More Western Pennsylvania Newspapers Announce Closure

PITTSBURGH PA — With the fate of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette still up in the air, the publisher of two other Western Pennsylvania newspapers has announced their impending closure.

Derrick Publishing Company, which publishes The Derrick in Oil City, The News-Herald in Franklin and, has announced that both papers are shutting down. The final editions of The Derick and News-Herald will be published on March 20.

Employees were told the decision was driven by the long-term decline in support for newspapers, along with regional losses in employment, retail activity, advertising revenue and readership.

The move comes as the Post-Gazette, Western Pennsylvania's largest newspaper is struggling for its survival. Citing staggering losses over the past two decades, the newspaper's owner, Toledo-based Block Communications, has announced that the paper will cease operations on May 3.

But a potential purchaser of the newspaper has emerged.

Billionaire David Hoffman, chairman of the company that is purchasing the Pittsburgh Penguins, has said the company also is in talks to buy the P-G. Hoffman chairs the Florida-based Hoffman Family of Companies, is a private equity and real estate company encompassing 125 global brands.

In December, the company announced an agreement to buy the Penguins from the Fenway Sports Group for a reported $1.7 billion.