The Island Packet serves southern Beaufort County, highlighted by Hilton Head Island, a popular tourist area known for its lovely beaches and premier golf and tennis destinations, and Bluffton, one of the fastest growing communities in South Carolina. Beaufort County is more than 50 percent water, lying in the southeastern corner of South Carolina along the Atlantic Ocean and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. It is the heart of the area known as the Lowcountry and the Sea Islands and is home to the only PGA tour stop in South Carolina. The Island Packet provides the news coverage to support the region’s broad and varied demographics made up of families, young professionals, retirees, and substantial military personnel assigned to one of the region’s 3 military facilities.

In 2020, McClatchy transitioned to private ownership when it was acquired by Chatham Asset Management. The Chatham acquisition marked the beginning of a new era of opportunity for McClatchy, strengthening the Company's financial position and enabling it to build on its 150-plus year history of independent, community-focused journalism by investing in local newsrooms.