Sonoma Media Mogul Darius Anderson Infested with Lawsuits Amidst Pending Sale of Publication

Multiple parties have offered to purchase Sonoma Media Investments. Has the current owner been forthcoming with potential buyers?

Mr. Darius Anderson is the Founder and Managing Member of Sonoma Media Investments (SMI), LLC, the owner and publisher of the award-winning Santa Rosa Press Democrat, one of the state’s leading regional daily newspapers, and the Sonoma Index-Tribune. The Press Democrat won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting for its coverage of the wildfires in the region.

Mr. Anderson serves as CEO of Kenwood Investments, LLC, a California Real Estate Development and Opportunity Fund he founded to develop extraordinary projects throughout the state that augment the cultural fabric of the California community.

He is also the Founder and Chairman of Platinum Advisors, one of the five largest full-service government affairs firms in the state. With offices in Sacramento, Orange County and San Francisco, as well as Washington, DC, Platinum Advisors provides advocacy, strategic advice, government relations, project development, procurement, public affairs and strategic consulting to local and regional governments and agencies, trade associations, corporations, entrepreneurs, and non-profit groups.

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On March 4, 2025, Photojournalist Kent Porter posted the following graphic on behalf of his union, The Press Democrat Guild, to his Instagram page.

The Press Democrat Guild is demanding that owner Darius Anderson/SMI stand by their commitment to community journalism and SMI journalists, and guarantee that Hearst will uphold the terms of our current contract.

Our union has worked with SMI in good faith for years. In 2012, we sacrificed our pension, and agreed to reduce wages and vacation days so that SMI could purchase the newspaper. Recently, we agreed not to participate in a class-action lawsuit to financially shield the company.

We call on Darius Anderson/SMI and Hearst to take immediate action and honor the contract. The Press Democrat/SMI workers deserve better.

The full story behind the post was published by Pacific Media Workers Guild on March 3, 2025:

The Pacific Media Workers Guild shares this on behalf of our members at the papers owned by Sonoma Media Investments (the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, Sonoma Index Tribune, Petaluma Argus Courier and North Bay Business Journal. With SMI on the verge of being sold to Hearst, the Guild is seeking assurances that the Collective Bargaining Agreement and all of its terms and conditions will be honored by the new owner.

Here’s what’s happening:

• We’re asking Sonoma Media Investments majority owner, Darius Anderson, and the Hearst corporation to make our contract part of the purchase agreement to ensure essential benefits, workplace protections and wages.

• Hearst won’t commit to honoring the contract or even recognizing our local union – Pacific Media Workers Guild, Local 39521. Darius Anderson, hasn’t committed to including the contract in the terms of the deal.

• Getting Hearst to recognize the contract is not just about ensuring wages. There are many key provisions covered in the contract including job security, scheduling protections, representation in the grievance process, and health and welfare terms.

• The contract covers your local journalists at The Press Democrat, The Sonoma Index-Tribune, The Petaluma Argus Courier and The North Bay Business Journal.

• Hearst has refused to recognize contracts and unions in other markets as well. Earlier this year Hearst purchased the Austin American-Statesman from Gannett and has not recognized their union.

• Honoring the contract and recognizing the union are the right things to do for the dedicated local journalists who work hard every day to make The Press Democrat, The Sonoma Index-Tribune, The Petaluma Argus Courier and The North Bay Business Journal the essential resources they are for their communities.

Why now:

• We have been told the deal is very close to being finalized, which means time is short and the issue is urgent. We need Hearst and SMI to do right by the local journalists who keep local North Bay residents informed.

What you can do: Spread the word. Join us in calling for Darius/SMI and Hearst to do the right thing by honoring the contract and recognizing our union. Please share this on your socials and tag Darius’ other businesses on Instagram: @wingandbarrel and @platinumadvisorsllc

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On March 11, 2025, Northbay Biz published the following article:

Local group makes offer to buy ‘Press Democrat’

With the Santa Rosa Press Democrat reportedly for sale, a group of nine Sonoma County residents has made an offer to purchase Sonoma Media Investments, the parent company of the daily newspaper and its affiliated community publications.

The move comes as SMI is in talks for its purchase by the New York-based Hearst Corp., which owns the San Francisco Chronicle, a source at SMI confirmed with NorthBay biz last week.

