Spoiler Alert: Were Not Going Anywhere (EDITOR’S NOTE)

On Sept. 1, it was announced that the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal was being sold. The transfer of ownership from Darin and Tami Gray to Fort Smith-based Natural State Media — parent company of Talk Business & Politics, led by CEO Roby Brock — will occur before the end of the year. You can read more of the details on Page 12.

So what does this mean for you? It’s best to think of the future of the Business Journal in two ways.

In the short term, in spite of the new ownership group being an online news organization, the print publication of the Business Journal is absolutely not going away. We’ll still be printing every two weeks. We’ll still be based in our Springdale office. No jobs will be lost. In fact, we’ll even be adding resources.

“One of the reasons we acquired the Business Journal is because it’s going well; it’s a good business,” said Michael Tilley, executive editor of Talk Business & Politics and a co-owner of Natural State Media. “It wouldn’t make sense for us to change that. You guys are a respected media voice in the Northwest Arkansas business community. The only way we want to change that is to build on it.”

And in the long term? If you can correctly forecast the evolution of the media industry, give me a call. The first resource we’ll add is you.

“Look, what happens to print five, seven, 10 years from now, who knows?” Tilley said. “I’m not going to say [the Business Journal] is never going away, but it’s not going away anytime soon.”

I hope that quells any speculation from our loyal readers and supporters. As I have said dozens of times since the acquisition announcement, this is an exciting day for us. The news should be celebrated. It’s a clear indication of just how much value there is in our brand of business news and information in this part of the state.

I am extremely proud of what we’ve done and look forward to providing continued quality content in the Business Journal.