• by Larry Dobrow , March 15, 2004

Hoping to arm publishers of black newspapers with the data they need to lure more marketers to their pages, International Demographics has unveiled a report that the company bills as the first comprehensive research on readers of these papers. The Media Audit, which tapped 5,236 African-American adults in 49 markets, reveals that these readers are younger, more affluent, and more eager to spend than had previously been assumed by the media community.

Of course, most of those assumptions were based purely on speculation: according to International Demographics Director of Urban Marketing Hugh Brown, researchers have traditionally paid as little attention to black newspapers as advertisers have. "So many people don't know [about them], nor have they taken the time to find out," he explains. "What we have here should open the eyes of advertisers."

A handful of the report's findings stand out. Contrary to the perception that only older readers regularly peruse black newspapers, the study found that 16.2 percent of readers fall into the 18-to-24 age bracket and 22.4 percent are in the 25-to-34 age range (only 21.3 percent are 55 and above). Nearly 35 percent of readers boast an annual household income of more than $50,000, while 71.9 percent own at least one computer (51.6 percent have logged on to the Internet within the last month, either at home or at work).

"Slightly more than one in four readers [of black newspapers] plan to buy a car in the next year, which indexes above the market--but automotive companies put no money in black newspapers," Brown notes. When asked why this is the case, he adds, "Fear factor--not knowing what the results will be. What [newspapers] have to do is educate them."

Brown touts several other nuggets from the study, especially those relating to reader attentiveness (they spend an average of 68 minutes with the 100-plus newspapers examined, which boast a higher reader-per-copy average than their mainstream counterparts). He also highlights the study's revelation that nearly 60 percent of readers believe they'll be better off financially six months from now than they are today. "They think the economy is going to be stronger and that they're going to make more money. They have a tendency to spend rather than save," he says.

Asked if there were any surprises among the findings, Brown pointed to the number of non-blacks reading black newspapers. "It's not a huge number, but it's pretty significant," he notes. "Are they reading it because of the nuances of the stories, or to get a different spin? I really don't know, to be honest."

Brown cautions that the report isn't intended to do anything beyond help newspaper publishers alert advertisers to opportunities they might be missing (read: he doesn't expect marketers to respond with a sonorous "eureka!" or to immediately shift dollars from network TV into black newspapers). He also warns that the data is only worth what publishers make of it: "I can provide the information, but realistically, if the newspaper doesn't have the fortitude or ability to get it out to advertisers, there's not a whole lot more I can do."

One exec armed with some of the Media Audit data is convinced that he's gotten his money's worth. Robert Bush, general sales manager of the Wave Newspaper Group, says that the research has helped his company's publications (which include the Los Angeles Wave and La Ola) immensely. "Instead of as salespeople trying to make a buck, we're seen as consultants who can really help companies better target the African-American community," he says. "Advertisers want to know that the numbers they hear aren't just coming off the top of the head of the person who's trying to sell them something."

Although he declines to name the newspapers in question, Brown says that Wal-Mart and Ford have upped their commitment to two publications after getting an early look at some of the Media Audit information. "[The newspapers] had been after them for years, but they didn't have the research that said 'hey, our readers are exactly who you want to reach,'" he says. "Once they had the information, the decision was easy."