newspaper, it favored a sale to Hearst rather than the Gallaher group because Hearst had extensive media experience. The employee also said Gallaher was considered by some in the newsroom to be “Sonoma County’s Trump,” a moniker that made the newsroom nervous, given the president’s often-contentious relationship with the press.
Gallaher has been active in local politics and has pursued a variety of charitable endeavors in the North Bay. He often chafed at the coverage he received from the PD, according to sources with knowledge of his desire to purchase the newspaper. Gallaher sued the Press Democrat in 2016 for libel over a series of stories covering political donations. The lawsuit was eventually tossed out.
While Gallaher’s group waited by the phone, with radio silence coming from SMI, it took the unusual step of putting out a press release in March 2025 about its desire to purchase the PD and other media assets. Gallaher was wary of his bid disappearing without any acknowledgement or back and forth with SMI because of the 2024 experience. The group’s statement said, in part, that they wanted to “preserve and enhance local journalism by keeping these publications community-owned and operated.”
The group’s $12 million offer was based on a report by a consultant, who first recommended the group propose a lower offer amount, based on a multiple of the newspaper’s revenue. But, according to a member of the local group, the consultant’s recommendation was rejected in favor of an offer that would be considered more generous. It also came with a promise to honor the union contract and retain at least 90% of all non-union staff.
But Gallaher’s group heard nothing. No reply or negotiation for better terms was forthcoming from SMI.
Meanwhile, Alden was busy behind the scenes—and, in a whirlwind romance, Alden and SMI worked out a deal in a matter of weeks.
But SMI never warned the PD staff about the coming sale to Alden.
A newsroom surprise
An announcement of the sale arrived in the PD newsroom May 1 via an email from Alden, which for many on staff landed in their junk folder. “A lot of us thought it was a joke when we saw the email,” said one newsroom employee. After the email was deemed genuine, nobody was laughing.
Later that day, in a press release announcing the Alden Global ownership, Anderson and Falk said “economic challenges” facing the newspaper industry made it “difficult for [SMI’s] small group of local investors to guarantee the paper’s long-term future.” They also said the sale to Alden would best serve the newspaper and the public, a sentiment greeted in the newsroom with disbelief.
In the days following the sale, Sharon Ryan, an exec vice president with a subsidiary of Alden, came to talk to the PD staff. Ryan assured the staff Alden was dedicated to keeping local journalism strong and treating employees the right way. A PD employee asked if she meant the PD staff would be treated like employees at the San Jose Mercury News—which came under Alden following its purchase of the Merc’s parent-company MediaNews Group in 2010, and was subsequently gutted. The remark was not well received by Ryan and at least one of the PD staff in that conversation has since been pink slipped.
NorthBay biz tried reaching Ryan with no success.
NorthBay biz also reached out multiple times to Anderson, to better understand why the sale was necessary and how the transaction was completed. A Novato native and current Sonoma Valley resident, Anderson wears many hats as a well-known political lobbyist, fundraiser extraordinaire, developer, Jack London buff and, until recently, managing partner of SMI. Messages were left for him at Platinum Advisors, the Sacramento-based lobbying company he owns; Kenwood Investments, his Sonoma real estate company; as well as his cell phone.
Private investment firm, or ‘destroyer of newspapers’?
So who is Alden Global—the now proud owner of the PD? The investment firm has about $1 billion under management, not too large in the Wall Street domain.
But when it comes to size in the newspaper industry, Alden subsidiary MediaNews Group takes a backseat to almost no one. It holds 77 daily newspapers and more than 150 weekly publications in its portfolio, according to its website. The company is known for taking a private equity approach to the assets it owns. That is, it gravitates toward entities that are distressed, purchasing them at a bargain price and then looking for opportunities to cut costs and profit from the sale of portions of the operations.
These days Alden prefers to be known as a private investment firm. In the past, it was referred to as a hedge fund. Like all things hedge fund, ownership is a lesson in hide and seek. Smith Management LLC owns Alden Global. In turn, Alden owns MediaNews Group. MediaNews Group owns the Bay Area News Group and Southern California Newspaper Group. Then there is Tribune Publishing, California Newspaper Partnership and Digital First Media.
Among the newspapers owned by Alden’s MediaNews are the Denver Post, Boston Herald, Orange County Register, the Chicago Tribune, and the San Jose Mercury News. Local properties owned by MediaNews include the Marin Independent Journal and the East Bay Times.
