Here are the nation’s 10 largest newspapers based on circulation and their websites. Every newspaper has seen circulation decline over the past few years. Newspapers face a special challenge in transitioning from print to the web. While it seems clear that increasing traffic alone won’t solve the business problems of newspapers, it’s all they’ve got right now.
Circulation at newspapers shrank at an accelerated rate over the past six months. Some newspapers are planning to charge for access to at least some sections of their websites. What do their online numbers represent as a future for news content. Here are the top 10 newspaper sites according to Google Adplanner.
As you can see circulation of the actual Newspapers and their online properties, unique users and subscribers do not coincide. Newspaper web properties present a paradigm shift and create a normalization of the geographic treatment of information.
| Publication Name | Largest Weekday Circulation | Placement | Country UV (users) | |
| 1. The Wall Street Journal | 2,024,269 | nytimes.com | 19M | |
| 2. USA Today | 1,900,116 | washingtonpost.com | 8.3M | |
| 3. New York Times | 927,851 | wsj.com | 8.3M | |
| 4. Los Angeles Times | 657,467 | latimes.com | 7.5M | |
| 5. The Washington Post | 582,844 | usatoday.com | 7.4M | |
| 6. New York Daily News | 544,167 | nydailynews.com | 5.6M | |
| 7. New York Post | 508,042 | nypost.com | 3.5M | |
| 8. Chicago Tribune | 465,892 | chicagotribune.com | 2.9M | |
| 9. Houston Chronicle | 384,419 | chron.com | 1.6M | |
| 10. Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News | 361,480 | philly.com | 1.6M |
| Publication Name | Parent Company | City | Frequency | Largest Weekday Circulation | Placement | Country UV (users) | Reach | Country PV |
| 1. The Wall Street Journal | Dow Jones & Co. Inc. | New York, NY | (M-F) | 2,024,269 | nytimes.com | 19M | 8.50% | 970M |
| 2. USA Today | Gannett Company Inc. | Washington, DC | (M-F) | 1,900,116 | washingtonpost.com | 8.3M | 3.70% | 280M |
| 3. New York Times | New York Times Company | New York, NY | Sun | 927,851 | wsj.com | 8.3M | 3.60% | 230M |
| 4. Los Angeles Times | Tribune Publishing Company | Los Angeles, CA | Sun | 657,467 | latimes.com | 7.5M | 3.30% | 110M |
| 5. The Washington Post | Washington Post Co. | Washington, DC | Sun | 582,844 | usatoday.com | 7.4M | 3.30% | 190M |
| 6. New York Daily News | New York Daily News | New York, NY | Sun | 544,167 | nydailynews.com | 5.6M | 2.50% | 88M |
| 7. New York Post | News Corp. | New York, NY | Sun | 508,042 | nypost.com | 3.5M | 1.50% | 72M |
| 8. Chicago Tribune | Tribune Corp. | Chicago, IL | Sun | 465,892 | chicagotribune.com | 2.9M | 1.30% | 66M |
| 9. Houston Chronicle | Hearst Newspapers | Houston, TX | Sun | 384,419 | chron.com | 1.6M | 0.70% | 50M |
| 10. Philadelphia Inquirer/Daily News | Philadelphia Media Holdings | Philadelphia, PA | Sun | 361,480 | philly.com | 1.6M | 0.70% | 42M |
My top 4 picks for online papers based on design, usability, content are
1) The New York Times, I like the multi column approach and top bar navigation.
2) Washington Post is very timely in their information and ability to interact with their editors
3) Wall Street Journal has unparalleled business content and market analysis making it a must have for biz people
4) USA Today in print is the lowest common denominator for news in print but they make up for it online
Comparing the top circulated newspapers using IBM’s data visualization service Many Eyes. (amazing tool when you are comparing data sets.) Through the Many Eyes site, you can choose to look at any newspapers relative growth. This analysis was done by The Nieman Journalism Lab a collaborative attempt to figure out how quality journalism can survive and thrive in the Internet age.
And lastly search volume based on Google Trends for the top Online newspapers and search volume.
Based on website traffic , the New York Times really is the paper of record. I miss my Sunday mornings and coffee, leisurely thumbing through Safir’s witty repartee and snappy retorts. No other daily newspaper that employs actual journalists to write real news stories comes close to the Times online.
A business model based on expensive editorial but makes revenue from advertisers who only indirectly use or pay for that quality is a business model that cannot work. The current decline in online newspaper and magazine advertising isn’t about the bad economy. The reality is online advertising is just too measurable for newspaper websites to rely on ad revenue alone.
Has the genie been let of the bottle for free vs paid content? Murdoch would like to change the way content is viewed. Free content sends the message to the reader there is not intrinsic value. Their are plenty of news portals, freely exchangeable or replaceable, in whole or in part, for any other news site of like nature or kind.
The New York Times newspaper website currently has 20 million unique visitors a month. It is a great editorial product and has done an amazing job building an audience. How and when does the Times change it’s online business model is the question.