Australian Community Media

Australian Community Media (ACM) is an Australian regional media company responsible for more than 160 publications and more than one hundred community-oriented websites. Its portfolio includes prominent regional mastheads such as The Canberra Times, Newcastle Herald, The Examiner, The Border Mail, The Courier, and the Illawarra Mercury, together with agricultural titles including The Land and Queensland Country Life. The company’s publishing footprint is concentrated in regional and rural Australia, where its newspapers provide local reporting, public-affairs coverage, sport, community information, advertising, and material directed at agricultural audiences. The business is the product of a long series of newspaper acquisitions, corporate restructurings, and ownership changes rather than a single founding event. Its historical roots are commonly traced to The Land, an agricultural newspaper established in Sydney in 1911. Over subsequent decades, The Land acquired or became associated with other community and rural publications. John Fairfax acquired a minority shareholding in the business in 1970, and the company was renamed Rural Press in 1981. Fairfax increased its holding during the 1980s, and Rural Press became a publicly listed company on the Australian Securities Exchange in 1989. By the mid-2000s, Rural Press had grown into a diversified publishing group with roughly 170 newspaper and magazine titles. Its activities extended beyond regional newspapers to agricultural publishing, radio stations in several Australian states, classified-advertising websites, commercial printing, and some overseas agricultural publications. Rural Press and John Fairfax announced a major merger in December 2006, and the transaction was completed on 8 May 2007. The former Rural Press titles subsequently operated under Fairfax’s regional-media structure, later using the Fairfax Regional Media name before becoming Australian Community Media. Fairfax Media merged with Nine Entertainment in December 2018. In April 2019, Nine sold ACM to Antony Catalano, a former chief executive of Domain, and investor Alex Waislitz. The transaction separated the regional publishing portfolio from Nine’s broader media operations and placed ACM under private ownership. The company has since faced the structural pressures affecting local newspapers internationally, including declining print advertising, audience migration to digital platforms, and changing relationships between publishers and large technology companies. ACM’s recent strategy has involved managing a large network of local mastheads while reducing or consolidating parts of its print operation. In December 2022, Star News Group assumed management of 14 newspapers in Queensland and South Australia. ACM closed the Blayney Chronicle and Oberon Review in August 2024 and later announced plans to close eight additional papers. The company attributed these decisions in part to the failure of Meta Platforms to renew a reported three-year funding arrangement with local newspaper publishers. In February 2025, ACM announced that all of its mastheads were expected to move to one printed edition per week by 2032. These developments illustrate the company’s attempt to preserve local coverage while adapting its publishing model to lower print demand and difficult digital economics. ACM remains an active regional publishing business, but its scale and future operating model continue to evolve. Its importance lies less in national mass-media reach than in the breadth of its local information network and the role of its newspapers in regional Australian communities.

Australian Community Media developed from Australia’s long-established rural and regional newspaper sector. Its earliest cited predecessor is The Land, founded in Sydney in 1911 as an agricultural publication. Over the following decades, The Land acquired or incorporated other community newspapers, creating the foundation for a broader rural publishing enterprise. John Fairfax entered the business in September 1970 by acquiring a 25 percent shareholding. The company was renamed Rural Press in 1981. Fairfax increased its interest to 45 percent in 1985, and Rural Press was listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in March 1989 while Fairfax Holdings retained a 51 percent shareholding. Rural Press subsequently expanded substantially through newspaper acquisitions and related media activities. By the middle of the 2000s, Rural Press controlled approximately 170 newspaper and magazine titles. Its holdings were concentrated in rural Australia but also included agricultural publications in the United States and New Zealand. The group operated regional radio stations in Queensland, South Australia, and Western Australia, as well as classified-advertising websites and commercial printing facilities. The Canberra Times was among its most prominent newspaper assets. Rural Press and John Fairfax announced a merger on 6 December 2006. The proposed combination was valued at approximately 12 billion Australian dollars according to contemporary descriptions of the transaction. The merger was completed on 8 May 2007. Rural Press publications then operated within Fairfax’s regional media structure, initially under the Fairfax Regional Media identity and later under the Australian Community Media name. Fairfax Media merged with Nine Entertainment in December 2018. In April 2019, Nine sold ACM to Antony Catalano and Alex Waislitz, ending ACM’s direct ownership by the large Fairfax-Nine group. The new ownership preserved ACM as a dedicated regional publishing business with a broad portfolio of local newspapers, agricultural titles, and websites. The company’s later history has been shaped by pressure on the traditional newspaper model. Local publishers have had to manage falling print circulation, reduced classified advertising, competition from digital platforms, and the high cost of maintaining numerous small mastheads. In December 2022, Star News Group took over management of 14 ACM newspapers in Queensland and South Australia. ACM closed the Blayney Chronicle and Oberon Review in August 2024 and subsequently announced plans for eight more closures. The company associated these changes with difficult trading conditions and the non-renewal by Meta Platforms of a reported funding deal involving local newspaper publishers. ACM also faced a major editorial-integrity controversy in 2024. ABC’s Media Watch reported extensive plagiarism involving sites identified as League Initiative, F1 Initiative, Surf Initiative, and AliaVera. James Raptis, an ACM senior in-house lawyer, was connected with the sites and acknowledged hosting them while denying editorial involvement. The sites were taken down and Raptis left ACM. In February 2025, ACM announced a long-term plan under which all its mastheads would move to one printed edition per week by 2032. The decision reflects a continuing shift toward digital publishing and a more limited print schedule. ACM therefore represents both the persistence of local journalism in Australia and the consolidation and operational retrenchment affecting regional newspapers.

