Gannett Revamps USA Today for Web, Pares Work Force
USA Today is about to undergo a major restructuring according to the Wall Street Journal. As someone who admittedly peruses several news outlets on-line (in addition to my print subscription of the Wall Street Journal and various medical journals), I've often wondered about the current state of printed media. USA Today is currently the country's second largest newspaper by circulation. It was in fact the largest newspaper until 2009, when it was surpassed by the Wall Street Journal. Circulation of USA Today began in 1982 with the goal of targeting reading travelers. The paper's trademark became "liberal use of color and graphics" in addition to shorter articles. Interestingly, half of the paper's circulation was through partnerships with hotel chains.
Over the last year, ad revenue has declined 29% and average paid circulation has declined 14% for USA Today. The Pew Project for Excellence in Journalism publishes "The State of the News Media: An Annual Report on American Journalism" yearly. This is really an interesting report that covers all forms of media including newspapers, online, television, magazines and reviews trends in economics and ownership to name a few aspects of the site. Specific to overall printed news media, the Pew report states that advertising revenue has decreased at least 43% over the last three years. In addition, 13,500 full-time, newsroom professional jobs have been lost -- meaning "newsrooms have shrunk by 25% in three years". Circulation has declined 25.6% since 2000. They do report that "newspapers, contrary to what is frequently alleged, are not dying in droves" -- the papers that went of out business the past few years were mostly small in circulation, and second papers in their market. However, you may recall the significant bankruptcies of the Tribune Company (LA Time, Chicago Tribune) among others in 2009.
It would seem that printed news would have to find a way to obtain revenue from online sources. Apparently, this source of revenue was robust a few years ago, but is beginning to decline as well. The Pew report estimates a decline in this source of 10% per year. In a society that has become accustomed to "free" news, it is hard to imagine that print companies can convince their readers to begin paying for content they see online. Overall, the trend seems to be in a negative direction for this industry...
Sources:
1. Wall Street Journal, August 28-29, 2010.
2. Pew Project for Excellence in Journalism: The State of the News Media, 2010. www.stateofthemedia.org/2010
