the examples you list all involve the “smaller” company effectively becoming the larger.

gannett devours and typically avoids visibility. if nothing else because it’s confusing to the commoners that so many different news outlets are actually the same, without admitting it.

so, yes, what you said. but not quite.

"Gannets" is how some people describe hungry seabirds that eat everything, and by extension children (by my mother) and meeting attendees (by our office admins) who demolish food offerings. So the company Gannett is quite well-named!