News-Press & Gazette Company
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Media |
| Founder | Henry D. Bradley |
| Headquarters | St. Joseph , United States |
Area served | Missouri, Kansas, California, Idaho, Oregon, Colorado, Arizona, Texas |
Key people | Brian Bradley, David R. Bradley, Hank Bradley, Eric Bradley, Kit Bradley |
| Products | Newspapers, radio stations, television stations |
| Owner | Bradley family |
The News-Press & Gazette Company (NPG) is a media enterprise headquartered in St. Joseph, Missouri, entirely owned and managed by the Bradley family. Leadership includes Brian Bradley and David R. Bradley, with board members Hank, Eric, and Kit Bradley—all descendants of the family founder Henry D. Bradley and his son, David Bradley Sr.
NPG’s holdings encompass daily and weekly newspapers located in Missouri and Kansas, alongside radio and television outlets spread across California, Idaho, Oregon, Colorado, Arizona, Missouri, and Texas. The company’s newspaper operations concentrate primarily in the Kansas City and St. Joseph regions, while its broadcast stations serve markets mainly in the western United States. Several NPG television stations rank highly within their respective viewing areas.
History
The roots of NPG reach back to the establishment of the St. Joseph Gazette in 1845, a publication recognized for documenting westward expansion and distinguished as the sole newspaper carried on the inaugural Pony Express journey. This Gazette later combined with the News-Press, which Henry D. Bradley fully acquired in 1951 after being co-publisher since 1939.
In 1988, the Gazette was discontinued as the News-Press transitioned to a morning edition; nevertheless, NPG maintained "Gazette" within its corporate name. The Bradley family expanded into cable television through St. Joseph Cablevision in 1965 and entered broadcast TV beginning with WSAV-TV in Savannah, Georgia, in 1976. Over subsequent decades, NPG acquired numerous stations including KAAL-TV (Minnesota), WJTV (Mississippi), KSFY (South Dakota), WECT (North Carolina), KOLD-TV (Arizona), KVIA-TV (Texas), as well as multiple outlets throughout California, Idaho, Colorado, and Oregon from the 1980s into the 2000s.
In 2011, NPG divested its cable operations serving areas in California and Arizona under NPG Cable to Suddenlink Communications. The following year saw the launch of KNPN-LD in St. Joseph as a Fox affiliate—marking NPG’s first station built from inception—and acquisitions of Columbia, Missouri’s ABC affiliate KMIZ and Fox affiliate KQFX-LD.
October 2020 brought the sale of the Daily Star-Journal to Phillips Media Group; subsequently renamed the Warrensburg Star-Journal. In August 2023, NPG sold its commercial printing plant along with several regional newspapers—including the Miami County Republic, Atchison Globe, Hiawatha World, Courier-Tribune, and Gladstone Dispatch—to CherryRoad Media.
By July 2025, NPG collaborated with AI monetization platform Dappier to implement AI copilots and distribute news content on AI-native channels, aiming to broaden digital presence and enhance revenue streams.
St. Joseph, Missouri area
- St. Joseph News-Press (primary newspaper)
- Save NOW (St. Joseph, Missouri)
Television
NPG owns or manages a total of 28 television stations predominantly located in western U.S. markets. Below is an alphabetical list by state and city of license:
Radio
| City of license / Market | Station | Acquired | Format currently |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado Springs, CO | KRDO 1240 | 2006 | Talk radio |
| KRDO-FM 105.5 | 2015 | Talk radio | |
| Palm Springs, CA | KUNA-FM 96.7 | 1997 | Regional Mexican |
Cable channel
- News-Press NOW – reacquired by NPG in May 2012 after having sold it in 2011; initially launched as a cable-exclusive channel before June 2012.
- Atchison Daily Globe (Atchison, Kansas)
- Courier-Tribune (Liberty, Missouri)
- The Daily Star-Journal (Warrensburg, Missouri)
- Gladstone Dispatch (Gladstone, Missouri)
- Green Acres (St. Joseph, Missouri)
- Hiawatha World (Hiawatha, Kansas)
- Louisburg Herald (Louisburg, Kansas)
- Johnson County Sun (Overland Park, Kansas)
- Kansas City Nursing News (Overland Park, Kansas)
- Kearney Courier (Kearney, Missouri)
- Miami County Republic (Paola, Kansas)
- Osawatomie Graphic (Osawatomie, Kansas)
- Read It Free (Osawatomie, Kansas)
- Read It Free - Northwest Missouri (St. Joseph, Missouri)
- Smithville Herald (Smithville, Missouri)
Television
| City of license / Market | Station | Channel | Ownership period | Current affiliation/status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tucson, AZ | KOLD-TV | 13 | 1989–1993 | CBS affiliate now owned by Gray Media |
| Yuma, Arizona | KYMA-DT | 11 | 2014–2020 | Ceased operations; license surrendered in 2020; NBC content transferred to KSWT subchannel renamed KYMA |
| Grand Junction, CO | KJCT | 8 | 2006–2013 | Court TV affiliate KLML on channel 20 under Ventura Broadcasting ownership |
| KKHD-LP | 20 | 2007–2013 | ABC affiliate KJCT-LP, owned by Gray Media | |
| Savannah, GA | WSAV-TV | 3 | 1976–1993 | NBC affiliate now part of Nexstar Media Group |
| Austin–Rochester, MN | KAAL-TV | 6 | 1980–1985 | ABC affiliate currently owned by Hubbard Broadcasting |
| Jackson, MS | WJTV | 12 | 1983–1993 | CBS affiliate under Nexstar Media Group ownership |
| Hattiesburg, MS | WHLT | 22 | 1987–1993 | CBS semi-satellite of WJTV owned by Nexstar Media Group |
| Wilmington, NC | WECT | 6 | 1986–1993 | NBC affiliate currently owned by Gray Media |
| Sioux Falls, SD | KSFY-TV | 13 | 1985–1993 | ABC affiliate owned by Gray Media |
Radio
| City of license / Market | Station | Ownership duration | Present status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indio–Palm Springs, CA | KESQ 1400 | 1997–2023 | No longer active; silent since 2022 |
Cable operations
NPG managed its cable services under the name NPG Cable, Inc.. On November 29, 2010, NPG reached an agreement to divest its entire cable portfolio to Suddenlink Communications for $350 million; this deal was finalized on April 1, 2011. The cable network provided service to various communities such as St. Joseph, Missouri; Lake Havasu City, Arizona; Parker, Arizona; Blythe, California; Bullhead City, Arizona; Kingman, Arizona; Flagstaff, Arizona; Payson, Arizona; Sedona, Arizona; Mammoth Lakes, California; June Lake, California; Pine, Arizona; and Strawberry, Arizona.