By Mike McCombs
The Island News
The Island News has been acquired by Higgins Media Group, LLC, owned by Beaufort County businessman Jake Higgins.
Higgins acquired the newspaper from Island News Publishing, LLC, whose owners included now-former publisher Margaret Evans, who owns and publishes Lowcountry Weekly. Evans became the sole publisher after her husband and former The Island News publisher, Jeff Evans, died after a fall in his home in September 2025.
The acquisition, which was finalized in late September, comes almost eight years after Island News Publishing purchased the publication Oct. 9, 2018, from Sisters Publishing, LLC, owned by founding publishers Elizabeth Harding Newberry and Kim Harding.
The newspaper, which was founded in 2008, prints just more than 10,000 papers each week.
Higgins, CEO of Higgins Media Group, LLC, released a statement:
Readers, advertisers, communities:
I am happy to share with you that I have acquired The Island News.
The Island News has served as a stable source of local news and journalism for northern Beaufort County for many years. We look forward to continuing to provide our free weekly printed newspaper and creating new media products for you to enjoy.
As we move forward, we are excited to serve Beaufort and Jasper Counties. We will continue to grow the circulation of our printed newspaper and add more options for our online readers.
We will continue to provide breaking news, local sports, video interviews, local obituaries and announcements, arts and entertainment content, classified ads and factual articles that ask and answer tough questions, offering insight into issues affecting our local way of life.
It is my hope that we start a Youth Journalist Program which will partner with our local schools and offer a path for our young people to learn about journalism and the media industry.
There are many stories in our communities that have never been told. It is my desire to see the best local people in our communities brought forward.
I know that we as a local media company, have a tremendous responsibility to our readers and fellow neighbors. We take this responsibility seriously and will protect the freedom of speech while being a good steward of the facts.
I am looking forward to sharing with you our smart, determined, hardworking team and presenting you with a trusted news product that is cutting-edge.
Thank you for supporting us as we shape our new identity and continue to promote and practice fair journalism.
Mike McCombs is the editor of The Island News and can be reached at TheIslandNews@gmail.com.