The News Journal Media Group
Reviews and Complaints

I recently had a frustrating experience with The News Journal Media Group. I called on Friday to inquire about the price of the paper, as I had heard that Saturday delivery would be discontinued. However, the supervisor I spoke to seemed unaware of this change and abruptly ended the call. This happened even though I had already paid them over $80 for their services.

It's so frustrating trying to get away from these annoying folks at The News Journal Media Group. I've tried clicking on their unsubscribe link in my emails, but it's like it doesn't even work. And don't even get me started on calling their customer service number. I've called them, told them I want to unsubscribe, and they've promised me it's done. But guess what? I still keep getting bombarded with their emails in my inbox. It's never-ending!

Unethical garbage organization. They make it IMPOSSIBLE to unsubscribe and I’m a 28 year old who is tech literate. You have 2 options wait on hold and never get help or wait in an online chat and never get help. Who has time for this? I’m sure half their revenue is from elderly who can’t cancel their subscription or don’t know it’s still going on. Disgusting. Not to mention their articles are riddled with ads even when you have a paid subscription. There is a large ad every 2 paragraphs disrupting the flow.

This organization is just plain wrong. They make it IMPOSSIBLE to unsubscribe, and I'm a 28-year-old who knows my way around technology. You only have two options: wait on hold forever and never receive any assistance, or wait in an online chat and never get any help either. Who has time for this? I'm pretty sure they make a lot of their money from older folks who can't figure out how to cancel their subscription or don't even realize it's still going on. It's absolutely disgusting. And let's not forget about the ads. They're everywhere, even if you've paid for a subscription. Every two paragraphs, there's a huge ad that disrupts the flow of the articles. It's just not right.

Billing Problems. I canceled my subscription due to billing problems. When our old rate period ended, we received bills at a higher rate. I called and was promised an adjusted lower rate, just like we had before. Josh told me not to pay the bill and assured me that we would receive a new correct one to pay. That was 3 months ago, and we are still being billed at the higher rate. I decided to stop the subscription because it seems like the only way to resolve this issue. Additionally, they charge a $5 service fee per month if you pay by check. Thankfully, they don't have our credit card information. It seems like there is no connection between what they tell you and what actually happens.

So, I got a subscription (Sunday Print ed., unlimited digital access). I've been a subscriber for like 40 years. This month, my credit card bill had a charge from Gannett for $48.60. I called to ask why my $28 subscription plus $3 carrier tip ($31) is now costing $48.60? They have these 2 "Premium Editions" every month, except January, and they charge $6 for each edition. The website says you gotta call an 800 number to say no to the premium content. The customer service rep said they can't remove the Premium content because the system won't let them. The supervisor said the same thing. When I threatened to write a letter to the AG's office Fraud & Consumer Protection division, they gave me a bunch of different price options, ranging from $42 to $32 per month. I told them I wouldn't pay more than $31, which I had agreed to, and that I was gonna send that letter to the AG. Then they offered me a monthly subscription of $12, everything included, for a whole year. I filed a complaint. I'm giving it 1 star because they don't let me give it 0 stars.

The News Journal Media Group has been overcharging me every month for nearly nine months, despite my numerous phone calls attempting to resolve or cancel my subscription. I have reached out to my credit card company, but they have refused to halt the charges. As a result, I have been forced to dispute the charge each month.

I'm writing this complaint for my elderly parents. My mom has called multiple times, but no one has helped her. They keep getting newspapers they didn't sign up for and just got a bill for $186.02. The News Journal was taking money from their bank account without permission for a while. They need to give the money back. Today, I called the News Journal customer service at *** at 11:42 am and talked to a representative named Ava. I told her we want to cancel the subscription and won't pay the bill.

I've been a customer of the News Journal for 30 years and had good service and delivery. But this past year, I've had nothing but sporadic newspaper delivery. At best, I receive it twice a week, and on weekends it's almost non-existent. And the worst part is, I'm still charged for those missing papers. When I do get a newspaper, it's delivered past 1 pm in the afternoon, and most times it's actually the previous day's paper wrapped in the current day. I've called "customer service" multiple times, talked to a customer service supervisor, and written to them multiple times! But all I get are scripted emails and talking to customer service is useless. It seems like there's no one who actually takes care of the complaints. And to make matters worse, I'm billed the full amount, with only a measly 16 cents credit for the missing newspapers. Not to mention, not all the missing papers are even listed on the bill. Twice, customer service people have told me to remove a charge when paying, like $10.55, only to find it added to the next bill as a Balance Forward.

I got my bill on 7/12 and there was a $5 charge for a paper bill. I had signed up for paperless billing and got my bills by email. When I called to ask what happened, they told me e-billing was no longer available. They said I would keep getting a paper bill unless I signed up for auto-pay. Every time I got a paper bill, I would be charged $5. I asked if they had given any notice about this, but they said no. They said this bill was my notice and they could waive the fee for this month. But now that I knew, I could either sign up for auto-pay or keep getting the paper bill and be charged. I think this is like blackmail. They're sending me a paper bill I never wanted and charging me for not signing up for auto-pay. When I asked to talk to someone else or have a supervisor contact me, they kept saying there was no one else I could talk to. I think this is an unfair business practice and I want it resolved.