BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Alabama Media Group is moving to all-digital delivery, ending publication in 2023 of its four newspapers in Alabama and Mississippi.
The Birmingham News, Huntsville Times and Mobile Press-Register and Mississippi Press will be published through Feb. 26, 2023. Subscribers will continue to receive The Lede, a daily e-paper that reports on each city, AL.com reported.
Alabama Media Group said it will shift focus to its digital media brands that include AL.com, The Alabama Education Lab, This is Alabama, People of Alabama and the Birmingham, Huntsville and Mobile editions of The Lede.
“We remain deeply committed to serving our local communities and are producing high-quality journalism and reaching more people than ever before,” Alabama Media Group President Tom Bates said. “At the same time, we’re adjusting to how Alabama readers want their information today, which increasingly is on a mobile device, not in a printed newspaper.”
The company will keep its offices in each of the metro areas. The decision will bring the closure of a production facility in Mobile and will affect some employees in production, circulation and advertising, the company said.
Bates said that focusing on digital brands and distribution through social media allows the company to make its reporting more widely available and to tell stories in all formats.
“This decision also allows us to invest in more local coverage, more investigative reporting and more initiatives like our education lab, which aims to improve our state’s K-12 education system,” Bates said.
Alabama Media Group brands have more than 3.4 million followers across social media platforms.