PORTLAND, ME – Dig Portland LLC has agreed to sell the weekly newspaper, Dig Portland, to Portland News Club LLC, parent company of the Portland Phoenix. According to publisher and co-owner, Jeff Lawrence, the paper will cease publishing immediately as part of the agreement.

“It was a tough decision but it was the right one,” he said. “When we entered the Portland market, we were committed to providing quality journalism and arts and entertainment coverage, and in a very short period of time, we achieved that and are extremely proud of it.”

“That said, it takes a lot of resources to provide that kind of journalism, and this buyout will allow the Portland Phoenix to invest more than we can in the market.” Lawrence added.

Mark Guerringue, publisher and owner of the Portland Phoenix agreed.

“It was unfortunate timing that we both started at the same time, because both of us now know that Portland can support only one alternative newspaper. It eventually came down to who would buy whom and it made more sense for the Phoenix to continue because it is an established brand,” he said.

Both parties have agreed to work together during the transition and understand it’s an exciting time for any publisher investing in local print, never mind two at the same time.

Marc Shepard, co-owner of Dig Portland underscored this point by adding, “Portland is a fantastic market and one I am personally invested in, but in the end, it became clear that if there was only one paper in the market, they’d have a better chance of investing in quality journalism than if there was two.”