(Montreal) Already linked by an agreement to share editorial and photographic content, The Press and the National Cooperative for Independent Information (CN2i) are considering other mergers.
The two groups announced on Thursday that they had agreed to jointly launch an exploratory study aimed at enabling them to “consolidate their information mission.”
The Montreal daily and the group formed by newspapers The Sun, The Law, The New List, The Daily, The Tribune And The Voice of the East indicated that they had commissioned an independent firm to assess the viability of “one or more possible collaboration models”.
The firm will have to take into account the strengths, missions and positions of the two companies in their respective markets, they said in a press release.
This study does not commit any of the stakeholders for the future, they specified, indicating that the process should be spread over a few weeks.
Citing a generally worrying situation in the written media and a growing role for disinformation and misinformation, The Press and CN2i say they are ready to consider mergers “to maximize the dissemination and access to rigorous information in communities.”
The President of The PressPierre-Elliott Levasseur, indicated that his organization wanted to evaluate how such collaboration could allow regional information to remain strong and present in the different communities.
PHOTO DAVID BOILY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Pierre-Elliott Levasseur, president of The Press
“We are open to analyzing any proposal with a partner as strong as The Pressas long as it strengthens the voice of the regions and the sustainability of our missions,” said CN2i CEO Geneviève Rossier.
The Press has 450 employees, of which more than 215 work in the newsroom.
The National Independent Information Cooperative has 244 employees, including 155 in the editorial department, spread across six media outlets.
Companies related to The PressTorstar and the Globe and Mail hold investments in The Canadian Press.