Anton Media Group

Anton Media Group, formerly known as Anton Community Newspapers and legally associated with Long Island Community Newspapers, Inc., is a privately held American print-media company headquartered in Mineola, New York. Its publishing activities are concentrated in Nassau County and the Gold Coast communities of Long Island. The group is known primarily for local weekly newspapers that report on municipal government, schools, community organizations, local businesses, real estate, events, and civic life. The modern company developed from Community Newspapers, Inc., a chain of eight North Shore Long Island community newspapers purchased by Karl V. Anton, Jr. in 1984 from Edward Higgins. Following the acquisition, Anton moved the headquarters from Glen Cove to Mineola and changed the corporate name to Long Island Community Newspapers. The company then pursued a combination of acquisitions, title launches, and geographic expansion. Garden City Life began in 1985, followed by the Hicksville Illustrated News in 1986, helping establish a portfolio that reached communities across central and northern Nassau County. The group’s newspaper portfolio has included titles with long local histories. Among the publications associated with the company are The Farmingdale Observer, Glen Cove Record-Pilot, Great Neck Record, Hicksville Illustrated News, The New Hyde Park Illustrated News, Levittown Tribune, Massapequa Observer, Manhasset Press, Mineola American, Oyster Bay Enterprise-Pilot, Plainview-Old Bethpage Herald, Port Washington News, Syosset-Jericho Tribune, The Roslyn News, and The Westbury Times. The portfolio also includes Long Island Weekly and magazine or special-section products covering themes such as healthy living, camps and schools, dining, and local lifestyle. Anton Media Group’s value proposition has historically been its neighborhood-level coverage rather than national reporting. Its publications provide recurring print platforms for local news, community announcements, public notices, event promotion, classified and display advertising, and editorial coverage tailored to individual towns and villages. The company has therefore operated as both a news publisher and a local advertising network, giving businesses access to geographically defined audiences. After Karl Anton died in 2000, his wife, Angela Susan Anton, became publisher and chief executive of the organization. Under the Anton family’s stewardship, the business remained one of the larger privately owned newspaper companies in New York State. In May 2024, Angela Anton sold the company to Schneps Media, another New York-area community-media publisher. The transaction placed Anton’s Long Island newspaper properties under new ownership while preserving the group’s identity as a local publishing operation. The company is now associated with the Anton Media Group name and continues to be identified with community journalism in Nassau County.

Anton Media Group traces its modern corporate history to Community Newspapers, Inc., a chain of eight community newspapers serving Long Island’s North Shore. In 1984, Karl V. Anton, Jr. purchased the chain from Edward Higgins. The acquisition created the foundation for the organization later known as Anton Community Newspapers and Anton Media Group. After taking control, Anton relocated the company’s headquarters from Glen Cove to Mineola, a more central Nassau County location. The corporate name was changed to Long Island Community Newspapers, reflecting the company’s regional focus and its intention to develop a broader Long Island publishing platform. Expansion followed through both the creation of new publications and the addition of newspapers serving further communities. Garden City Life was launched in 1985, and the Hicksville Illustrated News followed in 1986. These launches complemented the company’s inherited North Shore titles and demonstrated a strategy of building locally recognizable publications for individual towns and population centers. Over time, the portfolio came to include newspapers with publication histories reaching back to the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, including The Roslyn News, Oyster Bay Enterprise-Pilot, Great Neck Record, Port Washington News, Glen Cove Record-Pilot, and The Westbury Times. The company’s operating model centered on weekly community newspapers. Rather than competing primarily in national news, the publications focused on local government, schools, neighborhood organizations, business openings, events, community personalities, real estate, and other matters of immediate interest to residents. The newspapers also served as advertising vehicles for local and regional businesses. In addition to its weekly titles, the group developed Long Island Weekly and a series of magazines, inserts, and special sections covering subjects such as healthy living, camps and schools, dining, and local lifestyles. Karl Anton remained the central family owner and executive until his death in 2000. His wife, Angela Susan Anton, then became publisher and chief executive officer. Her leadership continued the company’s identity as a family-controlled, privately owned local-media business. The organization became one of the larger privately owned newspaper companies in New York State, with a substantial concentration of titles in Nassau County and the Long Island Gold Coast area. The group’s portfolio has changed over time. Some titles associated with its history, including Floral Park Dispatch and certain magazine projects, are no longer listed as current publications, while other newspapers and specialty products continued. The current or recent portfolio has included 17 weekly newspapers in Nassau County, along with Long Island Weekly and other bimonthly or special-interest publications. In May 2024, Angela Anton sold the company to Schneps Media. The sale ended the Anton family’s ownership period and placed the newspapers within a larger New York community-media group. Despite the ownership change, Anton Media Group remains associated with locally targeted reporting and advertising across Nassau County and surrounding Long Island communities.

