The Reporter
The Reporter is a daily local newspaper owned by MediaNews Group, serving Vacaville and northern Solano County, California with local news, sports, business, and community information. It distributes content through print home delivery, digital subscriptions, classifieds, legal public notices, and an e-Edition replica.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersVacaville, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What The Reporter does
The Reporter (also known as The Vacaville Reporter) is a daily local newspaper serving Vacaville, California and northern Solano County, owned by MediaNews Group — the parent conglomerate of Digital First Media and Bay Area News Group. The publication has operated as a community news outlet within a single-county geography situated between Sacramento and the San Francisco Bay Area. Its editorial structure is characteristic of a small newsroom: a publisher (Steve Bressoud), an editor (Jack Bungart), two named local reporters (Richard Bammer and Rebecca Wasik), an advertising sales manager, and an obituaries coordinator — consistent with the 101–250 employee range disclosed in firmographics.
The product stack centers on thereporter.com, built on WordPress.com VIP, with a separate e-Edition digital replica platform (enewspaper.thereporter.com) and a Trinity Audio integration for audio article playback. Monetization runs through multiple subscription tiers: All-Access print+digital at $4.50–$10.75 per week across 6-day, Sunday-only, and Friday–Sunday cadences; Print-Only equivalents at $4.25–$10.50 per week; and Standard Digital and Premium Digital tiers, the latter adding an ad-free experience and account sharing for up to four users. Complementary products include BestReviews consumer-product content (affiliate revenue), Brandpoint sponsored content (branded editorial), Newsbank paid archival access beyond a 14-day free window, and email newsletters. Distribution is multi-channel: print home delivery, retail/newsstand, self-serve online subscription management, mobile apps, and the e-Edition.
The business model combines subscription-recurring and advertising revenues: (1) consumer subscriptions across print and digital tiers, (2) retail and classified advertising managed by NorCal Audience Solutions on an outsourced basis, (3) government-mandated legal public notices (fictitious business names, probate, liens, government meetings), (4) branded content/sponsored articles via Brandpoint, and (5) paid archival access via Newsbank. Go-to-market is hybrid — direct-to-consumer self-serve subscriptions for readers, paired with an enterprise/field sales motion for advertisers and legal-notice customers. Geographic and product focus remain narrow: a single Northern California county and a traditional community-newspaper product set extended into digital and audio formats.
The Reporter firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Reporter
- Legal name
- The Reporter
- Website
- https://thereporter.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- The Reporter is a daily local newspaper owned by MediaNews Group, serving Vacaville and northern Solano County, California with local news, sports, business, and community information. It distributes content through print home delivery, digital subscriptions, classifieds, legal public notices, and an e-Edition replica.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Reporter industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Local Newspaper
- NAICS
- Newspaper Publishers (513110), Newspaper Publishers (51311)
- SIC
- Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)
Keywords
Where The Reporter is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Vacaville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Reporter business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Subscription Revenue: Recurring subscription revenue from print and digital subscriptions. All-Access subscriptions include both print delivery and digital access. Print-only subscriptions available. Digital subscriptions offered in Standard and Premium tiers.
- Advertising: Revenue from retail advertising in print and online formats. Local businesses advertise through the newspaper. Advertising managed by NorCal Audience Solutions.
- Premium Digital Subscriptions: Premium Digital subscription tier provides ad-free experience and account sharing for up to 4 family members, generating incremental subscription revenue.
- Classifieds and Public Notices: Revenue from classified advertising including employment, real estate, obituaries, and legal public notices. Dedicated classified and legal notice departments.
- Branded Content: Revenue from branded content partnerships including sponsored content through Brandpoint.
- News Archive Access: Archive content available through Newsbank.Com for a small charge after 14-day free access period.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Weekly | All-Access 6-day subscription with print delivery and digital access |
| Subscription | Weekly | All-Access Sunday only subscription |
| Subscription | Weekly | All-Access Friday-Sunday subscription |
| Subscription | Weekly | Print-Only 6-day subscription without digital access |
| Subscription | Weekly | Print-Only Sunday only subscription |
| Subscription | Weekly | Print-Only Friday-Sunday subscription |
| Subscription | Monthly | Standard Digital subscription |
| Subscription | Monthly | Premium Digital subscription |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels7 records
The Reporter product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Reporter is a daily local newspaper serving Vacaville and northern Solano County, California, delivered through print home delivery and a digital website. It offers print subscriptions, Standard Digital and Premium Digital subscription tiers, and an e-Edition digital replica, alongside retail and classified advertising, public/legal notices, and obituaries. Content covers local news, sports (including high school and Bay Area professional teams), business, lifestyle, opinion, and community information.
Product overview
The Reporter operates as a local news publication with a digital-first distribution strategy. The core offering is the thereporter.com website delivering local news coverage for Vacaville and northern Solano County. The product portfolio consists of multiple subscription tiers (Standard Digital, Premium Digital, Print-Only), a digital e-Edition replica of the printed newspaper, email newsletter services, and a BestReviews content section for consumer product reviews. The publication also offers real estate Open House advertising as a local marketplace feature. All digital subscriptions include access to the e-Edition, email newsletters, and subscriber-only content, with Premium tiers adding an ad-free experience.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Standard Digital Subscription Monthly digital subscription providing unlimited access to exclusive journalism, daily e-Edition access, subscriber-only content, email newsletters, Reader Rewards program, and curated state, national, and international news. Displays ads.
