• by Ray Schultz , May 22, 2024

 Riverfront Times, an alternative weekly serving the St. Louis area, has been sold and its entire editorial staff laid off, according to local reports.  

The name of the buyer has not yet been reported at deadline. The seller is Big Lou Media, which acquired the Riverfront Times in 2023.  

Sarah Fenske, former executive editor of Riverfront Times, says the staff knew something was up when Big Lou Media owner Chris Keating asked for a meeting Wednesday morning, according to St. Louis Public Radio. 

“I’ve been in journalism long enough to know that’s not good news,” Fenske says. 

There indeed was bad news – that the entire writing and editing staff was laid off, Fenske adds.  

“While somebody has purchased the RFT, it’s not going to be what the RFT was,” Fenske continues, St. Louis Public Radio reports. “My best guess is that this is just going to be one of those websites that is a shell of its former self. That’s devastating for St. Louis journalism.”

Riverfront Times was founded in 1977.