Intercounty Group Ownership of Daily Newspapers and the Decline of Competition for Readers

Abstract

This study used a national sample to estimate the potential for intercounty daily competition and how many counties contained dailies whose companies owned a daily in an adjoining county. In 1993, an estimated 347 dailies circulated in adjoining counties in which another daily was headquartered. In 113 such situations, the intruding daily reached 10 percent or more penetration in the adjoining county. Intercounty ownership existed in about 15 percent of all counties in 1983, 20 percent in 1988, and 18 percent in 1993. Intercounty ownership was associated with reduced overall county penetration and reduced intercounty competition.