An Update Regarding Village Free Press

I've finalized an agreement allowing me to retain ownership; I'm also hiring a reporter

The cover of the July 5, 2023 print edition of Village Free Press. | Screenshot

In January, I was terminated from my job as director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Growing Community Media (GCM). At the time, Village Free Press (VFP), the newspaper I founded in 2013 and turned over to GCM last year, was also under GCM’s ownership.

Last week, my attorneys finalized an agreement with GCM regarding my former employment and the future of VFP. As part of the agreement, I will receive a respectable severance package and I will once again assume ownership of VFP through my new company, John Wilk Communications LLC. 

The agreement allows for up to two months for a fluid transition from GCM to John Wilk. Within that time, I’ll be contacting and convening a wide array of community stakeholders in VFP’s nine-suburb readership area so that we can together completely reimagine what local news is and what it can become. 

In the meantime, I’m looking to hire a full-time reporter for VFP who has the skills and experience to cover government and general assignment stories. This person will also be responsible for providing weekly media literacy instruction to 5th- to 8th-grade students at Lindop Elementary School in Broadview during the 2023-24 school year. The starting salary is $35,000 and includes a benefits package tailored to the reporter’s needs. 

John Wilk is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to real diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws.

This policy applies to all employment practices within our organization, including hiring, recruiting, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, leave of absence, compensation, benefits, training, and apprenticeship. John Wilk makes hiring decisions based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs at the time.

All applicants can send inquiries to michael@wearejohnwilk.com. For more information on John Wilk, visit wearejohnwilk.com.

Oh, one more thing …

I’ve been focusing on wrapping things up for the last few months, so I haven’t posted with much frequency to this site. Now that this agreement has been finalized, I’ll resume regular publication on my Substack.

Thanks for your patience.