Skyhorse Publishing plans to buy fellow independent press Regnery Publishing, the New York Times reports.
The planned purchase is a revival of a deal that appeared to have fallen apart earlier this year, according to Publishers Weekly. Regnery is currently owned by Salem Media Group, known for its Christian-themed radio stations and magazines.
Skyhorse is one of the nation’s most controversial publishers. The press has gained a reputation for picking up books that other publishers either dropped or passed on, including titles by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Woody Allen, Garrison Keillor, Norman Mailer, and Blake Bailey, the Philip Roth biographer who was accused of sexual assault.
Regnery, the 76-year-old Washington, D.C., publisher, is an unabashedly conservative press. Its roster has included authors such as Senators Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz; former Donald Trump press secretary Sean Spicer; and controversial commentator Ann Coulter.
Skyhorse publisher Tony Lyons told the Times, “I’d like Skyhorse to be the pre-eminent free speech publishing company that publishes on all sides, so I think this is a great combination. Regnery is the best-known conservative publishing company in America, and I think we can do things for them that they weren’t able to do for themselves.”
Publishers Weekly says the presses anticipate that the deal will be completed by the end of the year.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
