Milwaukee online news daily UrbanMilwaukee.com has agreed to purchase ThirdCoastDaily.com, a Milwaukee online arts and entertainment publication. The sale will be effective December 1.
John Shannon, owner and publisher of Third Coast Daily, said his decision would enable the publication to continue in Milwaukee.
“I got involved with Third Coast because I am a supporter of the arts, and I felt its coverage of Milwaukee’s cultural scene helped make this a more vibrant city,” Shannon said. “But I cannot continue to commit the time needed to oversee the publication. I believe Urban Milwaukee has the resources and know-how to maintain and increase the readership of Third Coast.”
Jeramey Jannene, president of Urban Milwaukee, said a staffing announcement will come in the “next week or two,” and a name change and redesign will follow at some point in the future. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“Third Coast is a perfect complement to what we do, and will add an entertainment-oriented website to our daily news coverage,” Jannene said. “We’d like to salute John Shannon for his work to keep TCD going, as well that of its past editors like Tom Strini, Jon Anne Willow and Matthew Reddin. We aim to build on that legacy. Third Coast will continue as its own site, but under our direction.”
Bruce Murphy, editor of Urban Milwaukee, will also become editor of Third Coast.
“Since Bruce became editor, our online traffic has grown five-fold,” said Dave Reid, publisher of Urban Milwaukee. “He’s got a strong feel for this city, has previously served as an arts and entertainment editor for publications like Milwaukee Magazine and Isthmus, and has won state and national awards for arts writing.”
Mehrdad J-dalamie founded Vital Media Group in 2002, first publishing Vital Source magazine, a monthly arts and culture print publication, and later publishing ThirdCoast Digest, along with Willow, beginning in 2009.
Shannon purchased ThirdCoast Digest in late 2012, and changed the name to Third Coast Daily earlier this year. He will continue as a consultant to TCD. Shannon was previously president and chief executive officer of Quick Cable Corp. in Franksville, which he sold to Minnesota private equity firm Tonka Bay Equity Partners in 2012.