The Sonoma County group includes Lawrence Amaturo—publisher of NorthBay biz and owner of Amaturo Sonoma Media Group—as well as Ajaib Bhadare, Richard Coombs, Cindy Gallaher, Bill Gallaher, John Holdredge, Dennis Hunter, Louis Ratto and Komron Shahhosseini.

In a media statement, the local group says it has offered $12 million for SMI, adding it believes the amount exceeds Hearst’s offer by 50%. The group says it wants to “preserve and enhance local journalism by keeping these publications community-owned and operated.”

In the release, Cindy Gallaher, representing the buyer group, spoke to the “crucial role” local news plays in informing and uniting the North Bay community.

“Our goal is to safeguard these publications, ensuring they continue to provide accurate, in-depth, objective and trusted high-quality reporting,” Gallaher said. “As SMI looks to transition ownership of this 125-year-old institution, we implore them to choose local ownership over a distant corporate entity.”

The group’s offer specifically pledges to honor the current collective bargaining agreement between SMI and the daily newspaper’s union, the Press Democrat Guild, which last week called for assurances the agreement would be upheld in the event of a sale.

In addition to the Press Democrat, SMI’s assets include the Sonoma Index-Tribune, the Petaluma Argus-Courier, North Bay Business Journal, Sonoma magazine, La Prensa Sonoma and the West County Gazette. SMI currently has about 150 employees.

Darius Anderson is SMI’s managing partner. Anderson, a Sonoma-based developer and lobbyist, acquired the Index-Tribune and Sonoma magazine in 2012, then later that year partnered with a group of local investors to purchase the Press Democrat and its affiliated publications from Florida-based Halifax Media Group. SMI’s investors include former Citigroup CEO Sandy Weill, former Dolby Sound CEO Bill Jasper, former Congressman Doug Bosco, retired Intel executive Les Vadasz, and Jean Schulz, wife of the late “Peanuts” creator Charles Schulz.

The local buyer group concluded by expressing hope that its higher offer and commitment to preserving local jobs and journalism will be enough to sway SMI to consider their offer.

“We believe our offer represents the most meaningful legacy SMI’s current owners can leave behind,” Gallaher said.

A request for comment from Anderson was not immediately returned.

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A month prior, North Bay Biz published the following article:

‘Press Democrat’ to be sold to ‘Chronicle’?

The Santa Rosa Press Democrat is reportedly in talks of a buyout from the Hearst Corp., the New York-based company that owns the San Francisco Chronicle. The potential purchase was first reported Feb. 6 by the online news source the San Francisco Standard.

The Press Democrat is currently owned by Sonoma Media Investments, led by Managing Partner Darius Anderson, a real estate developer and lobbyist. Local investors in the PD include former Citigroup CEO Sandy Weill, former Dolby Sound CEO Bill Jasper, former Congressman Doug Bosco, retired Intel executive Les Vadasz, and Jean Schulz, wife of the late “Peanuts” creator Charles Schulz.

According to the Standard, a source close to the deal told the outlet the purchase would be in the “low eight figures” and close in the spring. The buyout would reportedly include the Press Democrat daily newspaper, as well as its satellite publications the Sonoma Index-Tribune, the Petaluma Argus-Courier, Sonoma magazine and the North Bay Business Journal. If the purchase were to go through, the two newsrooms would remain separate, but administration and business departments would merge, the Standard reported.

Anderson did not respond to an NBB request for comment. Jasper and Vadasz referred inquiries about the deal to Anderson.

Founded in 1897, the Press Democrat was purchased by the New York Times in the 1990s, which sold the publication to Halifax Media Group in 2011, which in turn sold it to Anderson’s investor group in 2012.

The PD and Chronicle have over the years closely competed in daily coverage of the North Bay. The Press Democrat beat out the Chronicle for a Pulitzer Prize for its reporting on the 2017 North Bay wildfires. Later, the Chronicle got the scoop in the investigation of disgraced former Windsor Mayor Dominic Foppoli, the center of multiple accusations of sexual assault—which set the PD on its heels during the rocky tenure of former editor Rick Green.

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Current Lawsuits

Defendant Darius Anderson

24CV06936 | GIOVACCHINI vs SONOMA MEDIA INVESTMENTS

Ms. Gina Marie Giovacchini filed a civil case for unlimited other employment against the media giant. Per her LinkedIn profile, Ms. Giovacchini was SMI’s former Senior Credit Analyst from June 2013 to August 2024.

