Santa Clarita Valley Signal Sold to Former Publisher

The Santa Clarita Valley Signal reported Friday that the newspaper has been sold to former Signal publishers Richard and Chris Budman. The Budmans purchased the Signal’s Santa Clarita-based parent company Paladin Multimedia Group in an equity buyout at an undisclosed price. The paper’s sale became effective immediately. “I love this paper. I love Santa Clarita. My mission is to build on the Signal’s rich history of providing vital and quality information to our community,” Richard Budman, who had served as the Signal’s publisher from 2004 through 2007, said in the story. In a meeting on Friday morning, former Signal publisher Chuck Champion informed staff of the purchase. Champion, the head of Paladin Multimedia, had until today owned the Signal with Gary Sproule, Russ Briley and Ken DePaola since early 2016. Richard Budman announced that he plans to boost the Signal’s presence by expanding publication of the newspaper from five to six days a week. The Signal, which will celebrate its centennial anniversary next year, ran daily until 2015. “We’re going to make the paper relevant again,” he said. Additionally, Budman, who previously had founded the now defunct Santa Clarita Living magazine in 2001 and Santa Clarita This Week newspaper, promised an increase of staff as well as research and marketing resources. He also wants the Sunday edition to be distributed free to 75,000 households throughout the Santa Clarita Valley.