The holding company of NewsMedia Group newspapers, which owns two Vermont daily newspapers, says it will file for bankruptcy protection.
NewsMedia Group owns 54 daily papers and 100 non-daily newspapers. In Vermont, the company owns the Bennington Banner, the Brattleboro Reformer, The Manchester Journal, Bellows Falls Town Crier and the Original Vermont Observer.
NewsMedia Group CEO Dean Singleton says the financial restructuring will not affect operations of any of the newspapers or their vendors. And he says it will create a new model for the newspapers the company publishes. Company officials say the move will reduce the company’s debt from 930-million to 165 million dollars.
The company also owns 13 papers in Massachusetts including the Berkshire Eagle and the North Adams Transcript.