The Gabber newspapers in Gulfport after hurricane Helene. Photo by Sean Kinane.
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Cathy Salustri and her husband have spent tens of thousands of dollars trying to prevent The Gabber from closing.
“We’re really trying not to make South Pinellas into another news desert. I know that we have a daily paper that covers the larger cities. They only really cover the smaller cities though when something happens and a lot of times that’s too late.”
Part of the issue came from keeping up with inflation – most times the paper was working with deficits. Then in 2024, a lawsuit left The Gabber with $70,000 dollars in debt.
In April, Salustri announced The Gabber would begin an emergency fundraiser and even seek donors who contribute monthly.
They needed $160,000 dollars in community support.
But the goal went down, in part, because they lost one staff member and the position won’t be refilled.
The goal is now $90,000 dollars and The Gabber is more than halfway there.
“Because we did have some people who made some substantial one-time donations, we were able to pay off some large bills that we were paying, every month, right? We were able to pay down enough debt that what we need to make every month has decreased. And also, not just pay off the debt, we’ve changed some of how we work operationally.”
They’ll be holding their last fundraising event this Saturday at The Blueberry Patch, including a concert by the Applebutter Express.
Full disclosure: WMNF and The Gabber have a content-sharing agreement.