The status of the daily newspaper: What readership research tells us about the role of newspapers in the mass media system

Abstract During the latest decades the rapid demise of newspapers has often been predicted. In spite of everything, however, the print media have turned out to be very strong in some parts of the world, for example in the Scandinavian countries. Given this background the main aim of this article is to analyse the factors contributing to the strength of the Swedish newspapers among its readers. The basis for the results presented is the long term research programme Dagspresskollegiet , which by means of yearly national and regional surveys traces the long-term development of media use in Sweden. The general presentation of readership development shows that between 80 and 90 per cent of the Swedes are regular newspaper readers. The level has been the same since the 1960s. Further it is shown that the strength of the newspapers is that they are local in outlook, corresponding to individual as well as social needs of the audience which are not being fulfilled by other media. Finally, the form of the newspaper invites the double function of ritual reading , surveying matters of potential importance to the reader as the member of a local community, and specialized reading , corresponding to specific needs of the individual reader. In the wider media system the newspapers have kept an informative role, where radio and TV have stressed their entertainment character.