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Carroll County Community Media LLC has purchased the Carroll County News, the company announced Monday.
The company is a partnership between Carroll County News managing editor Scott Loftis, photographer David Bell and former Berryville Chamber of Commerce director Steve Johnson.
The purchase will be effective Jan. 1.
“I’m thrilled that our newspaper will now be locally owned,” said Loftis, who has served as the paper’s managing editor since June 2014 and was general manager from October 2021 until the paper was purchased by CherryRoad Media from Rust Communications in March 2022. “I believe our newspaper serves a vital role in this community and having it be 100 percent locally owned is the way it ought to be.”
In addition to the Carroll County News, the company also purchased its sister publications — the Lovely County Citizen and the Ozark Mountain Trader, as well as specialty publications including the Eureka Springs Visitor and Currents magazine.
Loftis will oversee day-to-day operations as editor and publisher. Bell and Johnson, who publish a successful motorcycle magazine, Cruise the Ozarks, also will be involved in charting a new path for the publications.
“I’m so glad that David and Steve are partnering in this venture,” Loftis said. “They bring a lot of talent and experience to the table that I believe will be very helpful to us.” The Carroll County News has been awarded first place for General Excellence for medium-circulation weekly newspapers by the Arkansas Press Association five times in the past six years. Loftis has won or shared a total of 43 individual APA awards in his time at the newspaper, including 19 first-place honors. In 2020, Loftis was awarded first place for investigative reporting by the Arkansas Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists in a contest open to journalists from Arkansas and its six surrounding states. In October, Loftis received first place in the Freedom of Information category from the National Newspaper Association Foundation.
“We’ve set a standard here from a reporting perspective, and we intend to continue doing that kind of work,” Loftis said. “At the same time, we want to connect with the community and be a part of it. We are going to be truly a local business and that carries some responsibility. We’re also going to need the community’s help. We need people to support us, whether that’s through sponsorships, advertising or just buying a subscription. We want these publications not just to continue but to thrive along with our community.”
Before coming to Berryville, Loftis worked for 10 years at the Arkansas Democrat- Gazette in Little Rock and also spent 10 years at the Pine Bluff Commercial, the last four as managing editor.
“I’ve worked at larger newspapers, but when I got to Berryville, I simply fell in love with this place and this newspaper,” Loftis said. “Berryville is my home now. And I have a passion for this newspaper. Other than my family, this newspaper is the reason I get out of bed every morning. No one loves this newspaper like I do, and I’m going to take very good care of it.”
Bell, whose photos have been a fixture in the Carroll County News and its sister publications, said he was joining in the purchase in part to honor his late wife, Mary Ann Sellick Bell.
“I decided more than 35 years ago to make Mary Ann’s hometown mine,” Bell said. “So this is a wonderful opportunity to have a positive impact on Carroll County.”
Johnson said local ownership will allow the paper to improve its coverage of Carroll County.
“My wife, Karen, and I have always believed a local newspaper needs to cover what’s going on in our local community,” Johnson said. “Now we have the local control to better cover our schools, our clubs, our events and our unique communities here in Carroll County.”
Jeremy Gulban, chief executive officer of Cherry-Road Media, said the purchase is “great news” for Carroll County. CherryRoad will continue to provide software support for the newspaper.
“This is great news for the community in Carroll County,” Gulban said. “Under Scott Loftis’ leadership this newspaper has won numerous awards over the last several years. I look forward to seeing what he has planned in the future as the publisher of the paper. I wish to thank Scott, David and Steve for stepping forward and taking on this challenge. We will be here to help them succeed going forward.”
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