Four New York mastheads – among them the Batavia Daily News – have been acquired by Sample Media.

Dirks, Van Essen & April, which represented Johnson Newspaper Corporation in the transaction, reported that Sample bought four publications from Watertown, NY-based Johnson Newspaper Corporation, the others being Livingston County News, Oswego County News, and the Oswego Shopper. Terms were not disclosed.

Sample News Group is the parent company of Oswego County Media Group, which also publishes the Palladium-Times, The Valley News, The Oswego County Advertiser, and online at OswegoCountyNewsNow.com.

George ‘Scoop’ Sample said he was thrilled to be adding the publications to the Sample News Group family. “These news operations have been successfully run by the Johnson family and we look forward to continuing to serve these revitalised regions of Western and Central New York.”

JNC president Alec Johnson said Sample, like Johnson Newspaper Corp, was “a company with its family name attached”.

“Scoop has proven to us that he has the commitment and ability to ensure the continued success of these community newspapers.

“The Johnson family is proud to have contributed to the growth and success of these papers over the past several years,” Johnson continued. “The commitment to local journalism, by people who live and report within the communities where these papers circulate, will continue.”

Sample News Group currently operates three properties and a printing plant in Oswego under the leadership of publisher Sharon Lynett. Privately held and based in Huntingdon, PA, it publishes 17 daily newspapers and more than 35 weeklies and specialty magazines, 30 local websites and six centralised production facilities – in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Vermont, and New Hampshire.

JNC acquired the Daily News in 1981 and founded the Livingston County News in 1989.