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Smaller markets not experiencing big markets’ woes
09/22/2008
Community newspapers:
The outlook is ...
STRONG
Here's why:
About the research
- The 2005 study sampled 503 respondents in communities of less than 100,000
- The 2007 study sampled 505 respondents in communities of less than 50,000.
- The 2008 study sampled 502 respondents in communities of less than 25,000.
The telephone surveys were conducted by the Reynolds Journalism Institute.
By Stanley Schwartz
COLUMBIA, MO—The outlook for community newspapers is much better than what is being reported in the media, said a group of community newspaper leaders.
Michael Abernathy
“You read about the struggles that newspapers are having in larger markets,” said Michael Abernathy, president for Landmark Community Newspapers. “And we don’t really find that to be the case in our community markets.”
When LCNI, which owns about 54 paid community publications, experiences softness in its revenue, Abernathy explained, it’s usually economy driven, making it cyclical rather than systemic.
He made his comments during a panel discussion about the future of community newspapers at the Missouri School of Journalism at the University of Missouri. The school was celebrating its 100th anniversary with several workshops and receptions on the Columbia campus. The school reported that more than 2,500 people registered for the three-day celebration.
A study done for the National Newspaper Association by the Reynolds Journalism Institute was the backbone for the comments made by the panel about the vitality of community newspapers.
Brian Steffens
NNA Executive Director Brian Steffens said that most of the news about the financial health of newspapers is coming from the largest 100 to 250 newspapers.
“That is just a small slice of the picture,” he said.
Joining Steffens to present the study’s findings before the panel discussion was Kenneth Fleming, the associate director of research for the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute. The grand opening of the institute was held during the centennial celebration Sept. 10-12. Study details are in the Research section.
Also on the panel with Abernathy, were Dave Berry, vice president for Community Publishers, which publishes about 24 papers in Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma; Ralph Gage, director of special projects for The World Co., which publishes the Lawrence (KS) Journal-World; Steve Haynes, president of Nor’West Newspapers, which publishes six newspapers in Northwest Kansas; and Wally Lage, vice president with Rust Communications, which owns and operates about 50 papers in eight states.
Ken Fleming
Not only was the study designed to show how community newspapers are doing overall, said Fleming, but NNA member newspapers could utilize the information to help them sell advertising.
Steffens noted that in the most recent study, 77 percent of the respondents rated community newspaper local coverage good to excellent. Since 2005, NNA has had three studies done. Steffens said the results from all three are consistent.
Steffens asked the panelists if the survey results agreed with what they were seeing in their markets.
Abernathy said his papers have not seen a huge migration of ads away from the print product because of their strength within their local communities.
Abernathy added that the number of people in the study who responded that they do not read local sports online surprised him. In his markets, he explained, that would not be the case. The Landmark paper in Elizabeth, KY, does not publish on Saturday, so all the Friday night sports news is posted online.
“We have very high traffic on Saturday,” he said, about the website.
Steve Haynes
Haynes, who is the current president for NNA, said the study’s figures reflect what he sees in western Kansas.
“I think it underscores the unique connection the community newspaper has with its readers,” he said, adding that a lot of times people feel an ownership of their local paper that they don’t with other media.
He also noted that other media are subject to greater audience fragmentation than community papers.
Because of the wide geographic spread of Rust Communication papers, Lage said the study’s results are interesting but not surprising.
“My entire career I’ve spent working at community, family-owned newspapers,” he said. “We are really under the radar when it comes to some of the issues facing the metro markets.”
He agreed with Abernathy concerning the online readership numbers in his papers’ communities. What he did find consistent is the increase in the print readership noted from the three surveys.
“With Rust (newspapers),” he said, “almost all of our smaller-market newspapers are performing ahead of last year when it comes to cash flow.”
Wally Lage
Lage said that after looking at the readership figures from one of his company’s smaller market Tennessee papers, he believes that by combining the online readers with the paid circulation, the paper is experiencing greater market penetration than ever.
In the Springfield, MO, area, Berry, who is also a regional director for NNA, said Community Papers has had greater success since forming the company’s papers into pods. The company clustered its newspapers so that they could benefit from combined business operations.
The three studies sampled consecutively smaller markets. The first one tested markets with a population of 100,000, the second study sampled markets with a population of 50,000 and the third study looked at markets with a circulation of less than 25,000.
Berry noted that as the sample size decreased, the more likely it was that people would be aligned with their local paper.
Dave Berry
The World Co. also runs other traditional paid weeklies and dailies, free weeklies and a free daily, a TV station, as well as the local cable TV station.
Because of his company’s diversity, Gage said it uses a number of research firms to keep track of its audience.
He noted that in his studies, readership results are pretty consistent. But the numbers from NNA’s study about online readership shocked him.
“Those (numbers) would not be typical of our properties,” he said. “I don’t know if whether that’s a function of a lack of websites or when material is posted. Because we post material 24/7.”
Steffens said a lack of broadband has hampered some communities when it comes to online readership. One Missouri newspaper picks up ads distributed by the Missouri Press Association at the paper’s local library, which has the only Internet connection with enough broadband to receive large files.
Haynes and Abernathy said broadband was not a problem in their markets. But there may be some smaller markets with such issues.
No matter what, said Lage, in a community it’s the newspaper’s job to get information to the people—Internet connection or no Internet connection. Even with all the new technology tools at the paper’s disposal, the important factor is getting out the news.
“We have got to meet the needs of the community,” he said.
It’s important for the owners of community newspapers to see the big picture when it comes to providing resources for new technology.
Ralph Gage
Gage credited The World Co. owners for making the decision that they were a communications company, not a newspaper company.
“We want to provide our community with the information they need, however they want it,” he said.
Almost every company is walking a tightrope, said Berry, on how much to spend for various projects, such as niche publications.
What’s coming
Haynes said that the economy during next 12 to 18 months will be slower than before, but he feels as though community papers will be able to maintain their own.
Abernathy said his company expects 2009 to be better than 2008, if oil prices continue to fall. It comes down to how much disposable income people will have with lower prices at the pump.
At Rust Communications, Lage said the company is working smarter to stay financially stable. With many larger media companies, layoffs have become the norm. But at Rust, he explained, instead of laying off people, the company has converted about eight of its dailies to mail delivery, saving on the high cost of gasoline.
Berry said he believes the economy will start looking up after the November elections.
“You won’t have a situation where people are so busy trying to get into office; … where they’re (now) trying to convince us that we’re worse off than we probably really are,” he said.
Community journalism
When the panel opened for questions, Bill Miller Sr., publisher of the Washington Missourian, asked whether journalism schools are doing enough to inform students about the health of community newspapers.
“I don’t think (students) are getting the message at all,” said Lage. “Even when I went to school here (at the University of Missouri) I think there was a bias against (community journalism).” He noted that the industry may be having an economic downbeat, but the business model is solid.
Gage said he also believed there was a bias in journalism schools concerning community newspapers.
“We know that through our multi-media approach we can deliver a message to more than 90 percent of our community,” he said. “And we run success-story ads—testimonials from our advertisers—to reinforce the effectiveness of the approach that we have.”
Haynes said he thought students would be missing out if they don’t consider community newspapers as a job option.