Oil Patch Bits: Calista to close Alaska Newspapers subsidiary

Calista Corp. said July 22 that at its quarterly meeting its board of directors voted to shut down and liquidate Alaska Newspapers Inc., a subsidiary of the corporation for the past 19 years.

ANI encompasses six weekly rural papers including the multi-award winning Tundra Drums out of Bethel, the award winning quarterly magazine First Alaskans, as well as Camai Printing, a traditional printing house based in Anchorage.

ANI newspapers have played a vitally important role in rural Alaska, covering more than 1,500 air miles of news — most of the towns and villages covered by the six newspapers are not accessible by road. With the increasing costs of fuel, paper and print technology, Calista has found the subsidiary is not supportive of the company’s long-term financial interests.

Calista will work with ANI employees to assist them with the transition and is offering preferential hiring for any job openings within the corporation they are qualified for. Additionally, Calista will be offering unemployment assistance counseling, severance packages and referral letters. All ANI publications will print their final run in August.