News publisher ACM has announced The Northern Daily Leader, its daily newspaper for Tamworth, New England and the North-West, will publish digital news coverage during the week, and an expanded weekend print edition on Saturdays.
The changes, planned for May, will mean the closure of ACM’s print site in Tamworth from May 8, the day of the final daily print edition.
The news about the 150-year-old paper was announced to staff on Wednesday.
The first edition of the weekend edition of the Leader will published on Saturday, May 9.
The Tamworth press site will cease operating on May 8, 2026, when the final weekday edition of the printed newspaper will be published.
Digital-only news will be published at northerndailyleader.com.au from Monday, May 11.
ACM managing director Tony Kendall told the Leader:
“Our strategic goal is to evolve our business model to ensure the Leader is sustainable and growing audiences for the future.
“This new approach to how we cover the news will ensure we are meeting our modern readers where they are increasingly consuming our trusted journalism: online via our mobile app and our website, including the popular digital replica of the newspaper.
“While we will no longer be printing the newspaper Monday to Friday, we remain committed to delivering the Leader in its traditional, time-honoured format and the new-look weekend print edition will continue to be distributed across New England and the North-West on Saturdays.”
Job losses are also planned in the restructure.
“This reshaping of our print and digital offering is a prudent and proactive move to better position the Leader for continued success as the news leader in its market,” Mr Kendall said.
He acknowledged that the changes would be “difficult news for our Tamworth press site colleagues and those editorial staff whose positions are being made redundant”.
“The company and the media industry more broadly continue to face significant challenges, including the higher price of newsprint, the rising costs of production and distribution of the paper and the continuing shift in advertising revenue away from trusted local news providers to global digital platforms,” he said.
“The running costs of the Tamworth printing operation are no longer financially viable for our business and the Leader’s new publishing model provides a better commercial outcome that meets the changing demands of our audiences and customers.”
Printing of the Leader‘s weekend edition will be done at News Corp’s Sydney facility.