In the age of on-demand information, picking up a local newspaper is not necessarily the best way to get a news update. So it’s understandable that remaining relevant is at the forefront of the print media industry’s concerns.

Lately, many in the print media are shifting focus toward other media. But for Scott Flanders, the newly appointed president and CEO of Freedom Communications, Inc., the fourteenth largest media company in the US, the idea of turning away from print media has never crossed his mind.

“Nationwide, the newspaper industry is losing circulation,” said Flanders. “We’re choosing not to participate in that trend. We are going to modify, redesign, and re-edit our existing print products to ensure that we are gaining total circulation in our markets.”

With more than 20 years of experience in the media business, Flanders has a variety of specific ideas on how to carry his company to the top. As he looks to expand the company’s print-media empire, the most important one is adhering to the core beliefs of Freedom’s founding father, R.C. Hoilies—respect for individual freedom, liberty, and integrity.

“We believe in a personal responsibility,” said Flanders. “We keep that as a core corporate principal.” Already labeled a trusted local authority for news and information in the Texas, California, North Carolina, and Northwest Florida markets, Flanders believes the company’s libertarian values are an added bonus to any company willing to participate in the Freedom ideology.

“We provide a great deal of autonomy to our local publishers and general managers so they can lead their media properties to be responsive to their community,” he said. “We absolutely want to support the local brands.”

As many small, local companies struggle to compete with nationwide publications, Freedom offers an umbrella of fiscal comfort without the restraints associated with a homogenized corporate dictatorship.

“We don’t interfere with editorial independence and are committed to private ownership,” said Flanders. “We do more than just bring money to the table. We bring the ability to have the legacy of a local media company preserved under our umbrella.”

Past and present
Although newspapers have traditionally taken one-size-fits-all approach, Flanders believes the future of newspapers is in segmentation. He sees an increasing need to have customized newspapers based on household demographics such as age, economics, and language. One of the company’s first ventures into this philosophy has started to pay off.

“Our La Frontera Spanish-language newspaper in Texas turned a profit in January for the first time,” said Flanders. “We’ve been investing at a prudent pace over the past couple of years, and our Spanish products are starting to turn a profit.”

He attributes this success to his company’s ability to build off of its core strength. These local innovations use the existing printing press as well as focusing on Freedom’s ideology on personal ownership and community involvement.

“Our publishers get rated every year on their stewardship in their communities,” said Flanders. “We rank them against their peers in a number of categories, but the most important is that one.”

The space between
Along with his plans for segmentation and diversification for the company’s print media, Flanders intends to invest in the company’s interactive space and beef up online revenues. He believes that by coupling print media with Internet development, Freedom will be able to keep its head above water—and possibly gain some ground.

“I am increasing our focus on print innovation as well as our online efforts,” he said. “We are putting more investment against both of those initiatives, and the early results are favorable.”

The company’s online revenues are currently at 3% of total revenue. Flanders plans to get that figure up to 10% quickly, with a goal of achieving $100 million of interactive revenue in three years. With advertising as the company’s primary revenue source, Flanders knows that by maintaining relevance in local print media, local online media will also flourish. The company already spends around $20 million on IT, not including its Internet efforts.

“We have URLs beyond our newspaper brands,” he said. “For example, in Colorado Springs, we have Coloradosprings.com. A lot of visitors to Colorado Springs don’t know the local newspaper, and when they search for Coloradosprings.com, there we are.”

The company is currently recruiting for a president of its interactive development. Flanders said he wants to bring someone in with a diversified media background to support Freedom’s efforts. “It will enable us to consolidate our efforts and leverage the scale we have as a billion-dollar company,” he said.

Rules and regulations
With such an enlightened point of view regarding company policy, it is interesting to hear Flanders’ views surrounding governmental regulations. With five CBS and three ABC affiliates to manage, Flanders has a definite opinion about federal regulation.

“I believe that the cross-ownership rules and the duopoly rules of the FCC are antiquated,” he said. “I believe that government should take a minimalist approach to restraint on trade and corporate activity. The free market is best at sorting out those issues.”

Although the First Amendment protects Freedom’s newspapers, its television stations are licensed by the FCC. There are many restrictions and requirements on programming choices, but Flanders said this is something they have learned to live with. As with most issues surrounding his business, he keeps a positive outlook.

“With so many other sources of news, information, and entertainment that you can acquire from home, those cross-ownership and duopoly rules need to be reevaluated,” he said. “They need to be careful and not to react precipitously, but the FCC appears to be headed in the right direction.” The same could be said for Freedom Communications.