Two of the main rep firms for alternative newsweeklies had significant gains in national advertising in 2003, E&P reports following an announcement by AAN today. The Ruxton Group, which represents 28 newsweeklies, experienced a 17 percent increase over 2002. Alternative Weekly Network, which represents more than 100 newsweeklies, had a 6 percent increase in national sales over 2002.

Continue ReadingAlternative Newspapers Announce Solid National Ad Growth in 2003

The ongoing audience and advertiser erosion in broadcast network television will accelerate this year, as consumers shift more of their time and money to other technologies and media, and as more ad dollars migrate to cable. Television-driven media concerns will continue to refute these permanent, dramatic changes as a fluke even as it eats through their bottom line. That is the troubled picture the Morgan Stanley media research team painted in a client call and corresponding report this week that mirrors many of the ongoing concerns and prognostications I have written about in this newsletter during the past year.

Continue ReadingTV Audience Erosion Continues

Haunted by what he witnessed from the roof of his building near the World Trade Center on 9/11, Russ Smith sold his upstart weekly, New York Press, and moved his family to Baltimore. He has disparaged the city where he once edited Baltimore City Paper as "Tinytown," but old friends say he has a strange way of showing his affection. Former City Paper staff writer Michael Anft offers an in-depth look at the man who now writes a conservative column for the Baltimore weekly he once owned. Smith has said that "if you wanted to find a list of his enemies, all you had to do was pick up the Baltimore white pages," Anft says.

Continue ReadingFormer New York Press Owner Discusses His Return to “Tinytown”

Radio ad spending, which enjoyed a brief respite earlier this year, continued to slump in November, with a fall in local and national ad revenue compared to a year ago. And while radio companies said fourth-quarter revenues would be hurt by comparisons with 2002's political spending, that wasn't the story behind the 4 percent decline in overall advertising revenues in November 2003. National ad sales, which wouldn't be affected by political ad spending, dropped 6 percent during the month compared with November 2002. Local ad sales dropped by 4 percent. The data was released Tuesday by the Radio Advertising Bureau.

Continue ReadingRadio Ad Slump Continues

If the economy is reviving, many AAN papers are still waiting for the signs to show up in their ad revenues. Although national ad sales went up last year, papers reported mixed results in local advertising, their mainstay. Reasons to be hopeful in 2004 include increases in real estate and recruitment ads, diversification of ad categories, and the notion that merchants and the public have grown tired of brooding and want to feel optimistic about their economic prospects again. Sales staff need to "get the message out there" about what alternative newsweeklies have to offer, says Jim Wolf, Village Voice Media's vice president of national advertising.

Continue ReadingNational Ad Sales Up in 2003; Local Sales a Mixed Bag

Three years ago, digital media company Loudeye began compiling its vast repository of digital music files. The idea of swapping music across the Web was new. No one had yet tried to get consumers to pay to download individual songs. But with consumers fast getting used to the idea of buying songs online, scores of companies are readying launches of digital music initiatives.

Continue Reading2004 May See “Gold Rush” for Digital Tunes