Soon after Hearst bought the Waterbury Republican-American in early 2025, Rep-Am readers received this note from Mike DeLuca, Publisher and President of Hearst Connecticut Media Group:
“At Hearst Connecticut Media Group, we understand and appreciate the Republican-American’s longstanding tradition of providing a strong conservative voice and commentary in Connecticut across its opinion pages. We are committed to preserving this identity, ensuring that readers continue to have access to the opinions and perspectives that have made this paper an essential part of public discourse.”
In other words, the Rep-Am’s right-leaning editorial board would remain intact despite the other Hearst papers being served by the centralized Hearst ed board.
We hadn’t thought about it until recently when we read this Rep-Am editorial and determined that yes, the Rep-Am ed board still operates independently:
Editorial: Despite political attacks, Avelo holds strong in Connecticut
There is a sickness afoot in America – one that attacks a company over its lawful business relationships with the U.S. government; engages in vicious antisemitic rhetoric and actions, holds out assassins as heroes, interferes with and assaults law-enforcers in the performance of their duties, puts public and private property to the torch, and marches under the banners of terrorist entities like Hamas.
The Pape family – the paper’s long time pre-Hearst local owners – would be pleased.
