Santa Barbara Independent publisher Randy Campbell will appeal a judge's decision which ordered him to sell his shares of the paper to editor-in-chief Marianne Partridge.
Judge Denise deBellefeuille has granted an injunction sought by Independent co-owner and editor-in-chief Marianne Partridge in her contract dispute over the paper's sale with publisher and majority owner Randy Campbell. The injunction effectively bars Campbell from selling or distributing his shares of the Independent until the conflict with Partridge over the sale of his shares is finally resolved, the paper reports.
Editor-in-chief Marianne Partridge has sued publisher Randy Campbell in Santa Barbara County Superior Court for breach of contract in a legal dispute that Independent reporter Nick Welsh says "could have major ramifications for the ownership structure" of the paper. Partridge, a minority shareholder, claims that Campbell -- who owns 51 percent of the company -- is in violation of contract language that requires him to offer to sell his stock to Partridge or one of the other two minority owners before selling to anyone else. The dispute stems from Campbell's apparent desire to sell his share of the Independent to Valley Printers, which prints the paper and is owned by Southland Publishing, the parent company of four Southern California AAN member papers.
This week's issue includes columns by former owner Jim Laris and current editor Kevin Uhrich, who has been with the paper since 1996. There's also a timeline and a series of short reminisces from a number of alumni, including former LA Reader owner James Vowell and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author Steve Coll, the paper's first editor.
Southland Publishing president Bruce Bolkin announced this morning that the alt-weekly's March 26 issue will be its last. "For 6 years, the Los Angeles CityBeat has offered a fresh perspective to the readers of Los Angeles, and Southland is extremely proud of its writers and entire staff who have contributed to the paper," says Bolkin.
The executive publisher of Southland's Los Angeles CityBeat and executive vice president of sales for the chain's other AAN papers announced yesterday that he's leaving on Oct. 17 to join the Barack Obama campaign as a fundraiser and committee leader for California and Nevada. "As a life-long Republican I am seen as a crucial leader in the fight to win votes and raise money for the Senator amongst undecided Republicans and Independents, particularly in the States of Nevada and Colorado which are key Western battleground states," he wrote in an email to colleagues. Gerencser was also a member of the AAN Marketing Committee. As for life after the campaign, he notes that he's applied to two doctoral programs for admission as early as Spring 2009.
The publisher of AAN members San Diego CityBeat, Los Angeles CityBeat, ValleyBeat and Pasadena Weekly announced today that Los Angeles New City Monthly will debut in June. The magazine will "celebrate the intellectual and cultural 'renaissance' of LA's Eastside" and will largely be distributed via direct mail, according to a Southland press release. Nikki Bazar, who previously freelanced for Pasadena Weekly, will be editor. The design and production will be handled by the art and production team at CityBeat and ValleyBeat.
The sale of IE Weekly was announced yesterday; the 21-week-old California publication serves a large market in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. Publisher Jeremy Zachary, editor Stacy Davies and managing editor Rich Kane -- all former employees of OC Weekly -- will continue in their positions. "In today's merger climate it makes sense that we join the Southland Publishing family, allowing us to better serve our advertisers locally, regionally and nationally," Zachary says.
