Gannett's financial leverage in newspapers.

The article reveals how small-town newspapers are becoming increasingly attractive to a number of buyers as shown with the way Gannett Co., the largest newspaper owner in the U.S., has been buying them despite dire predictions on the fate of the industry with the coming of televisions (TV). One reason is the banning of cigarette advertising on TV which increased newspaper advertising by 20% in 1971. It describes how Gannett Co. has been buying outside big metropolitan areas to avoid head-on competition with big newspapers. INSET: The Sunday 'supps' are doing super.