GateHouse and Gannett say the merger will allow GateHouse to accelerate its newspapers' move to digital while paying down huge sums GateHouse borrowed in order to fund the acquisition. But it's unclear exactly how it will make that happen.

Last week, more than two dozen newsroom employees and other workers were reportedly laid off at 10 newspapers, from Providence, Rhode Island, to Brockton, Massachusetts, to Oklahoma City. The Associated Press confirmed several of these layoffs with the affected employees, others in their newsrooms or union representatives. GateHouse did not announce the workforce reductions, and neither the company nor its owner, New Media, had any comment for this story.

Gannett also declined to comment, but pointed to previous public statements by New Media CEO Mike Reed in which he said the merged company would "not only preserve but actually enhance quality journalism."