PNI Atlantic News

PNI Atlantic News

Company type	Public
Industry	Mass media
Founded	December 1, 2024;11 months ago (2024-12-01)
Headquarters	Toronto, Ontario , Canada
Area served	Atlantic Canada
Owner	Postmedia Network
Website	www.saltwire.com

PNI Atlantic News became what was left of the bankrupt SaltWire Network on December 1, 2024. In July 2024, SaltWire agreed to be acquired by Postmedia Network, in a sale completed on August 26, 2024. During the first week of December 2024, Saltwire was rebranded as PNI Atlantic News and headquarters moved to Toronto.

Saltwire bankruptcy and sale

In March 2024, both lender Fiera Private Debt and SaltWire applied to place the media company under creditor protection. ^[1] Fiera was owed over $32 million. ^[2] On July 26, 2024, Postmedia Network entered an agreement to purchase SaltWire. ^[3] When the sale was announced, SaltWire employed about 800 independent contractors and 390 staff (including Halifax Herald Ltd.). ^[4]

At an insolvency court hearing in Halifax, on August 8, 2024, a Nova Scotia Supreme Court justice approved the sale. ^[5] Postmedia completed the transaction on August 26, 2024. ^[6]

Postmedia did not buy all of SaltWire's assists. The biggest asset left unsold was the Newfoundland printing plant that was used by The Telegram and other community papers. ^[7] The Telegram therefore announced that it would discontinue daily publishing after August 24, 2024, and convert to a weekly published on Fridays. ^{[8] [9] [10]}

Becoming PNI Atlantic News

About a month after Postmedia's takeover, about 30 percent of SaltWire's staff were laid off, including management, editorial staff, and writers, including cartoonist Michael de Adder. ^[11] During the first week of December 2024, Postmedia rebranded SaltWire as PNI Atlantic News, with their websites and print editions changing to look like the parent company's other newspapers and their head office moved to Toronto. ^{[12] [13]}

References

1. Thomas, Jesse (March 12, 2024). "Chronicle Herald, SaltWire business issues traced back to 2017". CTV News Atlantic. Halifax, Nova Scotia: Bell Media. Archived from the original on March 13, 2024. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
2. Hoffman, Josh (March 11, 2024). "SaltWire Network files for creditor protection". CBC News. Halifax, Nova Scotia: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on October 3, 2024. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
3. Yarr, Kevin; Walton, Victoria (July 26, 2024). "Postmedia enters agreement to buy SaltWire chain of newspapers". CBC News. Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on December 12, 2024. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
4. CP Staff (July 26, 2024). "Postmedia plans to buy Atlantic Canada's insolvent SaltWire newspaper chain". Toronto Sun . Toronto: Postmedia Network. The Canadian Press. Archived from the original on December 21, 2024. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
5. Gowling, Jordan (August 9, 2024). "Postmedia gets green light to buy Atlantic Canada newspaper chain". National Post. Toronto: Postmedia Network. p. FP7. Retrieved December 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
6. CP Staff (August 26, 2024). "Postmedia completes $1-million purchase of Atlantic Canada's largest newspaper chain". The Canadian Press . Toronto. Archived from the original on December 20, 2024. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
7. Rhodes, Blair (August 23, 2024). "Postmedia begins takeover of parts of SaltWire Network". CBC News. Halifax, Nova Scotia: Canadian Broadcast Corporation. Archived from the original on September 27, 2024. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
8. "Note to Telegram readers". SaltWire.com. August 21, 2024. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
9. Smellie, Sarah (August 27, 2024). "Postmedia completes $1M SaltWire purchase". Toronto Star. The Canadian Press. p. B2. Retrieved December 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
10. Mercer, Juanita (August 24, 2024). "'This isn't the end for us': Telegram workers reflect on last day as a daily paper". The Telegram . St. John's, Newfoundland: SaltWire Network. pp. A1, A2. Archived from the original on December 21, 2024. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
11. Edge, Marc (October 17, 2024). "Postmedia's cuts to newspapers in Atlantic Canada begin to hurt". Canadian Dimension . Winnipeg, Manitoba: Dimension Publications Inc. ISSN   0008-3402. Archived from the original on December 21, 2024. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
12. PNI Staff (December 5, 2024). "Note to readers". Cape Breton Post. Toronto: PNI Atlantic News. Archived from the original on December 20, 2024. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
13. Momentum Staff (December 19, 2024). "Online & Digital Media News - Postmedia rebrands Saltwire as PNI Atlantic". Broadcast Dialogue. Vancouver, British Columbia: Momentum Media. Archived from the original on January 18, 2025. Retrieved January 30, 2025.