Scarborough Research Publishes Newspaper Audience Ratings Report

NEW YORK, April 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Scarborough Research, the leading authority on newspaper audience ratings, issued a report today highlighting newspaper ratings for 135 papers in 74 local markets across the United States. The Scarborough Newspaper Audience Ratings Report provides single-source print, website, and Integrated Newspaper Audience (the combined print and online weekly audiences) ratings for newspapers in local markets (DMAs) measured by Scarborough. It is a useful guide for agencies, advertisers, and others in the media business who plan, buy and sell local advertising. The Scarborough Newspaper Audience Ratings Report can be downloaded (free of charge) at http://www.scarborough.com/freestudies.php. This is the first time Scarborough has published this report, and the company plans to continue to do so on an annual basis. Scarborough's local market syndicated service, from which the data in the report is derived, is fully accredited by the Media Rating Council.

"At a time of change and evolution in the newspaper industry, Scarborough's Newspaper Audience Ratings Report was published in response to the marketing and agency community's need for more information on newspaper audiences," said Gary Meo, senior vice president, print and Internet services, Scarborough Research. "The report complements other current and planned industry programs to elevate the newspaper audience metric in order to facilitate more comparable comparison with the audiences of electronic media. Additionally, it is a tool for those in the business to better understand the full value of the newspaper in a market - both print and online."

The Scarborough Newspaper Audience Ratings Report is presented in an easy- to-navigate guide. It is organized by market, and each market is ranked in the report according to its DMA adult population. Each newspaper's weekly print audience, weekly website audience, and Integrated Newspaper Audience are published in the Report. All data is derived from Scarborough's Local Market Studies, Release 2 2006 (fieldwork dates: 8/05-9/06).

"As one key dimension and output of our comprehensive local market consumer studies, our newspaper ratings have served the newspaper industry for over 30 years," said Bob Cohen, President & CEO, Scarborough Research. "Newspapers are experiencing change and evolution, and ensuring those who plan, buy and sell media have access to accurate and comprehensive newspaper ratings - print, online, and Integrated - is of particular importance."

Printed versions of the Scarborough Newspaper Audience Report will be distributed at the upcoming NAA (Newspaper Association of America) 2007 Annual Convention, taking place May 6-9 in New York. Electronic copies are available for download at http://www.scarborough.com/freestudies.php.

About Scarborough Research

Scarborough Research, a Media Rating Council (MRC) accredited media and marketing service, (http://www.scarborough.com/, info@scarborough.com) measures the lifestyle and shopping patterns, media behaviors, and demographics of American consumers. Products and services include consumer insight studies in 81 Top-Tier Markets and several Mid-Tier Markets, Scarborough USA+ (a national database), Hispanic studies, and custom research solutions. With more than 30 years of experience, Scarborough measures 2,000 consumer categories and serves a broad client base that includes marketers, advertising agencies, print and electronic media (broadcast and cable television, radio stations) sports teams and leagues, and out-of-home media companies. Surveying more than 220,000 adults annually, Scarborough is a joint venture between Arbitron Inc. (http://www.arbitron.com/) and The Nielsen Company (http://www.nielsen.com/).