The Deseret News issued the following statement on the sale of the Salt Lake Tribune:
SALT LAKE CITY — May 31, 2016 — As the sale of the Salt Lake Tribune from Digital First Media (DFM) to Paul Huntsman closed today, we would like to congratulate both parties.
As part of this purchase, Paul Huntsman assumes DFM’s position in a long-standing partnership between the Deseret News and the Salt Lake Tribune known as a joint operating agreement (JOA). The JOA was established between the Deseret News and the Salt Lake Tribune in 1952. It is an operating partnership, authorized by federal statute, that prints, distributes and sells advertising and subscriptions for both papers.
In 2013, DFM approached the Deseret News with an offer to sell part of its share in the JOA. The Deseret News agreed to the proposed transaction. In early 2015, DFM again approached the Deseret News, this time in connection with a possible sale of the Tribune to Huntsman, and asked to buy back part of that percentage. The Deseret News agreed to do so, and at the same time consented to Huntsman as a buyer.
Although partnership percentages in the JOA have shifted over the years, the ownership and editorial control of each newspaper have remained strictly separate and independent. At no time has either paper influenced the operations, opinions or business decisions of the other.
Established in 1850, the Deseret News is the oldest newspaper in the Mountain West and the oldest continuously operating business in Utah. Its daily print edition, weekly Sunday edition, related websites and mobile apps constitute Utah’s most widely read newspaper.