Industry News

121 Media acquires Star Local Media
FRISCO – 121 Media has acquired Star Local Media and its 14 publications and hyper-local news websites from S.A.W. Advisors, LLC. Founders of 121 Media are media industry veteran Rick Rogers and his wife, Elizabeth Rogers, of Frisco.
Star Local Media print publications are delivered to more than 215,000 homes weekly, and the company provides local business partners a marketing solution set including digital and social media marketing services and print advertising packages.
The newspapers acquired include the Allen American, Carrollton Leader, Celina Record, Coppell Gazette, Flower Mound Leader, Frisco Enterprise, Lake Cities Sun, Lewisville Leader, Little Elm Journal, McKinney Courier-Gazette, Mesquite News, Plano Star Courier, Rowlett Lake Shore Times and The Colony Courier-Leader. The transaction also included the website www.starlocalmedia.com.
Prior to the launch of 121 Media, LLC, Rick Rogers worked at TownNews, a digital solutions company for local media organizations, for the past six years, most recently serving as chief revenue officer. His roots are in community media, working the majority of his 25 years in editorial, publisher, management and corporate roles within local media organizations in Missouri and Texas.
“We are extremely excited and blessed to carry the torch for the publications of Star Local Media,” said Rick Rogers, president and CEO of 121 Media, LLC. “Scott Wright, past president and publisher of Star Local Media, and his team have done a tremendous job of serving the communities in the Star Local Media network since 2016, and it is the goal of 121 Media to ensure that these publications remain relevant and integral to the readers and local businesses they serve. Scott has been a mentor and friend of mine for more than eight years, and I can’t think of a better person to inherit the responsibility of publishing these newspapers and websites than Mr. Wright.”
“Quality local news is more important than ever,” added Elizabeth Rogers, co-founder of 121 Media, LLC. “The news we will provide is information that will directly impact the lives of our readers. We will provide a mix of informational news, stories that will make you smile and are eager to continue the quality city, school and sports coverage that our readers expect.”
“I have worked with Rick Rogers before and always considered him an honest, intelligent media professional. With his wife, Elizabeth, they will carry on the legacy of these newspapers in print and electronic formats and give the communities something to be proud of,” said Wright, CEO of S.A.W. Advisors, former publisher of the Star Local Media publications and websites.

CherryRoad Media acquires Texas newspapers
SHERMAN – CherryRoad Media, Inc. has announced it is acquiring a group of newspapers in Texas and Oklahoma from Gannett Co., Inc.
The newspapers in Texas include the Sherman Herald Democrat, Waxahachie Daily Light, Stephenville Empire-Tribune, Brownwood Bulletin, Alice Echo News-Journal, Van Alystne Leader, Anna/Melissa Tribune, Prosper Press, Grayson County Shopper,  Midlothian Mirror, Runnels County Register, Glen Rose Reporter, Cross Timber Trading Post, and Shop Local. The Oklahoma newspapers include the Daily Ardmoreite in Ardmore and the Shawnee News-Star.
Dirks, Van Essen & April, a media merger and acquisition firm based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, represented Gannett in the transaction. Terms were not disclosed. The sale was effective Feb. 1.
“We are excited to further our growth as a local journalism company with this acquisition,” CherryRoad CEO Jeremy Gulban said. “These are two new states for us. The communities we get to become a part of because of this purchase are vibrant and thriving. These papers, and the people they serve, fit perfectly with our efforts as we continue to accelerate our expansion into the business of fulfilling our communities’ needs through our media operations.”
With this acquisition, CherryRoad Media will publish newspapers in 10 states. It acquired more than three dozen newspapers in Arkansas, Alabama, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri and Nebraska in a series of transactions last year. The company acquired its first newspaper in November 2020 – the Cook County News Herald in Grand Marais, Minnesota.
CherryRoad Media is a subsidiary of CherryRoad Technologies, a Parsippany, New Jersey-based technology company that has been in business since 1983.

Friends of The Daily Texan plan Hall of Fame dinner
Registration is now open for the annual Friends of The Daily Texan Hall of Fame dinner at The Texas Union building on the UT campus.
Twice postponed due to the pandemic, the event on April 8 in the Shirley Bird Perry ballroom of The Union building will begin with a social hour at 6 p.m., and continue at 7 p.m. with the dinner. To register, visit the website.
Among the Hall of Fame honorees are Sam Keach, Dave McNeely and other notable former Daily Texas staff members. In addition, other awards will be presented.
Winners of Daily Texan staff scholarships presented by Friends of The Daily Texan, Jerry and Becky Conn, John McConnico and Jean-Marc Bouju and John Pope will be also be recognized.
Dean Jay Bernhardt of the Moody College of Communication will provide an update on the college’s goals and successes.
In addition, senior Texan editors will provide an update on The Daily Texan’s journalistic efforts, and how they published during the pandemic.
For more information, message friendsofthetexan@gmail.com.
“There’s a lot of pent-up interest in the dinner, since we had to cancel the 2020 and 2021 dinners,” said a statement from the board of Friends of The Daily Texan.