Contemporary Media Inc

What Contemporary Media Inc does

Contemporary Media, Inc. is a privately held, locally owned independent publishing company headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, operating a portfolio of Mid-South-focused media brands. Its core editorial products are Memphis Magazine (the city's flagship monthly, founded 1976, audited circulation of 20,000), The Memphis Flyer (an alternative newsweekly founded 1989, audited circulation of 28,000 weekly, distributed at 600+ locations across the Mid-South), Memphis Parent (a niche parenting magazine founded 1999), and Inside Memphis Business. Content is produced for web, print, email, tablet, and social channels, and the company additionally runs a suite of ticketed events.

The company monetizes through four primary revenue streams: print advertising across its magazine portfolio, digital advertising across the brands' websites and social channels, event sponsorships, and a professional services line called Creative Content by CMI that delivers custom print and digital publishing (design, editorial, and print brokerage) to regional corporate clients. Distribution combines newsstand/retail placement, dedicated publication websites, email newsletters, and a direct sales team of account executives managing advertiser relationships across print, digital, and event inventory. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed.

The business serves two distinct customer sets in parallel: Memphis-area consumers seeking hyperlocal news, lifestyle, and parenting content, and local/regional advertisers seeking access to those audiences through trusted local media channels. The company is led by CEO Anna Traverse (also Memphis Magazine editor), COO Margie Neal, CRO Jeffrey Goldberg, and Controller Lynn Sparagowski, with additional editors for The Memphis Flyer and Memphis Parent. No public filings, funding rounds, M&A, or ownership disclosures beyond independent local ownership are recorded.

Name

Contemporary Media Inc

Legal name

Contemporary Media, Inc.

Website

https://contemporary-media.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1976

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Contemporary Media, Inc. is a privately held, Memphis-based independent publishing company operating Memphis Magazine, The Memphis Flyer, Memphis Parent, and Inside Memphis Business, plus custom publishing (Creative Content by CMI) and ticketed events, monetizing primarily through local print and digital advertising sold to regional advertisers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Regional Media Publishing

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (51311)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

Arts, Culture & Literary Magazines (MPAJAEAN)

akta.pro secondary industry

Consumer News & Digital Newsrooms (Web/App-First) (MPAJADAD)

Keywords

• Local media publishing
• Regional magazines
• Custom publishing services
• Print advertising sales
• Digital media advertising

Headquarters

HQ city

Memphis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Print Advertising: Traditional print advertising sales across Memphis Magazine, The Memphis Flyer, and Memphis Parent publications. Advertisers purchase print ad placements in monthly and weekly circulation publications.
2. Digital Media Advertising: Digital advertising across the company's portfolio of websites including memphismagazine.com, memphisflyer.com, and memphisparent.com. Includes digital ad placements across web, email, tablet, and social media channels.
3. Event Sponsorships: The company produces and sells sponsorships for ticketed events, generating revenue through brand partnerships and sponsorship deals.
4. Custom Publishing Services: Creative Content by CMI produces custom print and digital materials for regional corporate clients, offering full-service design, editorial services, and print brokerage. Revenue generated through project-based professional services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Contemporary Media, Inc. is a locally owned, independent Memphis-based publishing company that produces and sells local content across print and digital channels, including flagship magazines Memphis Magazine (founded 1976), The Memphis Flyer (founded 1989), Memphis Parent (founded 1999), and Inside Memphis Business. The company monetizes this content portfolio primarily through print and digital advertising sales, event sponsorships, and a custom publishing division (Creative Content by CMI) that produces branded print and digital materials for regional corporate clients.

Product overview

Contemporary Media Inc operates a portfolio of local print and digital publications including Memphis Magazine (city magazine, 12x/year), The Memphis Flyer (alternative newsweekly, weekly), Memphis Parent (parenting magazine, 5x/year), and Inside Memphis Business. The company supplements these core publications with Creative Content by CMI, a custom publishing division offering design, editorial, and print services for corporate clients, and produces a suite of ticketed events.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Memphis Magazine: Memphis' city magazine, founded in 1976. Published twelve times a year with audited print circulation of 20,000 paid and free copies per month.
• The Memphis Flyer
• Memphis Parent
• Creative Content by CMI

Products and services

• Memphis Magazine Memphis' city magazine founded in 1976, published twelve times a year with audited print circulation of 20,000 paid and free copies per month. Targets Memphis and Mid-South area readers.
• The Memphis Flyer Memphis' alternative newsweekly founded in 1989, published every Wednesday with audited print circulation of 28,000 copies per week at 600+ locations in the Mid-South area. Targets Memphis and Mid-South area readers.
• Memphis Parent Memphis' premier parenting magazine founded in 1999, published five times per year. Targets Memphis-area parents and families.
• Inside Memphis Business Regional business publication produced alongside the company's other print and digital products, targeting Memphis-area business readers.
• Creative Content by CMI The custom print publishing division of Contemporary Media, Inc., producing custom print and digital materials for regional corporate clients. Offers full-service design, editorial services, and print brokerage. Targets regional businesses needing professional content creation.
• Ticketed Events A suite of popular ticketed events that generate revenue through ticket sales and sponsorships, creating additional engagement opportunities for advertisers and audiences in the Memphis market.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Axios Local: Digital-native local news venture from Axios expanding into multiple U.S. mid-size markets with newsletter-led coverage. Comparable as a digital-first entrant targeting the same advertisers and readers as CMI's local publications but with a leaner cost structure.
• The Daily Memphian: Memphis-based digital-first local news outlet that competes directly with The Memphis Flyer for Memphis advertising dollars and reader attention. Comparable as a hyper-local news competitor in the same Memphis market with a digital-native distribution model.

Broad incumbents

• Gannett Co. Largest U.S. newspaper publisher operating USA Today and hundreds of local daily titles post-GateHouse merger. Comparable as a scaled local news publisher competing for the same regional advertiser budgets but with national reach and subscription infrastructure CMI lacks.
• Lee Enterprises: Public operator of daily newspapers and digital platforms across U.S. mid-size markets. Comparable as a legacy local/regional newspaper publisher facing the same secular print advertising headwinds and pursuing digital subscription models.

Direct peers

• Hoffman Media: Privately-held publisher of Southern lifestyle and food magazines such as Southern Lady and TeaTime. Comparable as a regional consumer magazine publisher with diversified titles and a custom content services arm serving advertisers and brands.
• Emmis Communications: Indianapolis-based media company operating radio stations and Indianapolis Monthly city magazine. Comparable as a regional/local media operator with city magazine publishing alongside advertising-led sales motions and event sponsorship revenue.
• American Consolidated Media: Community newspaper and local publishing group operating a portfolio of small-market U.S. titles with print and digital advertising revenue. Comparable to CMI as a privately-held multi-title local publisher dependent on print ad and sponsorship income.
• Hour Media: Detroit-based publisher of regional lifestyle and city magazines including Hour Detroit, DBusiness, and Detroit Home. Comparable as a privately-held regional magazine publisher operating multiple city/lifestyle titles with print plus digital advertising revenue.

Others

• Where magazine (MOR Media): City-focused visitor and lifestyle magazine network published in major U.S. markets. Comparable as a city magazine advertiser channel competing for local Memphis-area tourism and lifestyle advertising budgets alongside Memphis Magazine.

Regional players

• Nashville Scene: Alternative newsweekly serving Nashville, TN with print and digital coverage and event sponsorships. Comparable to The Memphis Flyer as a competing alt-weekly in an adjacent Tennessee city with similar revenue mix and audience profile.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/contemporary-media-inc-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Contemporary Media Inc