- Premium Digital Subscription Monthly enhanced digital subscription including all Standard Digital features plus an ad-free website experience, access to the network of local news sites throughout the country, and account sharing for up to 4 friends or family members.
- All-Access Print + Digital Subscription Home delivery print subscription bundled with unlimited digital access. Available in 6-day ($10.75/week), Sunday-only ($4.50/week), and Friday-Sunday ($5.50/week) frequency options.
- Print-Only Subscription Traditional home delivery print subscription without digital access. Available in 6-day ($10.50/week), Sunday-only ($4.25/week), and Friday-Sunday ($5.25/week) frequency options.
- e-Edition Digital Replica Digital replica of the printed newspaper hosted at enewspaper.thereporter.com, included with all subscription tiers and also available via daily eNotify email.
- Classified Advertising Classified ad placements for employment, real estate, and merchandise in print and online formats, sold through the dedicated classified advertising department.
- Public and Legal Notices Publication of public notices, legal notices, and obituaries in print and online, accepted via a dedicated legals contact channel and processed through the obituaries department.
Quantifiable outcome
- Website updated daily before 8 a.m.
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use The Reporter
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
The Reporter technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
The Reporter partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- NorCal Audience SolutionscoreNorCal Audience Solutions handles advertising sales for The Reporter. They manage retail advertising in print and online formats for local businesses in the Vacaville and Solano County area.
- Digital First Media / Bay Area News GroupcoreParent company operating The Reporter and other regional newspapers. Provides network access for Premium Digital subscribers across local news sites throughout the country. Manages privacy policy, terms of use, and corporate operations.
- BrandpointminorSponsored content partner providing branded content articles for the publication's sponsor content hub.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
The Reporter competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Patch.com: Digital-first hyperlocal news network with active coverage in Vacaville and across Solano County. Directly competes with The Reporter for local-news audience attention and classified-ad dollars without the legacy print cost base.
- Nextdoor: Neighborhood-level information and news platform with deep penetration in Vacaville. Competes for the same local-news attention budget and increasingly for local advertising spend, particularly from SMBs that historically advertised in The Reporter.
Broad incumbents
- San Francisco Chronicle: Major metropolitan daily covering the Bay Area, including Solano County. Overlaps with The Reporter on regional sports (49ers, Giants, Warriors, Sharks) and Bay Area news, with a much larger subscription bundle and broader advertiser base.
- Sacramento Bee: Regional daily newspaper covering the greater Sacramento region (Vacaville is in the Sacramento Valley, ~35 miles from Sacramento). Operates a similar print + digital subscription model and competes for the same regional advertising dollars, but at much larger scale under McClatchy ownership.
- Lee Enterprises: Mid-sized U.S. newspaper chain operating dozens of local dailies. Comparable business model (subscription + advertising, print + digital) and similar mid-market local positioning, making it a useful benchmark for local-paper unit economics.
- Gannett | USA TODAY Network: Largest U.S. newspaper chain, operating hundreds of local dailies and weeklies. Competes for national and regional advertising budgets and for shared digital subscription partnerships, and represents the alternative large-scale local-news model that The Reporter's parent competes against.
Regional players
- The Press Democrat: Regional daily serving Sonoma County, California, operated by Gannett. Comparable in scale, market, and print + digital subscription model to The Reporter, though in a separate Northern California geography.
Direct peers
- Vallejo Times-Herald: Daily local newspaper in Vallejo, Solano County, also owned by MediaNews Group / Bay Area News Group. The most directly comparable peer — same parent, same county, same subscription and advertising model, sharing the same advertising sales manager (Kelly Spadorcio) and editor (Jack Bungart).
- The Benicia Herald: Weekly community newspaper serving Benicia, also in Solano County and closely tied to the regional Bay Area News Group / MediaNews network. Competes for the same local advertisers and hyperlocal readers in the immediate geography.
- Daily Republic: Daily newspaper serving Fairfield, also in Solano County, California. Competes for the same local advertising and subscription dollars in overlapping Solano County communities and runs a similar print + digital subscription bundle.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
The Reporter social profiles
Digital presenceThe Reporter financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Reporter leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
The Reporter funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Reporter M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Reporter
What does The Reporter do?
The Reporter is a daily local newspaper serving Vacaville and northern Solano County, California, delivered through print home delivery and a digital website. It offers print subscriptions, Standard Digital and Premium Digital subscription tiers, and an e-Edition digital replica, alongside retail and classified advertising, public/legal notices, and obituaries. Content covers local news, sports (including high school and Bay Area professional teams), business, lifestyle, opinion, and community information.
Is The Reporter a public or private company?
The Reporter is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was The Reporter founded?
The Reporter was founded in 2005. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is The Reporter based?
The Reporter is headquartered in Vacaville, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Reporter make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Subscription Revenue is the primary driver. The others are advertising, premium Digital Subscriptions, classifieds and Public Notices, branded Content and news Archive Access.
Who are The Reporter's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Patch.com and Nextdoor. Broad incumbents are San Francisco Chronicle, Sacramento Bee, Lee Enterprises and Gannett | USA TODAY Network. The Press Democrat is listed as a regional player. Direct peers are Vallejo Times-Herald, The Benicia Herald and Daily Republic.
Does The Reporter have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Reporter.
What industry is The Reporter in?
The Reporter's product category is Local Newspaper. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJADAB, Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital). Its NAICS code is 513110 and its SIC code is 2711.