The Times Leader newspaper in Wilkes-Barre has been sold to a North Carolina media company.
The newspaper reports that the Times Leader Media Group has been sold to privately held Avant Publications. The purchase price was not disclosed. Avant’s leadership group includes Scott Champion, whose Champion Media owns five dailies and 21 weeklies in North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, Minnesota and Virginia.
The Times Leader had been owned by Civitas Media of Davidson, North Carolina. Civitas is controlled by Versa Capital Management, a private equity firm in Philadelphia.
The sale includes the Times Leader; the Weekender, an arts and entertainment publication; the Sunday Dispatch of Pittston; the Abington Journal of Clarks Summit; and several digital properties.
