In the mid-1980s, he was named director of human resources at the Salem Statesman Journal and, in 1988, became executive editor and publisher of the Daily Enterprise Courier in Oregon City.
A decade later Hungerford left his job in March 2000 to found Country Media, Inc.[3] with his wife and a group of investors from across the United States.
A national agribusiness weekly based in Sturgis called Tri-State Livestock News was also included in the sale.
[4] Country Media marked its first year in business by purchasing the Farmer & Rancher Exchange, a weekly agribusiness advertising publication in Pierre with a 43,000 circulation.
[5] In December 2004, Country Media sold eight weekly newspapers, two shoppers and a monthly gaming publication to Lee Enterprises.
The paper founded in 1906 was closed due to "a financial challenge," in part attributed to competition from rival newspaper The Dakota Herald.
[11] In May 2021, Country Media sold the Bowman County Pioneer in Bowman and Fallon County Times in Baker to a joint venture between Little Missouri Media owner Dudley Stuber and The Badlands Patriot, a company owned by Stuber's daughter and son-in-law, Mikki and Brandon Pryor.
[16] The same year in June, the company acquired the biweekly North Coast Citizen newspaper in Manzanita.
The paper had previously been owned by the East Oregonian Publishing Company (now EO Media Group), who had purchased it in 2007 from Jan and Dave Fisher.
[1] In July 2019, Country Media acquired the Del Norte Triplicate and Curry Coastal Pilot from the bankrupt Western Communications, Inc.
[22] Due to the COVID-19 recession in the United States, The Umpqua Post ceased operations in June and The World reduced its print days from five to two.
[30] In September 2024, the company closed The Columbia County Chronicle & Chief due to declining revenue and difficulty hiring staff.