Nonprofit Rescues Pittsburgh Post-Gazette from Closure
Nonprofit buys Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, stopping a May closure and shifting it to a nonprofit model, with added $30 million support over five years.
Ayla Demirhan ·
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette will keep publishing after the Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism acquired the newspaper’s assets from Block Communications, according to an agreement announced on Tuesday, April 14, 2026.
The deal stops a shutdown that had been scheduled for May and shifts the publication to a nonprofit operating structure. The Post-Gazette is a newspaper with more than two centuries of history, and the transaction is set to keep its operations going under new ownership.
Block Communications, which has owned The Post-Gazette since 1927, had previously pointed to continuing financial losses and labor disputes as the reasons it planned to close the paper. The company did not disclose the sale price. Allan Block, CEO of Block Communications, said the Venetoulis Institute was selected even though it was not the highest bidder, citing the institute’s stated commitment to the newspaper’s future.
The Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism also operates The Baltimore Banner and is funded by Stewart W. Bainum Jr. As part of the broader effort tied to the institute’s local-news strategy, Mr. Bainum has committed an additional $30 million over five years to support The Baltimore Banner and The Post-Gazette. The stated aim is to build a sustainable model for local journalism.
The announcement comes against a backdrop of continued contraction in the local and metropolitan newspaper business. A 2025 Northwestern University report said more than 130 papers ceased operations in the preceding year alone, underscoring the scale of closures across the sector.
In that context, the Post-Gazette transaction stands out as an example of a nonprofit-backed approach being used to maintain a legacy local outlet rather than wind it down. The agreement also highlights how ownership decisions can prioritize long-term continuity over the highest purchase offer, based on the seller’s stated rationale.
Key details remain undisclosed, including the amount paid for the assets and how the nonprofit model will be structured operationally for the Post-Gazette. What is clear from the parties’ statements is that the immediate outcome is the cancellation of the planned May closure and a transition to nonprofit ownership under the Venetoulis Institute.