The investment firm created a company called Twenty Lake Holdings to manage and, in some cases, dispose of real estate gained in the acquisitions of publications—everything from office buildings to printing facilities.
To say that Alden and MediaNews are viewed with distrust and animosity in the journalism community is to drastically understate the case. The criticism dished toward Alden is an excursion into the most colorful descriptions. A simple web search will show the hedge fund described in the media as “vulture capitalists,” “the most reviled newspaper owner in the business,” “predatory,” “secretive,” an “archvillain,” “a destroyer of newspapers” and, as Vanity Fair put it, “the grim reaper of American newspapers.”
[Reporter’s Note: I’ve spent more time than I care to admit dealing with private investment firms as a financial journalist. And, to be fair, secrecy and discretion are how the private investment world operates. The investment titans that own these entities pride themselves on being first into markets and first out. The old line about being the smartest guys in the room was likely written by a hedge funder as he gazed into a mirror thinking how much he liked what he saw. It’s very much a “boys club” overrun with testosterone and ego.]
For its part, here’s how MediaNews describes its focus on the company’s website: “We are proud of our long history of community service, providing essential news to our readers for more than 175 years. We believe that a free press is fundamental to a healthy democracy, and we are committed to building a sustainable future for our journalism.”
NorthBay biz also reached out to representatives at Alden Global Capital to get its side of how the Press Democrat and its various publications joined the Alden portfolio. But Alden didn’t respond.
Investors kept in the dark
Gary Nelson is a successful North Bay businessman, having founded staffing stalwart Nelson Connects more than 50 years ago—and he is a known active member in the community. He also held about 15% of the equity in Sonoma Media Investments LLC as a limited partner.
So imagine Nelson’s surprise when he learned from a casual conversation around town that the Press Democrat was being sold. The surprise continued when the sale price of $10 million was revealed and the transaction was to a New York investor. While the deal was a revelation, the fact that a local group offered more money—and was ignored—was a shock.
Especially since Nelson had invested in SMI to keep the Press Democrat in local hands.
In an interview with NorthBay biz, Nelson said that, as a limited partner with SMI, the investment entity had no legal requirement to share information about the deal with him. And, as far as he knew, the other limited partners had been kept in the dark about the sale as well. Those local investors in SMI included former Citigroup CEO Sandy Weill, former Dolby Sound CEO Bill Jasper, former Congressman Doug Bosco, retired Intel executive Les Vadasz, and Jean Schulz, wife of the late Peanuts creator Charles Schulz.
Nelson said he was paid $1.5 million for his 15% of SMI. Nelson also said he didn’t know what would become of the Press Democrat under its new ownership, and he preferred not to speculate.
Nelson’s not being informed he was getting cashed out may have been legal, but a former PD exec questioned Anderson’s approach to those who invested alongside him in 2012. “There is your legal responsibility, and then there is your moral obligation, doing the right thing. But ask around, that’s how he [Anderson] operates.”
Information gathered from a number of sources familiar with the deal point toward Anderson making decisions about the transaction mostly on his own or, at the very least, not sharing information with his limited partners nor anyone at the newspaper.
Michael Fitzgerald, a former journalism professor at Sacramento State University and former editor at both the Chico Enterprise-Record and the Oroville Mercury Register (both papers are owned by Alden), offered his opinion on what the sale is likely to mean to the Press Democrat and the community. “The destruction of so many newspapers under Alden’s management has been a tragedy for community journalism across the country,” Fitzgerald told NBb. “It’s a tragedy for democracy not to have honest newspapers and journalists providing the kind of day-to-day coverage that knits communities together and keeps politicians from letting their worst instincts run wild.”
The story of the Press Democrat
The PD was first published as the Santa Rosa Democrat in 1857; it was Sonoma County’s first newspaper. The paper was sold and merged a number of times throughout its first century, but always remained under local ownership. In 1985, however, the newspaper was sold to the New York Times, which invested in a new printing facility in Rohnert Park. The Gray Lady offered the staff more resources—and coverage of both local and regional subjects reflected the new ownership.
But in 2012, the Times sold the PD to Halifax Media Holdings, a Florida-based company. The Halifax ownership lasted less than a year. A local group of investors, formed by Anderson under the Sonoma Media Investments LLC (SMI), purchased the Press Democrat with the intention of keeping the news outlet under local ownership.
In 2018, the newspaper received a Pulitzer Prize for its reporting on the tragic North Bay fires.
