Almanac gets a new sister paper Almanac gets a new sister paper (August 25, 2004)

The Almanac's parent company, Embarcadero Publishing Co., has purchased the Pacific Sun, an award-winning weekly newspaper serving Marin County.

The Sun, with offices in Mill Valley and a circulation of 36,000, becomes Embarcadero's fifth newspaper. In addition to the Almanac, the company owns the Palo Alto Weekly, the Mountain View Voice, and the Pleasanton Weekly.

The purchase coincides with the 70th birthday of Sun owner, publisher and editor Steve McNamara, who purchased the paper in 1966 and grew it into a newsweekly known for quality writing, environmental advocacy, and commitment to journalistic independence and building a strong relationship with the community it serves.

"Steve and I have known each other and shared our challenges and ideas with each other for the last 25 years, and this seems like a natural outcome of that relationship," said Embarcadero CEO and Palo Alto Weekly publisher Bill Johnson.

"When he approached us about buying the Sun, we leaped at the opportunity," Mr. Johnson said. "Our publishing goals and values are as alike as any two companies can be."

Mr. McNamara was the first president of the National Association of Alternative Newsweeklies, which now has more than 130 member papers.

"Steve's leadership during the early years of alternative weekly journalism contributed to the creation of a new genre of newspaper -- one which proved that a local newspaper needn't be a boring chronicler of minor events, but could penetrate the fabric of a community, advocate for social and political change, and bring that community and its residents alive through good writing," Mr. Johnson said.

Mr. Johnson started Embarcadero Publishing Company in 1979 with the launch of the Palo Alto Weekly. In 1993, the company purchased the Almanac and a year later acquired the Mountain View Voice. In 2000, Embarcadero expanded into the East Bay with the launch of the Pleasanton Weekly.

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