PITTSBURGH – A Baltimore-area nonprofit will take over operations of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on May 4.
“Toledo, Ohio-based Block Communications Inc. is selling the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette assets to the Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism, publisher of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Baltimore Banner,” according to an article in the Post-Gazette. “The newsroom and local business leadership will remain in Pittsburgh while other functions, including technology and business operations, will be combined with teams at the Venetoulis Institute.
The sale will become effective May 4, and the Post-Gazette name will remain.
The Post-Gazette dates back more than two centuries and is one of the country’s oldest newspapers. Block Communications announced in January that the paper would cease operations May 3. At that time, the company reported it had lost more than $350 million in cash over the past 20 years of operating the newspaper.
Block’s announcement also referenced a late 2025 court decision. Journalists who had been on strike for three years returned to the newsroom in November after an appeals court ruled the company had bargained in bad faith. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to stop the lower court ruling.
According to a Tuesday news release from the Post-Gazette, the new owners plan to maintain the newspaper’s two print publication days, Thursday and Sunday.
“On April 14, 2026, we announced an agreement with Block Communications to acquire The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, one of the nation’s oldest regional newspapers, effective May 4, 2026,” the Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism’s website states. “This move reinforces our commitment to create a vibrant, trustworthy, and sustainable model for local journalism.”
The Venetoulis Institute launched The Baltimore Banner in June 2022.
“The Venetoulis Institute is a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening and sustaining high-quality local journalism,” its website states. “We were founded in response to the nationwide erosion of local news, with many media organizations shutting down, downsizing to survive, or being purchased by hedge funds with a single-minded focus on financial returns.”