1. 2025Weekly print transition announced

   ACM announces that all mastheads are planned to move to one print edition per week by 2032.

   Source
2. 2024Regional masthead closures and plagiarism controversy

   ACM closes two regional newspapers, announces further closures, and faces an editorial-integrity controversy involving unattributed rewritten material.

   Source
3. 2022Star News Group assumes management of 14 newspapers

   Fourteen ACM newspapers in Queensland and South Australia move under Star News Group management.

   Source
4. 2019ACM is sold to private owners

   Nine sells ACM to Antony Catalano and Alex Waislitz.

   Source
5. 2018Fairfax Media merges with Nine Entertainment

   ACM becomes part of the Fairfax assets acquired through the Nine Entertainment merger.

   Source
6. 2007Rural Press merges with John Fairfax

   The merger announced in 2006 is completed, bringing Rural Press titles into Fairfax’s regional publishing structure.

   Source
7. 1989Rural Press lists on the ASX

   Rural Press is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange with Fairfax Holdings holding a majority share.

   Source
8. 1981Business renamed Rural Press

   The company adopts the Rural Press name as its publishing portfolio expands.

   Source
9. 1970John Fairfax acquires a minority stake

   John Fairfax acquires a 25 percent shareholding in the rural and community publishing business.

   Source
10. 1911The Land is founded

    The Land, an agricultural newspaper in Sydney, is established and later becomes a foundational predecessor of ACM.

    Source

A regional and community-focused Australian publisher serving local audiences, rural industries, and agricultural communities through print and digital media.

• Regional daily newspapersNewspapers

  ACM operates major regional mastheads including The Canberra Times, Newcastle Herald, The Examiner, The Border Mail, The Courier, and the Illawarra Mercury. These publications cover local government, politics, courts, sport, business, community affairs, and regional events for audiences outside Australia’s largest metropolitan markets.

• Community newspapers and websitesLocal media

  The company’s community portfolio includes more than one hundred websites and a large network of local publications. These outlets provide highly localized reporting and community information, often serving towns and districts that have limited alternative sources of professionally produced news.

• Agricultural publicationsAgricultural media1911

  Agricultural titles such as The Land and Queensland Country Life address farming, rural business, agricultural markets, policy, technology, and primary-industry communities. This specialist publishing heritage is one of the distinguishing features of ACM’s portfolio.

• Digital advertising and classified servicesDigital media

  ACM’s wider business has included classified-advertising websites and digital publishing services connected with its newspaper network. These products extend the company’s local commercial role beyond the printed newspaper.

• 2025Move toward weekly print editionsStrategy

  The company is adapting to declining print demand and the migration of audiences and advertising toward digital channels.

  What changed. ACM announced that all of its mastheads would move to one printed edition per week by 2032.

  Aftermath. The plan would make digital publishing increasingly central to ACM’s local-news operating model.

  Source
• 2024Closure of regional mastheadsStrategy

  ACM cited difficult operating conditions and the non-renewal of a reported funding arrangement with Meta Platforms.

  What changed. ACM closed the Blayney Chronicle and Oberon Review and announced plans to close eight additional newspapers.

  Aftermath. The decisions further consolidated ACM’s regional print network.

  Source
• 2022Transfer of management for 14 newspapersStrategy

  ACM adjusted its regional publishing structure amid continuing pressure on local newspaper economics.

  What changed. Star News Group took over management of 14 ACM newspapers in Queensland and South Australia.

  Aftermath. The transfer reduced the number of newspapers directly managed by ACM in those states.

  Source

• 2024Plagiarism and unattributed rewriting controversyControversy

  An ABC Media Watch investigation reported thousands of cases of material apparently rewritten from other publications without attribution on several websites. ACM senior in-house lawyer James Raptis was linked to the sites, acknowledged hosting them, and denied editorial involvement. The sites were removed and Raptis left ACM.

  Source

• 2025ACM announces transition toward weekly print editions

  ACM announced that all of its mastheads would move to one printed edition per week by 2032 as the company adapts to changes in newspaper economics and digital consumption.

  Product generation
  Source
• 2024ACM closes two regional newspapers and plans further closures

  ACM closed the Blayney Chronicle and Oberon Review in August and later announced plans to close eight further newspapers. The company cited challenging economics and the non-renewal of a funding arrangement with Meta.

  Bankruptcy
  Source
• 2022Star News Group takes over management of 14 ACM newspapers

  Management of 14 newspapers in Queensland and South Australia was transferred to Star News Group as ACM adjusted its regional publishing operations.

  Other
  Source
• 2019Nine sells Australian Community Media to Antony Catalano and Alex Waislitz

  Nine Entertainment sold ACM, its regional publishing business, to Antony Catalano and Alex Waislitz after the 2018 merger between Fairfax Media and Nine.

  M&A
  Source

1. Australian Community Media