A former councillor in Prince George has purchased the city含羞草研究社檚 only newspaper after watching multiple outlets in other British Columbia Interior communities shut down last year.

Cameron Stolz is the new owner of the 108-year-old Prince George Citizen after buying the paper from Glacier Media.

Stolz, a businessman who owns a toy and comics store, said he entered talks to buy the weekly newspaper last November after outlets in Fort St. John and Dawson Creek closed, followed soon after by the newspaper in Kamloops.

He said he was worried that the Citizen, which lost about $56,000 last year, would be the next to go.

含羞草研究社淚 do believe firmly that there is a need for local news for communities, I believe that there含羞草研究社檚 a need for people to be aware of what含羞草研究社檚 going on in their community and be able to find a trusted source of information on their stories,含羞草研究社� Stolz said.

含羞草研究社淚 also believe that local communities need to have their elected officials being watched, you know? (With reporters) paying attention to what they含羞草研究社檙e doing, and then reporting what they含羞草研究社檙e doing to the community to inform people.含羞草研究社�

The number of local newspapers in Canada has been in steady decline for years, with a steep drop in 2023 after the end of pandemic-related government supports.

A study out of Toronto Metropolitan University含羞草研究社檚 School of Journalism found that between Jan. 1 and Dec. 1, 2023, 36 local news outlets closed in Canada. Twenty-nine were community newspapers and seven were privately owned radio stations.

Stolz said he didn含羞草研究社檛 expect the Citizen to become incredibly profitable but believed he could turn things around to the point where he would hire more reporters in 18 months.

含羞草研究社淚 never envisioned the Citizen being something that含羞草研究社檚 going to be buying me a new vehicle. That含羞草研究社檚 not the case,含羞草研究社� he said.

含羞草研究社淚f we go from a $56,000 loss to a $56,000 profit that means I can spend that money on additional wages for additional reporting.含羞草研究社�

He says his plan focuses on being 含羞草研究社減ro-Prince George,含羞草研究社� 含羞草研究社減ro-solution含羞草研究社� and 含羞草研究社減ro-business含羞草研究社� while remaining connected to the community.

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