The Pulitzer meant a lot to the newspaper and its staff—a triumph at a time when the newspaper universe was continuing to shrink, and independent locally owned papers were becoming rare. The Press Democrat wasn’t owned by a conglomerate or chain. Rather it was independent, it had supportive ownership that had the good sense to stand back and let the publication perform. In turn, the PD had staff of long standing, reflecting both a larger pool of developed talent and a desire by staffers to stick around. The Press Democrat punched above its weight in terms of coverage and has both supporters and detractors in the community.
But Alden has drained the talent pool. According to a former Press Democrat employee, 52 staffers have been let go in the four months since Alden took over (that source is among those former staffers looking for a new gig). To be clear, this is the way Alden does business. One Press Democrat employee said that a trio of cuts has been made to the editorial staff, with more job loss anticipated. One staffer said the newsroom atmosphere is one of waiting for the other shoe to drop.
It’s worth looking at the business of journalism as a whole to better place the PD. Since 2005, 3,300 newspapers have closed, according to the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. There are roughly 6,000 newspapers remaining in the U.S., with the strong majority of those publications being weeklies. More than half the counties in the U.S. no longer have a newspaper.
Last year, 258 newspapers were sold in 75 transactions, so the sale of the Press Democrat and its sister publications is not unusual in the industry.
And a purchase by a private equity firm or institutional investor isn’t out of the ordinary either. Fortress Investment Group has purchased newspapers over the years. Apollo Global Management has bankrolled some newspaper deals, making a $1.8 billion loan to Fortress at a whopping 11.5% interest rate. The mutual fund BlackRock owns interests in newspapers as well.
Though the North Bay is in no danger of becoming a news desert, there’s a chance Alden may feel consolidation makes sense. It now owns a trio of newspapers in Sonoma County—the daily PD and the Petaluma and Sonoma weeklies—as well as the Marin Independent Journal in San Rafael.
Alden has owned the Marin IJ since 2010. Speaking with a source at that publication, the picture they paint is not pretty. “We really are down to a skeleton crew. And when someone is out or on vacation, it gets even harder. Raises are pretty much non-existent. There are janitors at the [Marin] Civic Center making more than I do. The morale is so low, they have trouble recruiting if someone leaves. We thought [previous owner] Gannett was bad, but Alden is worse.”
The PD’s prospects going forward under Alden ownership are not promising. A study at the University of North Carolina showed that Alden cuts staffing levels at twice the rate of the rest of the industry.
The environment for the media in recent years—especially since media adversary Donald Trump’s first term—has been toxic. While some of the issues were media creations, the low regard and hostility directed at the press by both those in office and internet keyboard warriors is unprecedented. Media outlets which are independent, as the Press Democrat was under SMI, have more freedom to deal with those issues in swift and creative ways. On the other hand, given Alden’s reputation as an investment entity worried about profits above the bottom line rather than what’s running above the fold, the PD staff is likely to run into more and not less pushback as a so-called “enemy of the people.”
The pursuit and purchase of the PD hasn’t slowed Alden even a step. It’s currently chasing the Dallas Morning News in Texas. While rebuffed on at least two occasions, its response is to throw more money at the publication. Ironically, Hearst is also courting the Dallas newspaper.
In the end, without Anderson responding to NBb’s questions about the deal, no one can say for sure why Alden won the sale and why Anderson left a local offer worth at least $2 million more on the table. Anderson and Gallaher have been on opposite sides of some local issues. For instance, Gallaher led a public fight against the SMART train, and Anderson’s Platinum Advisors had a $600,000 lobbying contract with the public agency. [Whether those opposite positions had any bearing on SMI selling to Alden instead of Gallaher’s local group is pure speculation and only offered to demonstrate that the deal didn’t operate in a vacuum.]
What is not speculation is the likely path for the Press Democrat. More staff will leave, either by choice, buyouts or firings. The paper’s resources will be reduced. The coverage of local issues will suffer in the long term. Local advertisers may elect to abandon the paper based on those impacts.
What’s more, public confidence in the local newspaper will suffer—not because the staff isn’t trying, but because there are fewer reporters and editors. And it isn’t like the media is being bathed in the warmth of public love these days anyway.
This story started with an old quote about newspapers from a bygone era. Here’s a more recent one from Richard Kluger, a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and journalist: “Every time a newspaper dies, even a bad one, the country moves a little closer to authoritarianism.”
If that quote doesn’t resonate, you aren’t paying attention.
