Local paper has new owner

Jeanie Gordon Swint sold the Brookville Star after buying it 42 years ago with her husband.

Asphalt can only be sealed; only concrete is resurfaced
10:43 a.m.
Dollar stores get wider range of customers
10:32 a.m.
Honda gets a double-shot of good consumer news
10:30 a.m.
Anthem puts emphasis on quality
10:29 a.m.
UD researcher uses know-how to photograph local eagles
5/25/12
> More headlines

By Marc Katz, Staff Writer Updated 2:20 PM Tuesday, August 2, 2011

BROOKVILLE — After the closing up shop last week, Jeanie Gordon Swint, the former owner of the Brookville Star weekly newspaper, took David Schloss, the new owner, for a driving tour of the city.

“I told her (Swint) when my wife gets here, she’s going to want to move here,” said Schloss, who operates two small newspapers in the Steubenville, Ohio area. “It is such a nice town. It has new schools, nice parks, ball fields, a bike trail. I was just blown away.”

Swint, a native and life-long Brookville resident, bought the paper with her late first husband, Joe, 42 years ago when he was working in advertising at the Dayton Daily News.

“We spent a lot of long, long days at the Star,” Swint, 68, said. “It was wonderful, but Joe died very young (57 in 1998).”

Swint has mostly run the paper since. Her daughter and son have helped, as well as publisher/editor Jim Hoffman.

“I was not ready to let go, but it’s very stressful running your own business,” Swint said. She wanted to find a local owner, but thought Schloss “will be a good fit for Brookville.”

Schloss, 36, operates the weekly Harrison News-Herald out of Cadiz, Ohio, and the Tri State Merchantette, an advertiser out of Steubenville.

He said he initially intends to spend two days a week in Brookville and is not sure what kinds of changes he will make to the newspaper.

The newspaper has been in operation since 1891 (even though a typo on the business sign outside the building says 1890).

“I’m looking at all options,” Schloss said, “editorial, production, advertising. I want the best people. Brookville is a great place. It should have a great newspaper.

“It’s far from where I am, but I wanted to grow my business, and the Star was for sale. There are a lot of encouraging things about Brookville that make you think this is a good place to open up shop.”

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2157 or mkatz@DaytonDailyNews.com.

Share this article