Newspaper websites claim record readership

New data shows newspaper websites attract one-third of all internet traffic

ALMOST 75 million readers flocked to newspaper websites in the first three months of this year, new research shows.

Nielsen Online data for the Newspaper Association of America showed that newspaper website users spent more than 2.3 billion minutes browsing the sites, generating more than 3.2 billion page views during the quarter.

The first-quarter tally of unique visitors - 74.4 million – was the highest quarterly average to date and accounted for more than one-third (37 percent) of all Internet users.

This new record follows the strong audience newspapers delivered in last year''s fourth quarter, with newspaper websites drawing an average of 72 million unique visitors per month during that period.

The Nielsen Online figures follow recent data from comScore research indicating that consumers consider local newspaper websites to be the most trusted source of online advertising, with ads that are perceived to be more current, credible and relevant to them.

The study, Site Matters: The Value of Local Newspaper Websites, also found that consumers consider local newspaper websites the top online source for local information - ahead of the totals for all other media.