The lawsuit states that Ms. Giovacchini is filing as an individual, and on behalf of aggrieved employees who are owed wages. A case management conference is scheduled for April 8, 2025 with Judge Patrick Broderick presiding.

Plaintiff Darius Anderson

Per an article published in PR Newswire on October 25, 2023:

Judge Rules Kenwood Investments Can Proceed with Fraud Lawsuit Against Stockbridge Capital Group and Wilson Meany

Respected investor seeks damages from Treasure Island Project Partners alleging its ownership improperly redirected to Chinese government investment fund

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 25, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A California court ruled that Kenwood Investments LLC can proceed with its fraud and breach of fiduciary duties suit against its partners Stockbridge Capital Group and developer Wilson Meany in the multi-billion-dollar redevelopment of Treasure Island in the heart of the San Francisco Bay.

The Kenwood complaint alleges that Stockbridge and Wilson Meany, investors with Kenwood in the project, conspired to divert profits that belong to Kenwood to an investment fund controlled by the Chinese government.

San Francisco Superior Court Judge Richard B. Ulmer Jr. issued orders on Oct. 18 allowing Sonoma, California-based Kenwood to proceed with the case and seek punitive damages, denying Stockbridge and Wilson Meany's attempt to get the case dismissed on technical grounds.

"We are pleased the court has rejected Stockbridge and Wilson Meany's attempts to evade judgment for their actions," said Noah Hagey at the law firm of Braun Hagey & Borden.

Kenwood brought Stockbridge and Wilson Meany into the Treasure Island Community Development project in 2005. That effort has resulted in one of the most complicated land entitlements and development projects to take place in a major U.S. city. The plan, which is underway, calls for 8,000 new residential units, 250,000-square-feet of retail space, 2,000 permanent jobs, up to 350 new hotel rooms, public parks, and 300+ acres of open space, as well as approximately 168 marina slips, new ferry terminal, attracting as many as 13,000 residents.

Kenwood's suit alleges Stockbridge and Wilson Meany have repeatedly and knowingly misled Kenwood regarding the nature of their outside transactions and dealings, notably by partnering with CITIC, an investor owned by China's largest sovereign wealth fund and alleged to be a functioning arm of the Chinese government and its geopolitical interests.

CITIC now accounts for over 97% of Stockbridge's investment fund and thus has effective control over the Treasure Island project – yet there has been little public scrutiny or disclosure of CITIC's involvement or potential role along Treasure Island's strategic waterfront.

The Court's order found that Kenwood's complaint presented viable claims based on the facts alleged that Stockbridge and Wilson Meany "diverted profits from Kenwood; made capital contributions to dilute Kenwood's interests; refused to provide Kenwood with books and records; and initiated an improper buy-sell offer to Kenwood," according to Kenwood's lawsuit.

Stockbridge and Wilson Meany are also purported to have hidden books and records and to have violated various obligations to keep Kenwood apprised of progress on the project, but instead worked to undermine Kenwood's interest, according to Kenwood's lawsuit.

"This is not just about the monies and fair dealings that are owed to Kenwood," Hagey said. "This is about public trust and transparency concerning one of the most important developments in California, in a location with strategic national importance." The U.S. Coast Guard Department of Homeland Security facility is located on the adjacent Yerba Buena Island.

Kenwood is currently conducting discovery of defendants Stockbridge and Wilson Meany and various third parties, with an anticipated trial date in 2024.

The following active cases have been filed with the Superior Court of the County of San Francisco:

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In addition to active lawsuits, Mr. Anderson is currently under investigation by the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC). On November 12, 2024, I submitted the following sworn complaint, COM-11082024-04806, to the FPPC:

Conflict of Interest

On September 26, 2023, Mr. Anderson voted in favor of approving a $1,528,405.00 total grant award for Lake Tahoe Community College under the Rising Scholars Network Juvenile Justice Campus Program.

This was a conflict of interest because Lake Tahoe Community College was an entity included within his Platinum Advisors lobbying portfolio for the 2023 legislative session.

On February 6, 2025, the FPPC sent me the following letter. Anderson obtained former FPPC Enforcement Chief Gary Winuk, Kaufman Legal Group, as his legal representative.

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Were Anderson’s potential buyers privy to this information prior to my publishing of this article? We shall surely find out!

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. - John 1:5

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