ComScore: Newspaper Sites Reach More than Half of U.S. Internet Users

Newspaper companies attracted 102.8 million unique visitors to their Websites in September, nearly two-thirds (61%) of all adult Internet users — and are reaching key demos, according to an analysis by comScore for the Newspaper Association of America.

Newspaper sites also reached more than half (55%) of the advertiser-coveted 25-to-34-year-old demographic. In addition, the sites also reached 73% of people in households earning more than $100,000 a year.

Additionally, comScore found that 1 in 4 adult visitors to newspaper Websites come from households earning at least $100,000 a year, compared to 21% of all adult Internet users.

Other key findings:

Nearly 61% of adults aged 18 and over visited a newspaper Website in September. In that same time period, 51% of individuals in that age group visited Yahoo! News Network, 22% visited CNN and 27% visited MSNBC. Similarly, more than 55% of adults in the 25-to-34-year-old demographic visited a newspaper website in September.  

The comScore data for those September visitors also show that users generated nearly 4.1 billion page views and spent more than 3.3 billion minutes on the sites.

NAA has adopted comScore’s Unified Digital Measurement methodology, which incorporates both panel-based and website server-based metrics, as its preferred measurement methodology. Going forward, comScore’s Web audience figures will be posted on www.naa.org each month. 

“This data from comScore reinforces how newspaper publishers are leveraging original, high-quality content to build a powerful and engaged audience in the digital space,” NAA President and CEO John F. Sturm said in a statement. “The analysis also paints a powerful picture of our medium’s Web audience, with newspaper websites attracting consumers that deliver maximum value to advertisers.”