Formed in the year 1982 by Al Neuharth, The USA Today is a daily newspaper printed by Garnett Co. Not only it holds distributions in the United States but is also sold internationally. The international edition of USA Today is distributed in Eurasia, Canada, and Pacific Island. Headquartered in McLean Virginia, the USA Today is owned by Garnett Co Incs, a mass media company. The USA today is the largest and a popular newspaper in the United States. Who Owns USA Today? Garnett not only owns the USA today but is also the owner of a few more local newspapers including The Florida-times union, The Indianapolis Star, Detroit Free Press, and so on.
A Trip Down the Memory Lane: A Brief History About Garnett
Garnett together with gatehouse Media old the largest newspaper sales in the United States. With Mike Reed as the CEO, this merge materialized in the year 2019. It was after four years of splitting the parent company one named Tegna and the other retained the original name. Focusing on broadcasting, Tegna is now an owner of more than 40 TV stations whereas Garnett is into publishing and print media.
- Formation of Garnett – Formed by Frank Garnett, Garnett Co Inc was formed in the year 1923 in Rochester New York. It was originally an extension of a newspaper business named Elmira Gazette which was also owned by Frank Garnett. Garnet slowly started gaining momentum after acquiring small independent local newspapers. This slowly became a large chain of more than 70 newspapers by the year 1979.
- John Curley Appointed CEO – John Curley was appointed as CEO in 1979 and continued as the president for successive years. In 2001, Garnett was shifted to its current headquarter i.e Virginia a suburb in Washington DC.
- Acquisition of Belo and London Broadcasting Station – In 2014 Garnett acquired six more stations of the London Broadcasting station making it serve more than 80 percent of households.
- Garnett Split and Merge with Gatehouse Media – Also, in 2014 Garnett decided to split into two independently traded companies one of them being Tegna and the other retaining the original name. This split intended to divide print and broadcast media. One of the companies is to focus on newspapers and others in broadcasting.
In 2019, Apollo Global management funded the acquisition of Garnett and was taken over by GateHouse Media- a subsidiary of New Media Investment Group. The deal went through and Micheal Reed was then appointed as the CEO of Garnett.
USA Today and Its Related Publications
USA Today is an American daily newspaper that quickly became quite popular due to its dynamic style. The style, format, the use of informational graphics, colored images, and among other things made it a reference for other local, regional, and national newspapers worldwide. With a readership list of more than a billion and a strong reader’s fan base of 5 lakhs and counting, the USA today is ranked one by circulation in the United States. USA Today has mostly readers that are interested in politics among other readers.
The USA Today is not a sole identity it does have other branches to it, which are listed below:
- USA Weekend
USA Weekend is a Sunday newspaper magazine which is under the Garnett. It is distributed in the Sunday edition of local newspapers that are under Garnett. It is the second-largest newspaper magazine in the United States.
Started in 1953, the USA Weekend was started as Family weekly originally. USA Weekend focused on articles on social issues, travel, food reviews, pop culture, recipes, and entertainment personalities. USA Weekend was also compared with The New York Times Magazine that mainly focused on providing educational materials to teachers and students.
- The Big Lead
In 2012, The Big Lead was owned by Garnett. Garnett acquired Fantasy Sports ventures in the year and merged into the digital network of USA Today However, in 2019 Garnett Sold the Big lead to Minute Media. The Big Lead was an American News Blog started by the sportswriter Jason Mcintyre and his friend David Lessa. However, after the Big Lead was sold to minute media Mcintyre and several other writers were laid-off.
- USA Today Sports Weekly
As the name suggests the USA Today Sports Weekly is a sports magazine owned by Garnett. The magazine covers baseball and football news for the fall and winter months. Some of the baseball teams it covers are National Football League (NFL), Major League Baseball, and Minor League Baseball. Sports weekly shares the production facility with its parent company hence is also headquartered in McLean Virginia. Sports weekly is distributed in the United States as well as Canada. The magazine is published every Wednesday and also sometimes has special editions like the coverage of the Super Bowl or World Series.
- Virtually There
USA Today has launched another vertical that focuses on Virtual Reality Technology. Virtual Reality is nothing but a computer-generated experience that can give a real-life experience. USA Today releases the concept of putting stories out there with VR experience. With 360 degrees in video and virtual reality USA, today aims to bring the news to life.
The USA TODAY App
USA Today has not only conquered with its print, digital, and broadcast media but has also made it easier for its readers to get daily updates on their handheld devices. The USA Today features the latest news in sports, travel, food, life, technology along with other features. The other features include a photo gallery, poles, sports updates and scores, and weather information. The app is however no free. For an ad-free experience, the readers need to some amount. It is 99 cents for the first month and then USD 5 from the second month onwards. There is also a games section for the readers wherein they can play Sudoku, solve crosswords or even listen to podcasts. Some of these features are available on i-pad alone and not the android devices.
Does USA Today still print?
Digital media has a stronghold in the industry over print media. With the ever-advancing technology who would want to go to the newsstand and buy a newspaper? We are inclined to access our mobile phones and get the latest updates in a jiffy. So where does the USA Today print edition stand and where is the future heading? Garnett has made an official announcement and said that they have no plans of discontinuing the print edition as of now. After the merge with GateHouse Media, there is a sign of reconstructing the USA today. In a pre-emptive measure to overpower digital media and phase out print media speculation is revolving around that print media of the USA today might not continue. However, a publisher from USA Today had dissed the claims and said that Garnett has no plans to discontinue the print edition. But nothing can be certain with the digitization trends and the finances that go into printing and distributing the paper. The print edition might have been a stepping stone in journalism in the ’80s and ’90s but the future does not look very bright.
Conclusion
To sum it up, the USA today is a platform that provides information as well as news in its unique way. Their visual storytelling methods across different platforms are its print, digital, social or video platforms have gathered a large number of readers. USA Today has changed the face of information with its innovative methods. With a whooping fan base of over five million daily readers and over twenty million downloads of their mobile app, The USA today serves the host of American Conversion not just currently but for decades.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How much is the USA Today in print?
The subscription for the USA today is as follows: USD 10.00 for the first three months. This includes the print edition as well as the e-newspaper. USA today’s e-newspaper subscription is USD 10.00 per month, and sports weekly is USD 5. - How can we get a copy of USA Today?
The newspaper is available at onlinestore.usatoday.com. Here one can place an order for the copy, and it will be delivered to your address. - Are there any days wherein USA Today does not publish?
Yes, there are some non-publishing holidays as well. USA Today does not publish during New Year, Labour Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the 4th of July. - Can we order a back issue of the newspaper?
Yes, the back issues are available at onlinestore.usatoday.com. You can search for the specific copy here and it will deliver to your address. - Is USA Today a National Level newspaper?
Yes, USA Today is a national daily newspaper that reached quickly become quite popular back in the times and had reached a circulation of more than one million in just one year. It was launched in the1982, and till 1990 its circulation had crossed over two million. The USA today is almost 40 years old now and a potent name in the journalism industry. - Is the USA Today digital version free?
Yes, it is free but is filled with ads. To get an ads-free one has to purchase a subscription. USA Today has also added a paywall feature for digital content, wherein only paid subscribers can access the entire content of the digital edition.
