newspapers not dead yet

via david brauer at braublog:

the chart at left shows how local newspaper readership has drooped the past few years, particularly on the star-tribune's print side. nevertheless, the larger scarborough research report from which these data are taken puts such declines in perspective: the papers aren't dead just yet. in fact, about 77 percent of adults in the twin cities still read a newspaper in print or online at least once each week.

scarborough points out that the spate of stories about dying newspapers may be overstated a bit, as they are actually being read by three-fourths of the adult population. the press release ranks the "integrated newspaper audience" -- online and print -- for designated market areas. i'm a bit puzzled by the rankings, but figure readership must have something to do with education levels, demographic forces such as age structure, mobility, and recent immigration, and, of course, the quality of the local paper and its marketing efforts. i dunno about rochester's papers, but you gotta love the plain-dealer.

Rochester, NY 87%
Cleveland/Akron, OH 86%
Buffalo, NY 86%
Pittsburgh, PA 85%
Syracuse, NY 85%
Boston, MA 85%
Hartford/New Haven, CT 85%
Albany/Schenectady/Troy, NY 85%
New York, NY 84%
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, PA 84%
Harrisburg/Lancaster/Lebanon/York, PA 84%
Providence/New Bedford, RI 83%
Milwaukee, WI 83%
Tampa/St.Petersburg, FL 83%
Toledo, OH 83%
West Palm Beach/Fort Pierce, FL 83%
Honolulu, HI 82%
Green Bay/Appleton, WI 82%
Philadelphia, PA 82%
Dayton, OH 81%
Grand Rapids/Kalamazoo/Battle Creek, MI 80%
Des Moines/Ames, IA 80%
Flint/Saginaw/Bay City, MI 80%
Indianapolis, IN 80%
Washington, D.C. 80%
New Orleans, LA 79%
Chicago, IL 79%
Orlando/Daytona Beach/Melbourne, FL 78%
Baltimore, MD 77%
Columbus, OH 77%
Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN 77%
Portland, OR 77%
Fort Myers/Naples, FL 77%
Norfolk/Portsmouth/Newport News, VA 77%
San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose, CA 76%
Mobile/Pensacola, FL 76%
Seattle/Tacoma, WA 76%
El Paso, TX 76%
Birmingham, AL 75%
Wichita/Hutchinson, KS 75%
Cincinnati, OH 75%
Colorado Springs/Pueblo, CO 75%
Louisville, KY 75%
Little Rock/Pine Bluff, AR 74%
Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem, NC 74%
Roanoke/Lynchburg, VA 74%
Sacramento/Stockton/Modesto, CA 74%
Richmond/Petersburg, VA 73%
Detroit, MI 73%
Greenville/Spartanburg/Asheville/Anderson, SC 73%
St. Louis, MO 72%
Charlotte, NC 72%
Oklahoma City, OK 71%
Jacksonville, FL 71%
Raleigh/Durham, NC 71%
Knoxville, TN 71%
Kansas City, MO 70%
Miami/Ft.Lauderdale, FL 70%
Tucson, AZ 70%
Albuquerque/Santa Fe, NM 70%
Chattanooga, TN 70%
Charleston/Huntington, WV 70%
San Antonio, TX 70%
Denver, CO 69%
Spokane, WA 69%
Tulsa, OK 69%
Dallas/Fort Worth, TX 68%
Austin, TX 67%
Phoenix, AZ 67%
San Diego, CA 67%
Lexington, KY 67%
Salt Lake City, UT 67%
Atlanta, GA 66%
Los Angeles, CA 66%
Memphis, TN 66%
Nashville, TN 66%
Fresno/Visalia, CA 66%
Houston, TX 64%
Harlingen/Weslaco/Brownsville/McAllen, TX 63%
Bakersfield, CA 59%
Las Vegas, NV 59%