The news is still a bit sketchy, but today I heard from Nick Sestanovich, former editor of the Benicia Herald, commenting on my story yesterday, “News of the death of Martinez News-Gazette was premature…”
Nick pointed out that the editor of the Martinez News-Gazette “was able to find another company to continue publishing the paper as a weekly.”
The print edition is a full color Sunday paper, and it looks great! Here’s an online pictorial copy of the Sunday, January 12 edition. The announcement on page 3 goes like this: “Martinez News-Gazette Continues! PCM Publishing LLC, owner of The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle along with Rick Jones, editor of the Martinez News-Gazette for the past six years announce the continuation of the Martinez News-Gazette. In the upcoming weeks look for a new, full-color edition of the Gazette to be published weekly. We will continue to provide the best hyper-local news coverage in Martinez.”
It’s something of a sleuth job to discover other online versions of the print publication. I was able to locate the January 19 edition at martinezgazette.com/martinez-news-gazette-jan-19-2020, but subsequent editions either didn’t get posted online, or they are following some other URL protocol.
The new owner (or co-owner along with Rick Jones?) is PCM Publishing. I’m not sure, but pcm.com might be the company in question.
HERE IN BENICIA… we are hopeful that if and when Benicia Herald owner (and former owner of the Martinez News-Gazette) David Payne realizes that his 121-year-old Benicia treasure has – for several years now – hit rock bottom, he is able to find a backer and sell, so that Benicia continues to have a local newspaper, and a more vibrant one at that.
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