New visitor data from the major US newspaper publishers suggests their home market population density and overall audience literacy contribute significantly to their website traffic.
The larger their home market area and the more educated their audience, the more likely their web property will flourish.
The following are the top thirty newspapers online visitor traffic counts according to Nielsen.
- NYTimes.com — 17,177
- USATODAY.com — 9,939
- washingtonpost.com — 8,478
- Newsday — 6,450
- Wall Street Journal Online — 5,409
- LA Times — 4,607
- Boston.com — 4,364
- Chicago Tribune — 3,891
- Daily News Online Edition — 2,956
- New York Post — 2,851
- SFGate.com/San Francisco Chronicle — 2,785
- Philly.com — 2,300
- International Herald Tribune — 2,250
- Village Voice Media — 2,224
- Chicago Sun-Times — 2,186
- Atlanta Journal-Constitution — 1,974
- The Houston Chronicle — 1,946
- The Seattle Times — 1,840
- DallasNews.com – The Dallas Morning News — 1,828
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer — 1,785
- The Politico — 1,672
- Orlando Sentinel — 1,522
- NJ.com — 1,455
- Azcentral.com — 1,435
- Baltimore Sun — 1,332
- MercuryNews.com — 1,315
- The Detroit News — 1,256
- The San Diego Union-Tribune — 1,180
- Detroit Free Press — 1,168
- The Washington Times — 1,161
Source: Nielsen (1/08); traffic in thousands
The NYTimes.com sitting atop the nations’ largest media market and with arguably the most educated audience in America, generates nearly ten times its paid off line circulation online.
USAToday.com’s off line circulation doesn’t appear to enjoy the same size online multiplier as the NYTimes.com and WashingtonPost.com do. Drawing its circulation from subscribers dissatisfied with their home market paper doesn’t necessarily translate into larger online readership.
The Washington Times with nearly ten times its off line circulation visiting its web property online confirms literate and dense populations contribute to each newspapers online audience and advertising potential.
Search Marketing Communications 