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Media General Newspaper Revenue In Free Fall

Editor & Publisher, Friday, June 15, 2007 11:15 AM

It was a horrible May for Media General as the company reported monthly ad revenue at its newspapers fell almost 15% in May, fueled by a big swoon at the Tampa Tribune. An economic downturn in Florida cut into the numbers, says CEO Marshall Morton, and the company was also hit by "significant weakness" in classified.

"We were very disappointed to see the retail category decline, a reflection of major retailers holding back on spending in virtually every market," Morton says. "We saw a few bright spots in May, including increases in real estate classified advertising in Richmond, a market that has not yet been severely affected by the national housing downturn."

However, the Sunshine State meltdown offset any gains, with the Tampa Tribune's classified take falling 38.2%.

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