Joint announcement

Publisher Harold Johnson of Johnson Newspaper Corporation in Watertown and Publisher Corrin Strong of Clarion Publications in Geneseo have announced that Johnson has acquired the name and subscription lists of the Lake and Valley Clarion.
The Clarion will discontinue publication with the March 22 issue and subscriptions to that paper will be honored by The Livingston County News, which is owned by the Johnson corporation.
The Clarion and the Livingston County News have competed in the same market since both were founded in 1989.
“We viewed this as a great opportunity to consolidate our leadership position in the Livingston County market,” Johnson said.
Clarion Publications will continue to operate the Clarion Copy Center, but has agreed not to compete in the weekly news business.
“After 18 years I felt it was time to do something else,” Strong said. “I will, of course, continue to be active in community affairs.”
Strong, a candidate for Mayor of Geneseo last year, is a founder of Please Don't Destroy Geneseo (PDDG) a group that formed in 2005 in opposition to a Big Box proposal in Geneseo.
While there were no full time openings at The Livingston County News available for Clarion employees at the time of the sale, The County News has expressed interest in hiring some of The Clarion's freelance correspondents.
Existing subscribers to both papers will have the remaining portion of their Clarion subscription added to their County News subscription. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Johnson Newspaper Corporation is a family owned and operated business whose publications include the Livingston County News, The (Batavia) Daily News and the Watertown Daily Times as well as five daily and nine weekly newspapers throughout New York State.
Johnson Newpaper Corporation was represented in the negotiations by Tom Turnbull, Publisher of Johnson's Batavia Newspapers Corporation. The Clarion was advised by Cribb, Greene and Associates of Bozeman, Mont.