PROVIDENCE — Advertising linage at the Providence Journal was down more than 15 percent for May, amid lackluster reports from daily major newspapers nationwide of what has been described as a gloomy picture for media advertising.
Joining other newspaper publishers experiencing lower advertising revenue in the slowing economy, the Journal’s parent company, Dallas-based Belo, said Tuesday (June 26) its Publishing Division advertising revenues dropped 10 percent compared to a year ago.
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A company spokesman said Belo does not provide revenue information pertaining to its individual newspapers. However, information on linage (the volume of advertising per issue) for the Providence Journal was available. For May 2001, total advertising linage decreased 15.7 percent.
During the last quarter, the Providence Journal’s total revenue slipped 9.5 percent (5.7 percent when an extra Sunday for the year-ago period was factored in), with declines in all advertising revenue. Classified and retail ads were the hardest hit, Belo said in its quarterly report.
Belo is not alone in seeing ad revenues slip. The Journal Register Company, which owns several daily and weekly papers in Rhode Island and nearby Massachusetts, said on June 15 its May advertising revenues excluding newspapers sold within the year declined 6.1 percent — $22.7 million compared to $24.2 million during the year-ago period.
Among the companies seeing the biggest drops is The New York Times Co. The company said on June 18 its pro forma advertising revenue fell 17.1 percent in May, dropping 19.5 percent at its flagship newspaper, the New York Times; dropping 18.9 percent at the New England Newspaper Group, which includes the Boston Globe; and slipping 4.4 percent at its Regional Newspaper Group.
Knight Ridder, which publishes the San Jose Mercury News, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Miami Herald and 29 other daily newspapers, said on June 18 its advertising revenue declined 8.6 percent in May. The company also announced plans to cut 1,700 full-time positions under a restructuring plan first announced in April, and expects to take a $75 million quarterly charge.
According to reports, Belo expects to take a charge of 2 to 3 cents per share for the second quarter, due to costs associated with early retirements. It also plans to write down most of its $33 million investment in Internet-related companies, reports said.
