Atlantic City-Area Paper Makes Number Six for Philly-Based Review.

Review Publishing LP announced earlier this month that it has acquired Whoot!, a free weekly newspaper based in the Atlantic City, New Jersey area. Review now boasts six papers, including AAN stalwarts Philadelphia Weekly and In Pittsburgh Weekly, and the community weeklies South Philly Review, Southwest Philly Review and South Jersey Review.

“[Whoot!] is an entertainment-oriented weekly, and we see a good synergy between what we do in Philadelphia and what they do in Atlantic City,” says Review Publishing President Anthony Clifton. “It could be a very strong mesh.”

Clifton says growth in the Atlantic City area and the casinos’ recent shift to marketing toward the coveted 18-34 demographic are the two main reasons why Whoot! fits perfectly into the Review game plan. “While it’s true that Las Vegas and Atlantic City aren’t the only casino cities in the country, it’s probably fair to assume there’s growth in their future,” he says. “They’re trying to attract a younger, hipper crowd.”

Clifton says Lewis Steiner, who founded the paper in 1974, will remain Publisher and will continue to operate the paper out of Pleasantville, New Jersey.

“We’re looking for synergy,” enthuses Clifton. “The nature of [Whoot!] is that it’s a homegrown paper that has elements of both an alternative weekly and a community newspaper. It’s not necessarily a given that we’d make it one or the other. We’re looking to make it better: better people, better performance, better product.”

The addition of a sixth paper brings Review’s total weekly circulation to nearly 350,000. The company also has two websites, including the two-month old alternative news and entertainment destination BrainSoap.com.