Steady As She Goes At Post-Newsweek

The Washington Post Co. intends to stay the course, at least for now, with its television station group, according to the group’s boss.

The Post-Newsweek Stations group encompasses six stations in six markets, including four in Top 20 DMAs: Houston (DMA 10), Detroit (DMA 11), Miami (DMA 16) and Orlando, Fla. (DMA 19).

Emily Barr, Post-Newsweek president-CEO, says the company will remain consistent in its approach to the broadcast business in the wake of the sale of the Washington Post newspaper to Amazon funder Jeff Bezos for $250 million.

“We pay attention to, and consider, any and all possibilities as they come along, but we’re a very disciplined company and any decision to purchase would be consistent with that philosophy,” she says.

One thing that will change eventually, according to a source familiar with the situation: The company name.

With the eponymous newspaper no longer part of the fold, and Newsweek sold several years ago to Barry Diller’s IAC, neither the Post nor the Newsweek names will be pertinent going forward.

Post-Newsweek was not a bidder for Allbritton or its flagship station, WJLA, the ABC affiliate in Washington (DMA 8), Barr said.

Predictably, questions about Post-Newsweek’s plans for the stations arose in the wake of Monday’s announcement of the Washington Post sale. Similar questions have arisen about The Washington Post Co.’s Cable One subsidiary.

The company anticipates no changes regarding Cable One, according to a senior executive with the Washington Post Co.

Cable One, headquartered in Phoenix, provides broadband service to roughly 720,000 subscribers in 19 states, according to the company’s website.