Last of the local print media swallowed by Gannett

It was a monumental news story on June 20, 2007 and The Advocate played it big on the top of Page 3, but I doubt many readers caught the significance.

"Advocate owner buys Advertiser group" was the headline. It heralded the last step in the monopolization of print media in Central Ohio by conglomerate owners.

With this acquisition, Gannett controls ALL of the worthwhile printed news and advertising outlets in Licking County, and all of the major ones in several other Central Ohio counties. It is the culmination of the monopolization of print media that began in the 1970's when Thomson Newspapers bought The Advocate and the dailies in Lancaster and Coshocton and Zanesville and started sucking up the productive weeklies before it sold out to Gannett.

With 10 dailies now carved out of Central Ohio, many weeklies and now eight Advertisers and a big bunch of advertising specialty publications, along with some commercial printing plants, there is no longer a shred of competition for print ads or news, except that which is offered by the Columbus Dispatch and its pee-weak web-site.

If Gannett follows the trends set by other monopolies that once were local businesses, it's going to be an even faster and steeper down-hill ride for customers.