The Chicago Public Media board voted Tuesday evening to move forward with its acquisition of the Chicago Sun-Times, combining the long-struggling daily newspaper with resurgent public radio station WBEZ-FM 91.5 as one nonprofit multimedia newsroom.
The transaction is expected to close by Jan. 31, creating a potentially groundbreaking model for the future of local journalism.
“This is an important step to grow and strengthen local journalism in Chicago,” Matt Moog, CEO of Chicago Public Media, parent company of WBEZ, said in a news release.