• 2024

  Sale to Schneps Media

  [1]Anton Media Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Anton Media Group was sold to Schneps Media in May 2024, ending the Anton family’s ownership of the publishing group.

• 2000

  Angela Susan Anton becomes publisher and CEO

  [1]Anton Media Groupen.wikipedia.org

  After Karl V. Anton, Jr.’s death, Angela Susan Anton assumed leadership of the company as publisher and chief executive officer.

• 1986

  Hicksville Illustrated News launches

  [1]Anton Media Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Hicksville Illustrated News was added as another locally focused publication in the company’s expanding Long Island network.

• 1985

  Garden City Life launches

  [1]Anton Media Groupen.wikipedia.org

  The company expanded its portfolio by launching Garden City Life.

• 1984

  Karl V. Anton, Jr. acquires Community Newspapers, Inc.

  [1]Anton Media Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Karl V. Anton, Jr. purchased an eight-newspaper North Shore Long Island chain from Edward Higgins, establishing the modern corporate foundation of Anton Media Group.

• 1984

  Headquarters move to Mineola and corporate renaming

  [1]Anton Media Groupen.wikipedia.org

  Following the acquisition, the company moved its headquarters from Glen Cove to Mineola and adopted the corporate name Long Island Community Newspapers.

A locally focused community-media publisher serving defined Long Island neighborhoods through weekly newspapers, magazines, special sections, and local advertising.

• Newspapers

  Weekly community newspapers

  The core product is a network of weekly newspapers serving individual Nassau County and Long Island communities. Titles cover local government, schools, civic groups, businesses, events, real estate, and neighborhood affairs, while also carrying local display and classified advertising. The portfolio has included The Farmingdale Observer, Garden City Life, Glen Cove Record-Pilot, Great Neck Record, Hicksville Illustrated News, The New Hyde Park Illustrated News, Levittown Tribune, Massapequa Observer, Manhasset Press, Mineola American, Oyster Bay Enterprise-Pilot, Plainview-Old Bethpage Herald, Port Washington News, Syosset-Jericho Tribune, The Roslyn News, and The Westbury Times.

• Regional newspaper

  Long Island Weekly

  Long Island Weekly is a regional publication associated with Anton Media Group. It extends the company’s coverage beyond a single town or village and provides a broader Long Island-oriented platform for news, lifestyle content, community features, and advertising.

• Special-interest publishing

  Special sections and guides

  Anton Media Group has produced themed sections and guides addressing subjects such as healthy living, camps and schools, and dining. These products package service journalism, local business information, and advertising around topics of recurring interest to Long Island households.

• Magazines

  Community magazines

  The company has also published magazine products connected with its newspaper markets, including Great Neck Record Magazine, Manhasset Press Magazine, Port Washington News Magazine, and Roslyn News Magazine. These titles provide a more feature-oriented format for local lifestyle, community, and business content.

• 2024

  Sell Anton Media Group to Schneps MediaM&A

  Background

  After more than three decades of Anton family ownership and Angela Susan Anton’s tenure as publisher and CEO, the company changed hands.

  Action taken

  Angela Susan Anton sold Anton Media Group to Schneps Media in May 2024.

  Aftermath

  The Long Island community-newspaper portfolio became part of Schneps Media, while Anton Media Group continued to be identified with local publishing in Nassau County.

  Source

• 1984

  Centralize and expand the community-newspaper chainStrategy

  Background

  After acquiring Community Newspapers, Inc., Karl V. Anton, Jr. inherited an eight-title North Shore newspaper chain and sought to develop it as a broader Long Island publishing business.

  Action taken

  The company moved its headquarters to Mineola, adopted the Long Island Community Newspapers name, and expanded through new titles and additional publications.

  Aftermath

  The strategy produced a larger Nassau County-focused newspaper group that later operated under the Anton Media Group name.

  Source

1. 1Anton Media Groupen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Anton Media Group official websiteantonnews.com