Sales 2023: $ 2.664 billion (€2.464 billion)

Overview

Gannett Co. Inc. owns the largest newspaper chain in the United States, including the tabloid USA Today as its most important publication. It was formed in 2015 after the original Gannett media group (founded in 1923) was split into a print division and an online and TV division (TEGNA, ranked 75th in the IfM ranking).

An updated, complete company profile will be published shortly.

General Information

Headquarters
7950 Jones Branch Drive
McLean, Virginia 22107-0910
USA
Telephone: 001 703 854 6000
Internet: investors.gannett.com/corporate-profile

Branches of trade: Newspapers, magazines, news agencies, printing companies
Legal form: Stock Company
Financial year: 01.01. – 31.12.
Founding year: 1906

Basic economic data (in million US$)

	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018
Revenue	2.664	2.945	3.208	3.406	1.868	1.526
Profit (Loss)	(28)	(78)	(136)	(672)	(121)	18
Stock price (year end)	2,30	2,03	5,33	3,36	6,26	12,35
Employees	12.800	14.200	16.300	20.800	24.455	10.638

Executives and Directors

Management:

• Robert Dickery, CEO
• Maribel Wadsworth, Chief Transformation Officer
• Alison Engel, CFO
• Barbara Wall, CLO
• John Zidich, President, Domestic Publishing
• Jamshid Khazenie, CTO
• Andy Yost, CMO
• Henry Faure Walker, CEO, Newsquest Media
• David Harmon, CPO
• Kevin Gentzel, CRO
• Joanne Lipman, CCO
• Amber Allman, VP, Corporate Events & Communication
• Alex Meza, VP, Corporate Development
• Sharon Rowlands, CEO, ReachLocal

Supervisory Board:

• John Jeffrey Louis, Chairman 
• Robert Dickey, Gannett
• Matthew W. Barzun
• John E. Cody, Broadcast Music, Inc.
• Stephen W. Coll, Graduate School of Journalism, Columbia University
• Donald Felsinger, Sempra Energy
• Lila Ibrahim, Coursera
• Larry Kramer, Gannett
• Tony Prophet, Salesforce
• Debra A. Sandler, LaGrenade Group
• Chloe Sladden, Twitter

History and Profile

In 1906, Frank Gannett founded the company by purchasing the local newspaper "Elmira Gazette" in New York State. Even then, the business strategy that would later lead Gannett Co. Inc. to become America's largest newspaper publisher was evident. He acquired the "Gazette" for $20,000, along with its loss-making rival, the "Star." The creation of local newspaper monopolies was his motto. By his death in 1957, Gannett had amassed 21 newspapers in four states, primarily regional papers from New York State. His successor, Paul Miller (CEO from 1957; Chairman of the Board of Directors from 1970), expanded into growing regions, even reaching Hawaii and Guam. By 1991, Gannett Co. Inc. owned 82 daily newspapers in the USA.

With the purchase of Multimedia Inc. in 1995 for $2.3 billion ($1.7 billion to shareholders plus the assumption of corporate debt), Gannett made the largest acquisition in its corporate history. Through Multimedia Inc., Gannett owned eleven additional local and regional newspapers, five TV stations, and two radio stations. Multimedia also operated cable networks in five U.S. states, which were sold to Cox Communications for $2.7 billion in cash in the summer of 1999.

In 1996, Gannett sold its subsidiary Louis Harris & Associates (public opinion research) to Gordon S. Black Corp. and sold its outdoor advertising companies to Outdoor Systems for $690 million. In 2000, Gannett acquired the newspaper chain Central Newspapers Inc. for $2.6 billion and paid $1 billion for 21 of the Canadian company's newspapers. Thompson Corp.

management

Marjorie Magner has been Chair of the Board of Directors since October 2011. She succeeded Craig A. Dubrow, who left the company due to health issues. Dubrow had been with Gannett Co. Inc. since 1981 and most recently served as CEO in addition to her position as Chairman.

Gracia C. Martore was appointed the new CEO. She has worked for the media company since 1985 and has continuously taken on new responsibilities (from 2003 to 2010, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Chief Operating Officer (COO).

The change in Gannett's leadership came as no surprise, as in addition to health problems, Dubrow was also battling declining revenues and a low stock price. Since peaking at $91.00 in the second quarter of 2004, the stock had declined significantly, reaching its all-time low in 2009 and recovering only marginally thereafter (see graphic). The high severance payment of 37 million US dollars, which Dubrow received during a period of mass layoffs at Gannett Co. Inc. The salary paid to Dubrow for 2011 also appears to be as with other international media groups – not to be linked to the economic development of the company, as this increased by around 30 percent within one year to 12.3 million US dollars

Business segments

Newspapers/Magazines:
Gannett owns 82 daily newspapers in the United States, including USA Today, The Cincinnati Enquirer, The Des Moines Register, Army Times, and Navy Times, making it the largest newspaper chain in the United States with a total daily paid circulation of approximately 7.2 million copies. Gannett also publishes 800 U.S. magazines.

Gannett’s portfolio also includes the only “true” national newspaper in the USA, whose international edition has become a piece of home for US citizens around the world, USA TodayUSA Today, founded by Allen Neuharth in 1982 with the aim of replacing the colorless, plain papers like The Wall Street Journal or The New York Times an alternative, was the largest-circulation newspaper in the United States for decades. Today, with around 1.8 million copies sold, the newspaper is ranked second behind Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. The Wall Street Journal (about 2.1 copies daily) is owned by the Wall Street Journal. USA Today is television for reading: superficial, short, and unobtrusive. The focus is on national reporting, although the number of foreign correspondents has increased since the 1990s. A pro-American optimism coupled with government-compliant reporting characterizes USA Today.

Despite the advertising crisis, Gannett is trying to satisfy shareholders by cutting costs. The company has therefore reduced the editorial staff of USA Today by around five percent (100 people) to 1,900 employees. Furthermore, since the end of 2013, 12-14 pages a day in 35 regional newspapers have also been made up of unify USA Today content.

USA Today's circulation has declined significantly in recent years. Compared to 2009, the daily newspaper sold approximately 430,000 fewer copies. This is due to changing media usage patterns (the decline in circulation was accompanied by an increase in visits to the USA Today website) and fewer business trips due to the economic recession in the United States.

Gannett Co. Inc. has been active in the British press market since 1999. The diversification process began with the purchase of Newsquest Media GroupIn the following years, the British subsidiary grew through acquisitions, and its portfolio now includes 17 daily newspapers, 200 magazines, and their online presence. The focus is on local and regional markets in England, Scotland, and Wales.

literature

• Akhavan-Majid, Roya/Rife, Anita/Gopinath, Sheila (1991): Chain Ownership and Editorial Independence. A Case Study of Gannett Newspapers. In: Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, Volume 68, No. 1-2, pp. 59-66. DOI 10.1177/107769909106800107
• Brandt, J. Donald (1993): A History of Gannett. 1906-1993. Gannett Co.
• McCord, Richard (1996): The Chain Gang. One Newspaper Versus the Gannett Empire. Columbia: University of Missouri Press.
• Prichard, Peter (1987): The Making of a McPaper. The Inside Story of USA Today. Kansas City: Andrews, McMeel & Parker.