Black Mountain News

What Black Mountain News does

Black Mountain News is a community-focused local newspaper and digital news platform serving Black Mountain, North Carolina and the surrounding Swannanoa Valley, including Montreat, Swannanoa, and the broader Buncombe County area. The publication covers local government (town council, planning and zoning, budgeting), community events, public safety, dining, regional issues, and recovery efforts following Tropical Storm Helene, operating through a website (blackmountainnews.com) and supported by dedicated Facebook and X (@blkmtnnews) channels plus email newsletters. Editorial output is original and hyperlocal, complemented by syndicated national content via parent Gannett Co., Inc.'s USA TODAY Network, with the publication cross-linked to sister outlet Asheville Citizen-Times.

The business is owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), one of the largest newspaper publishers in the United States, and operates on Gannett's shared publishing platform infrastructure for digital delivery. The revenue model combines digital subscriptions (via subscribe.blackmountainnews.com), local display advertising, public-notice/legal-listing fees, and shared national advertising delivered through Gannett's LocaliQ digital marketing network targeting local and mid-market advertisers. Distribution is fully digital-first with self-serve consumer and SMB access; programmatic advertising (including Taboola feed placements) supplements direct local sales.

The firmographic headcount field of 1001-5000 reflects Gannett's consolidated network rather than the Black Mountain News title itself, which is a sub-scale weekly operation. The publication has no independent funding, no disclosed AI/technology differentiation beyond shared Gannett infrastructure, no patents or certifications, and no third-party partnerships outside the Gannett ecosystem. Its competitive position rests almost entirely on geographic incumbency, community trust, and parent-company scale advantages.

Name

Black Mountain News

Legal name

Black Mountain News

Website

https://blackmountainnews.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Black Mountain News is a weekly local newspaper and digital news platform serving Black Mountain, Montreat, Swannanoa, and the greater Swannanoa Valley in North Carolina, covering local government, community events, and regional news as part of Gannett's USA TODAY Network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Black Mountain

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Black Mountain News is a weekly community newspaper and accompanying digital news site that covers Black Mountain, Montreat, and the Swannanoa Valley in North Carolina. It sells print and digital subscriptions to local readers and packages its audience to local advertisers through Gannett's LocaliQ platform, while also distributing USA TODAY Network syndicated national and world news.

Product overview

Black Mountain News is a digital local news platform serving the Black Mountain and Swannanoa Valley community in North Carolina. It operates as part of the larger USA TODAY Network (Gannett). The website delivers local news coverage including community events, local government, dining reviews, and maintains a public notices section for legal announcements. The platform offers weather information, subscription services, and connects readers to related USA TODAY Network publications like the Asheville Citizen-Times.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Black Mountain News (weekly print newspaper)

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• USA TODAY: Gannett's flagship national title serving as the network anchor. Relevant comparator for shared technology platform, ad network (LocaliQ), and subscription bundling programs.

Direct peers

• Blue Ridge Now (Hendersonville Times-News): Gannett local newspaper serving Hendersonville and Henderson County in Western NC. Comparable scale, ownership structure, and hyperlocal coverage model in the same regional cluster.
• Asheville Citizen-Times: Direct sister publication under Gannett / USA TODAY Network serving the broader Western NC region from neighboring Asheville. Same parent, platform, business model, and overlapping SMB advertiser base in Buncombe County.
• Mountain Xpress: Asheville-based alternative weekly covering news, arts, and culture in Western NC. Direct peer in hyperlocal journalism for the same Asheville-area readership and advertiser base.
• The Mountaineer (Waynesville): Gannett weekly serving Haywood County in Western NC. Closely comparable as a Gannett-owned weekly covering a small mountain county with similar advertising dynamics.
• The Transylvania Times: Independent community newspaper serving Transylvania County / Brevard, NC. Closely comparable Western NC mountain-region weekly with similar subscription and local-advertising model.
• Smoky Mountain News: Independent weekly newspaper covering the Western NC mountain communities (Waynesville, Sylva, Franklin). Direct hyperlocal/community-news peer serving overlapping reader geography and SMB advertisers.
• The Laurel of Asheville: Local print and digital publication serving Asheville and surrounding mountain communities. Comparable hyperlocal coverage area with overlapping SMB advertisers and reader base.

Others

• Gannett LocaliQ: Gannett's SMB digital advertising solutions arm that monetizes Black Mountain News' audience. Indirectly comparable as the Gannett engine that transforms local news inventory into SMB marketing spend.

Emerging players

• Patch.com: National hyperlocal digital news platform that actively covers small communities including Black Mountain and Swannanoa. Comparable hyperlocal digital news delivery model and competition for community news audience.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/BlkMtnNews
• Facebookfacebook.com/pages/Black-Mountain-News/116107288449711
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/black-mountain-news

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Black Mountain News