Revenue in Salem Media Group’s publishing division jumped 34.9% in the first quarter ended March 31. Sales were $6.5 million, up from $4.8 million during the same period a year ago.
The increase was led by a 48.9% jump at Regnery Publishing, which Salem attributed to the strong sales of David Limbaugh’s The True Jesus.
In addition to the performance of The True Jesus, the publishing group’s Author Services division had a 35% sales gain due mainly to the acquisition last August of Hillcrest Media (which Salem has renamed Mill Street Press). Gains at Mill Street offset a small decline in self-publishing fees generated by the group’s Xulon Press self-publishing unit.
Salem executives warned that second quarter sales in the publishing division are likely to be down compared to the second period of 2016, when Regnery had a big hit with Hillary’s America.
