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The Expanding News Desert
Penelope Muse Abernathy, Knight Chair in Journalism and Digital Media Economics

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The Rise of a New Media Baron and the Emerging Threat of News Deserts

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  • The Rise of a New Media Baron and the Emerging Threat of News Deserts

Cover-Image: The Rise of a New Media Baron and the Emerging Threat of News Deserts

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Report Sections

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  • Executive Summary
  • A Dramatically Changed Landscape
    • Fewer Newspapers
    • Fewer Readers
    • Fewer Owners
  • The Rise of a New Media Baron
    • How the New Media Baron is Different
    • The Largest 25 Companies in 2004
    • 2008 and a Tectonic Shift for the Industry
    • The Largest 25 in 2014
    • How the New Media Barons Grew
    • The Profile of a New Type of Owner
    • The Lack of Transparency and Civic Responsibility
    • Post-2014: Consolidation Continues
  • The Emerging Threat of News Deserts
    • The National Footprint of the Largest 25 Chains
    • The Vast Reach of Investment Companies
    • Where Investment Companies Bought Papers
    • What Investment Companies Look For
    • Investment Strategies vs. Community Needs
    • Six States: Six Case Studies
    • Diminished Local Newspapers: An Unfilled Void
    • The Challenges for Newspapers and Communities
  • Finding Solutions: Saving Community Journalism

Report Appendices

  • Closed Dailies: 2004-Today
  • List of Newspapers Owned by Largest 25 Companies: 2004, 2014, & 2016
  • Timelines of Seven Largest Investment Companies: 2004-Today
  • Investment Company Detailed Categorizations
  • Newspapers Owned by the Seven Largest Investment Companies: 2016
  • Six Case Study States – Newspapers Owned by the Seven Largest Investment Companies: 2016
  • What Investment Companies Say About Themselves

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