Who Is Peter Barbey? Village Voice Owner Says Print Edition To End

Peter D. Barbey, the owner of the famed alternative weekly, "The Village Voice," announced Tuesday that its print version is set to end soon and that the publication will be online only, reports said.

It has not been decided when the Voice would stop being printed, reports said citing a Voice spokesman.

Barbey said in a statement, as reported by multiple media outlets: "For more than 60 years, The Village Voice brand has played an outsized role in American journalism, politics, and culture. It has been a beacon for progress and a literal voice for thousands of people whose identities, opinions, and ideas might otherwise have been unheard. I expect it to continue to be that and much, much more."

The statement added that the decision was to revitalize the 62-year-old publication through other forms, which will help reach its audience more than just once a week, the New York Times reported.

The web traffic of the Voice fluctuates widely every month, however, it recorded more than 1.3 million multi-platform unique U.S. visitors for July, according to comScore data provided to the Hollywood Reporter.

The Voice, which began as a platform for the creative community of New York City, holds a special place for New Yorkers as the people would turn to its pages if they had to look for some services in the city. The New York Times reported: "In the latter part of the last century, before 'Sex and the City,' it was where many New Yorkers learned to be New Yorkers."

Barbey purchased the Voice from Voice Media Group in October 2015. He bought the publication amid challenges of declining print advertising revenues. He aimed to return the Voice to its central position, the New York Times reported.

When Barbey purchased the Voice, many wondered if he would be able to bring it back to its past glory. One side of his family has been into the newspapers industry since the first edition of The Reading Adler was published in a Gutenberg-style printing press in 1796. The other side of Barbey's family owns VF Corp., the clothing giant behind North Face, Nautica, Timberland and Lee Jeans, Politico reported.

"I'd be crazy for buying it if I didn't believe in it," he said in an interview following the announcement that he would acquire the Voice, Politico reported.

"It is one of America's great newspaper brands in terms of potential by the pound," he added. "I unequivocally believe there's great value in the Village Voice brand."

Barbey also said that he had been reading the Voice since he was in school in Western Massachusetts in the 1970s. He has long admired the way the liberal-leaning publication has survived in a time of orthodoxy. He indicated that he would not interfere with the ideological stance of the Voice. "This is not a political toy," he said.