In this episode of E&P Reports, we examine one of the most consequential local news stories in the country — the near-collapse and sudden reinvention of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette — through separate interviews with two key voices: Andrew Conte, a leading local news advocate and managing director of the Center for Media Innovation at Point Park University, and Bob Cohn, president and CEO of The Baltimore Banner and The Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism, the organization now stepping in to lead the paper’s future.
A crisis that became impossible to ignore
For Conte, the moment wasn’t theoretical — it was unfolding in real time. “When we first learned that the Post-Gazette was shutting down, I was in the middle of working on the response to the Pittsburgh City Paper closing,” he said, describing how quickly one newsroom crisis bled into another. What followed, he added, “was a whirlwind really from then until now… I’m not sure that it’s even ended yet.”
The stakes, he emphasized, extended beyond one newsroom. “The public is finally paying attention and aware of what the stakes are,” Conte said, noting that while journalists have long understood the erosion of local news, “the average Joe doesn’t always know, and so now they’re paying attention.” Even in a city with dozens of outlets, the loss of a legacy metro still matters. “It just was another blow. It meant fewer journalists telling these stories and it meant losing an important voice out of our ecosystem.”
Yet Pittsburgh’s response surprised even seasoned observers. “Here we are three months later saying, no, no, we’ve actually gained three significant things,” Conte said, pointing to the revival of Pittsburgh City Paper, new ownership of the Post-Gazette and expanded ambitions from the Tribune-Review. The region, he believes, was better prepared than most. “It feels like everything that we’ve done from the beginning has been preparing us for this moment of crisis,” he said, adding the community proved “much more resilient… much better prepared for all the eventualities.”
Why the Post-Gazette — and why now
For Bob Cohn, the decision to step in was driven by both urgency and mission. “Its leading source of news was on the verge of going out of business, making Pittsburgh the largest city in the country without that major source of news,” he said. The weight of the institution mattered. “The Post-Gazette has been the driver in local news coverage… and as you know, they’re 240 years old.”
The move also aligns with a broader strategy behind the Venetoulis Institute and The Baltimore Banner. “We have a civic and journalistic mission, and there’s a match with Pittsburgh,” Cohn explained. That mission had already included expansion planning. “The idea was to see if we could build a successful model and then replicate it in other areas,” he said.
What surprised him was how clearly Pittsburgh had already emerged as a target market. “The number one choice, the number one option, was Pittsburgh,” he said, recalling internal analysis done before the crisis. “That’s when the Post-Gazette still existed… imagine how much more attractive it is when we can be the Post-Gazette.” Even if the timing accelerated the decision, the opportunity was clear. “You’ve got to take opportunities when they come.”
Rebuilding trust after years of turmoil
If the acquisition is complex on paper, the cultural reset may be even more challenging. Cohn moved quickly to engage the newsroom. “We met 87 people in the newsroom… they really want to rebuild a great Post-Gazette,” he said, pointing to both the scale of the effort and the appetite for change.
While acknowledging the history of labor tensions, Cohn signaled a forward-looking approach. “I’m familiar with all the strife between labor and management. We think that is in the past,” he said. The focus now is alignment. “We’re confident that the newsroom wants what the readers want, which is great local news coverage.”
His approach mirrors the culture built in Baltimore. “We have a tradition… treat people with respect and with dignity, offer excellent benefits and salary,” Cohn said, adding that he believes “that’s what the team in Pittsburgh wants too.” The reset, in his view, begins with shared purpose and consistent leadership.
A legacy culture meets a startup mindset
Unlike Baltimore, where The Banner was built from scratch, Pittsburgh presents a different challenge. “They’re both hard for different reasons,” Cohn said, comparing the two experiences. Starting fresh required convincing talent to join an unproven venture. “We’re trying to bring great talent to Baltimore for a startup… there’s a lot of capital required to do that from scratch.”
By contrast, Pittsburgh offers both advantage and complexity. “You’ve got a legacy brand, which is really strong in the community,” he said. “It’s already got a subscriber list and an advertiser list.” But transformation is unavoidable. “There’s a lot required to modernize a legacy business,” he noted, referencing his experience transitioning print organizations into digital operations.
In the end, neither path is easier. “Both of them have upsides, and both of them have liabilities that you have to navigate,” Cohn said.
The business model: print, digital and sustainability
One of the immediate questions surrounding the Post-Gazette’s future is the role of print. Cohn’s answer is pragmatic. “It’s not simply a transition strategy,” he said. “Print is in secular decline and yet print is working at the Post-Gazette.” The economics still matter. “It is driving consumer revenue and advertising revenue, and it’s profitable even against the considerable costs of print.”
That reality shapes the near-term plan. “We’ll do print as long as it makes good business sense,” he said, while also preparing for a digital-first future. “At the same time we will try to migrate readers over to a digital experience that will be every bit as good as print.”
Underlying the strategy is a hybrid philosophy. “We’re trying to combine the mission-driven attributes of nonprofits with the kind of business rigor of a for-profit,” Cohn said. Sustainability remains essential. “We do have a business model, and we need to make money to pay for the considerable newsrooms and presses and business teams that we have.”
What success looks like from here
Looking ahead, Cohn envisions a structure that blends local autonomy with centralized efficiency. “We’re going to have standalone newsrooms in each of the regions,” he said, alongside shared infrastructure. “There’s an opportunity to do some back-office technology and business operations centrally… like engineering and HR and finance.”
That model is designed to scale while preserving local impact. “We’ll do that centrally, and then we’ll have, of course, regional newsrooms and advertising,” he said.
Ultimately, success will be measured in both journalistic and financial terms. “I think we’re doing excellent journalism and we’re profitable so we can pour those profits back into the journalism,” Cohn said.
For Pittsburgh, the turnaround is still in its earliest days. But as Conte observed, the crisis has already changed public awareness — and as Cohn now takes the reins, the future of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette may become a test case for whether a new ownership model can rebuild trust, sustainability and impact inside one of America’s oldest news institutions.
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