Freedom Communications

Freedom Communications, Inc. was an American media conglomerate that operated daily and weekly newspapers, websites and mobile applications, as well as Coast Magazine[1] and other specialty publications.

Headquartered at 625 N. Grand Avenue in Santa Ana, California, it was owned by a private equity firm, 2100 Trust, established in 2010 by investor Aaron Kushner.

The Freedom television group eventually grew to six stations, including WRGB-TV Albany, New York, WPEC-TV West Palm Beach, Florida, WWMT-TV, Kalamazoo, Michigan and KTVL-TV Medford, Oregon.

Four papers in the Midwest were sold to Ohio Community Media, an affiliate of the private equity firm Versa Capital Management, in May.

On July 25, 2012, the latter, led by entrepreneur Aaron Kushner, acquired Freedom's dailies, associated non-daily publications and digital properties.

[12] Kushner, who "preached the virtues of local journalism and a print product," bought Freedom in 2012 for $50 million plus assumption of pension liabilities.

[17] In 2013, Freedom Communications sold the Yuma Sun and the Porterville Recorder to Rhode Island Suburban Newspapers and the Appeal-Democrat to Horizon Publications.

[22] On March 21, 2016 a bankruptcy judge approved the sale of Freedom Communications and its two major newspapers, the Orange County Register and the Riverside Press-Enterprise to Digital First Media (DFM).