Paul Thomas talks about scale, strong local presence and “a genuine belief in the importance of place based journalism” as the “magic sauce” behind the success of its Today News Group.
“We believe local journalism needs to be independent, balanced and properly grounded in the communities it serves,” he says. “That matters enormously in regional areas, particularly at a time when misinformation, social media distortion and now AI generated falsehoods are making trusted reporting more important than ever.”
Central to all this is his family’s Star News Group, which supports a model that keeps sales teams and journalists in local markets, while centralising as much backend support as sensibly possible. “Star provides the accounting, creative services, IT, systems and broader operational support that allow the wider network to function efficiently and sustainably,” he says.
Thomas is the fourth generation of a business founded in 1909, when the Berwick Shire News and Pakenham and Cranbourne Gazette was first published, written, set, printed and sold by Albert Edward Thomas (above) in Berwick, now a Melbourne suburb. The launch followed 28 years working in newspapers in and around Melbourne, including owning newspapers in Violet Town and Korumburra.
Son Herb joined the newspaper in 1914 at the age of 12, and became proprietor on his father’s death in 1948.
These were the days of letterpress production initially on a hand-fed Wharfedale press, and a priority had been to buy a secondhand linotype machine, which son Ian learned to use when he joined the business in 1951. It’s a tradition that was continued, with the Gazette becoming one of the first country newspapers in Victoria to move into web-offset printing in 1972.
A history of the business also notes the strong contributions of Herb’s wife Florrie – who retired as a proofreader in 1998 at the age of 91 – and later Ian’s wife Dorothy (pictured top). Having come into the business to support Ian, she worked as editor for many years until retiring in 1997, and today survives Ian who died in 2023.
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Paul Thomas had joined the company in 1992, and has played a part in a succession of events since then, starting with the launch of a real estate newspaper, a move to new premises the following year, and the addition of new mastheads. Expansion into Melbourne’s western suburbs followed his appointment as managing director in 2000.
A half share in the Mail Newspaper Group – with four mastheads coming out of offices in Healesville and Monbulk – formed a relationship with co-owner, the Higgins family’s North East Newspapers, with the company taking over management of Mail the following year. Three more editions – this time under the Star banner – were launched the following year.
Star was also a partner in the joint venture that set up Border Mail Printing, with its innovative Goss newspaper press, but this was divested in 2007 (the plant now belongs to Shepparton News publisher McPherson Media). Also in 2003, the company joined forces with the Tayler family to purchase the Geelong Independent, taking full control the following year, and in October 2004, launched five Star editions into Hume, Whittlesea and Mitchell Shire.
By then, and with a rebrand as Star News Group, the company started by one man had grown to more than 150 staff out of eight offices.
“That centralised structure is one of the real keys to the model,” says Thomas. “It gives us economies of scale, helps us stay lean and allows multiple mastheads to benefit from experienced shared services.
“But centralisation does not mean everything is run from one office – those teams work across multiple publications from a range of locations, with for example, graphic designers working from Balaklava in South Australia, Keilor Park in Melbourne, Swan Hill, Mildura and Manila.”
Thomas says staff are encouraged to work from the office (of which there are now 27) “wherever commercially possible”.
“That means we have local teams, local knowledge and a visible presence in the communities we serve, wherever possible.
“Most importantly, we have very good people with a real commitment to their communities. Our people are our greatest asset, and many of our leaders have been with us for a long time and know regional publishing exceptionally well.”
He says a small newspaper can still generate local print advertising and circulation revenue, which in turn can help support the digital side of the operation, whereas many digital-only publishers struggle to generate enough local revenue to “properly fund” journalism.
“We have also found that as we have grown, it has become easier to negotiate digital revenue, because scale matters and many agencies want network reach that smaller publishers simply cannot offer on their own,” he says.
“Printed newspapers still generate the majority of revenue across much of the network, but we are increasingly transitioning through digital tools, digital audiences and digital revenue streams as well. That transition is important, but it takes time, and it works best when it is built on a sustainable local publishing operation. Government support is also critical in that mix. The News Media Assistance Program has been important following Meta’s exit, and it will be essential for the industry to see the NBI effectively enacted.
“The next major challenge will be ensuring AI companies are properly held to account and that publishers are fairly paid for the content they are using.”
The growth of Today has seen Damian Morgan involved across most of Queensland and a key partner in a number of Today operations. “We also have other shareholders involved, including Queensland general manager Andrew Guiver and the managing director of South Burnett Today, Danial Pelcl.
“So while there is a common philosophy and shared approach, there is also local leadership and investment across different parts of the group.
“Star News Group is really the foundation from which much of this has grown. Its roots are in Pakenham and in a long history of local and regional publishing. Over time, Star has expanded well beyond its original base, but the philosophy has remained consistent: local papers matter, local journalism matters, and there is still a future for trusted local media if it is done properly.
“More broadly, I think what Today and Star have shown is that regional publishing can still work if it is approached with discipline, scale and a genuine respect for local communities,” he says.
Pictured above: Paul Thomas, print manager Wayne Layt and Bruce Ellen when the Rockhampton press was reopened
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