Elizabeth Hansen Shapiro, co-founder of the National Trust for Local News, photographed at the Maine Trust for Local News pressroom in South Portland in August. Gregory Rec/Portland Press Herald

The co-founder of the National Trust for Local News, the nonprofit owner of Maine’s largest network of newspapers and news websites, is stepping down as its top executive.

Elizabeth Hansen Shapiro co-founded the trust in 2021 and has served as CEO since its inception. The first papers acquired by the trust were a suite of weeklies in Colorado, but Shapiro has overseen the nonprofit’s expansion to two other states – Georgia and Maine – with the goal of helping preserve community journalism during a time of sharply declining advertising revenue.

“We have built something extraordinary together, demonstrating that a new model of stewardship is possible — one that honors both preservation and innovation while proving that local journalism remains vital to our communities,” Hansen Shapiro said in a written statement. “I am deeply grateful to our team, partners and supporters who helped bring this vision to life and I look forward to continuing to support local journalism and championing its future in new ways.”

The National Trust purchased the Portland Press Herald, Lewiston Sun Journal, Kennebec Journal in Augusta, Waterville Morning Sentinel, The Times Record in Brunswick and a dozen other weekly newspapers from former owner Reade Brower in the summer of 2023 for an undisclosed price. Brower had announced months earlier that he was putting the papers up for sale, but the trust didn’t emerge as a buyer until late in the process, joining forces with a group of local donors who had mobilized to keep the papers from being purchased by a hedge fund or corporation.

The nonprofit organization is supported by foundational and philanthropic donations – more than $37 million has been raised during Hansen Shapiro’s tenure – but has three state subsidiaries that operate under a more traditional newspaper business model that relies mostly on advertising and subscription revenue, with some philanthropy. Since the sale, the Maine papers have been operated by a subsidiary, the Maine Trust for Local News, just as the national trust’s papers in Colorado and Georgia are managed by state trusts.

Hansen Shapiro’s departure is not expected to have any impact on news operations in Maine, according to Stefanie Manning, managing director of the Maine Trust for Local News.

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“I feel really grateful to Elizabeth for the vision she’s mapped out for us, but our work with the team at the National Trust doesn’t change,” Manning said.

The National Trust will embark on a nationwide search for a new CEO. In the interim, the nonprofit will be led by an operating committee that includes Keith Mestrich, treasurer of the National Trust’s board of directors, and Marc Hand, the CEO of Public Media Venture Group who co-founded the Trust with Hansen Shapiro. She will stay on as a strategic adviser during that transition.

Hansen Shapiro did not respond to an interview request.

Lisa Borders, a National Trust for Local News board member and former president of the WNBA, said Hansen Shapiro’s decision to step down is a reflection that the nonprofit is entering a new phase.

“We had a visionary leader in Elizabeth, and she’s been extraordinary,” Borders said in an interview Wednesday. “Now, we’re moving from inspiration to execution.”

Borders said the next CEO is likely to be someone with strong operational experience. She stressed that the National Trust is still “getting started” but is committed to helping all its affiliate newspapers.

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“All the newspapers that we’ve acquired are fantastic. They are local gems,” she said.

Prior to co-founding the National Trust, Shapiro was a research fellow at the Shorenstein Center for Media, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard University and at the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia University.

Her 2023 salary was $370,000, according to the most recent tax filing. She earned $231,250 the previous year, before the purchase of the Maine newspaper group. Shapiro’s salary and the operations of the National Trust, including acquisitions, are paid for with funds raised at the national level. Donations and other revenue raised by the state-level trusts are used to support their operations.

Borders did not answer specific questions about the National Trust’s finances, but did stress that philanthropic dollars raised have never been meant for annual operating expenses, but rather to fund future acquisitions and one-time investments. For instance, the trust purchased a printing press in Colorado recently to support newspapers and increase revenue.

“No matter what industry we’re talking about, they have to be self-sustaining in some way,” she said.

To that end, Borders said it’s possible that some of its newspapers, including those in Maine, could see future changes.

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“What we’ve found is that this mission and this model works, but we believe we can make it work even better,” she said.

Newspapers nationwide have struggled for decades with declining circulation and revenue as many readers shift to digital platforms and many advertisers focus on social media and other alternatives. Most news organizations, including those owned by the Trust, have responded by putting more resources into digital products and storytelling as a way to build online audiences.

Since the National Trust purchased the Maine papers, there has been some local turnover in leadership, including the resignations of Press Herald Executive Editor Steve Greenlee last summer and Maine Trust Publisher Lisa DeSisto last month. Both had been with the organization since 2012.

Manning took over for DeSisto, albeit with a different title. Carolyn Fox, previously managing editor of the Tampa Bay Times, was installed as executive editor of all the Maine Trust newspapers in October.

Manning said that although the Maine Trust for Local News is fortunate to be owned by a nonprofit committed to local news, it faces the same financial pressures as most news organizations. The focus, she said, is to continue growing digital subscriptions and pursuing alternative sources of revenue.

“I feel a lot of gratitude to be in the position we’re in to have a nonprofit owner that has a vision for what news looks like in the future,” she said. “And we have a huge opportunity to help them prove this model.”

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