Newspaper Ad Revenue Continues to Shrink

Which is why we're seeing ad creep on the front page.

Link to March 25 Editor & Publisher article, "2009 Newspaper Ad Revenue Falls to Level Not Seen Since 1985".

Excerpt:   In statistics released without fanfare, NAA said print advertising revenue totaled $24.82 billion -- the first time newspapers generated less than $25 billion in print since 1985.

That represented a 28.6% drop in print ad revenue from 2008 -- the fourth straight year-over-year decline.

Worse, the 2009 drop showed the year-over-year declined are accelerated again. In 2006, NAA recorded the first year-over-year decline of 1.7% from the year before. That grew to 9.4% down in 2007 and 17.7% in 2008.

Not surprisingly, classified was the most troubled ad category in 2009, falling 38.1% to 6.179 billion -- the lowest total in more than a quarter century. In 1983, classified generated just over $6 billion, a total that was a leap of 23% from the recession year before.

In other print categories, national ad revenue plummeted 26.2% and retail 24.2%.

Related articles:
How desperate are newspapers for ad revenue?  (3/5/2010)
The newspaper business:  "It is never, ever going to love you back".  (2/25/2010)