A pledge to increase local news has accompanied the acquisition of four US mastheads by Greg Hoskins’ Better Newspapers group.

The company has purchased Parkland regional newspaper the Daily Journal, the Fredericktown Democrat News, Farmington Press, and Advantage from Lee Enterprises.

Hoskins said he hopes to see these newspapers grow and embrace their roots of community-based news coverage.

“I am happy to now include the Park Hills Daily Journal, Democrat News, Farmington Press and Advantage as part of our growing, premium newspaper company,” he said. “We pledge, from our family to yours, a heightened amount of news content, with an emphasis on increasing local news.”

Other planned improvements include bringing back local autonomy at each newspaper and the building of a regional, Missouri-based press plant in Park Hills.

Based in Mascoutah, Illinois, Better Newspapers is a family-owned company that now operates 39 publications in Illinois and Missouri as well as six radio stations.

Hoskins formed Better Newspapers with an ex-partner in 1991, and expanded in 2012 by building a regional press plant in Altamont, Illinois, which now also a variety of other newspapers in the area.

Hoskins is president of the corporation in which his wife Linda works in editorial, his elder son Scott as metro-east regional manager, and his younger son Mark as regional manager at the press plant.

Dirks, Van Essen & April represented Lee Enterprises in the transaction, terms of which were not disclosed.