Online Newspaper Audiences

I’ve always been interdested in online newspaper audiences since I think they’re an indicator of behavioural change. There has been some research to show that people retain more when they read short articles online than when they read print. Also, I have seen research that people will read up to three pages online before they print it out (or buy it) and prefer paper for longer items.
Anyway, this recent repoort from the Newspaper Association of America appears intereastingpite having more than a little self interest.
“As NAA releases two new ads highlighting the value of the newspaper audience to advertisers as part of its 2007 industry trade campaign, efforts to attract a diverse set of readers across a growing portfolio of products are paying off. Recent data indicates that more than 59 million people (37.3 percent of all active Internet users) visited newspaper Web sites on average during the second quarter of 2007, a record number that represents a 7.7 percent increase over the same period a year ago.”
It claims that newspapers’ online audiences are rising at twice the rate of the general internet audience, according to research by Nielsen//NetRatings for the Newspaper Association of America.
Now, what is the rate of general internet audience and are library website audiences (as measured like these are and not just circulation or hits) rising faster too (or slower). I wonder.
My gut tells me we’re doing great. It would be nice to have that soundbite like newspapers have created.
The quote from Sturm on the website is “Engagement is an important factor that reflects the value of online news products, and the amount of time users spend enjoying a newspaper’s digital content further establishes these sites as premier online destinations for a demanding and sophisticated audience.”
Our audiences are no less demanding and sophisticated?
Is it time for library website engagement measures?
Can we move beyond transaction statistics to transformational measurements of community impacts?
Stephen