The Muscatine Journal

What The Muscatine Journal does

The Muscatine Journal is a local newspaper serving Muscatine, Iowa and the surrounding region, owned and operated as a property within the Lee Enterprises network of regional U.S. newspapers. It delivers local and state news, crime and courts coverage, government and politics, high school, college, and professional sports, obituaries, opinion/letter-to-the-editor content, weather, entertainment, lifestyles, and community events. The publication serves as the de facto primary local news source for residents of Muscatine, a small city in eastern Iowa.

The product portfolio spans three primary surfaces: a website (muscatinejournal.com) built on the BLOX Content Management System from BLOX Digital, a dedicated mobile application available on iOS and Android providing breaking news alerts, e-edition access, weather, and personalized content, and an E-edition digital replica of the print edition. Supplementary products include segmented email newsletters, classifieds and job listings, public notices, autos, Shop Local, a deals section (I Love A Deal), and a Brand Ave. Studios content marketing offering. The site also integrates features such as obituaries management, news tip submission, user-contributed content (stories and photos), and live weather radar for the 52761 zip code.

The business model combines subscription revenue (print home delivery, digital subscription, gift subscriptions, and e-edition) with advertising and commerce-related revenue (classifieds, display ads, public notices, marketplace, and Shop Local). Subscription pricing is not publicly disclosed in the scraped content. Distribution occurs across print delivery, the website, mobile app stores (global reach via app store platforms), social media (Facebook, Twitter, Bluesky), email newsletters, and syndicated placement within the broader Lee Enterprises regional newspaper network. The Muscatine Journal does not publish independent financial figures; revenue, headcount, and ownership capital structure are not disclosed at the publication level, and operational resources are shared with parent Lee Enterprises.

Name

The Muscatine Journal

Legal name

The Muscatine Journal

Website

https://muscatinejournal.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The Muscatine Journal is a local newspaper serving Muscatine, Iowa residents with news, sports, obituaries, weather, and community coverage, delivered through a website built on the BLOX CMS, a dedicated iOS/Android mobile app, an E-edition digital replica, and print home delivery. It operates as a property within the Lee Enterprises regional newspaper network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Newspaper / Community News Media

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)

Keywords

• Local newspaper
• Community news
• Digital news media
• Iowa journalism
• News subscription

Headquarters

HQ city

Muscatine

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Muscatine Journal is a local daily newspaper serving Muscatine, Iowa and surrounding areas, providing local, state, regional, and national news, sports coverage (high school, college, professional), weather, obituaries, opinion, lifestyles, and community event coverage. The publication distributes content via a paid website with digital subscription, a print edition with home delivery, an E-edition digital replica, dedicated iOS and Android mobile applications with breaking news alerts, email newsletters, and social media channels. It operates as part of the Lee Enterprises network of regional newspapers.

Product overview

The Muscatine Journal is a local digital news platform operated by Lee Enterprises, offering news coverage through its primary website, a mobile application for iOS and Android, and an E-edition digital replica of the print newspaper. The product portfolio consists of the core website delivering local news, sports, weather, and community information, along with a dedicated mobile app offering breaking news alerts, weather tracking, and personalized content preferences. The publication also provides email newsletters and special sections as supplementary offerings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Muscatine Journal Mobile App A native mobile application for iOS and Android that delivers breaking news alerts, E-edition access, local weather forecasts, and personalized story recommendations to Muscatine Journal readers.
• Digital Subscription and E-edition A paid digital subscription that provides access to muscatinejournal.com content and an E-edition — a digital replica of the print newspaper — along with access to digital archives, available to local readers via self-serve sign-up.
• Print Newspaper Subscription The traditional print edition of The Muscatine Journal delivered to subscribers' homes or purchased as single copies, providing local and regional news coverage to Muscatine-area readers.
• Gift Subscriptions Gift subscription plans that allow individuals to purchase Muscatine Journal digital or print subscriptions as gifts for friends, family, or community members.
• Email Newsletters Email newsletter subscriptions that deliver curated Muscatine Journal content to subscribers' inboxes, with frequency and topic-based segmentation filters.
• Classifieds and Local Advertising (Buy & Sell) A local advertising and classifieds service that lets individuals and businesses place ads in categories such as jobs, autos, marketplace, public notices, and Shop Local listings to reach Muscatine-area readers.
• Obituaries Service A dedicated obituaries section that lets families share obituaries and lets readers browse recent obituaries, search an archive, and access obituary-related community announcements.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Lee Enterprises: Direct parent company and a major publicly-traded US newspaper chain; comparable at the portfolio level as a multi-title regional newspaper operator with similar cost structure and digital subscription strategy.
• Des Moines Register: Iowa's largest newspaper, owned by Gannett; covers Iowa state news that overlaps with the Muscatine Journal's state and regional coverage and competes for the same Iowa digital subscriber pool.
• Tribune Publishing (Alden Global Capital): Mid-major US newspaper group operating regional dailies and weeklies; comparable as a multi-title local newspaper operator navigating the same print-to-digital transition.
• Gannett: Largest US newspaper chain (USA TODAY network); operates hundreds of local community newspapers with similar print + digital + subscription models to the Muscatine Journal.

Direct peers

• The Dispatch / The Dispatch-Argus: Moline, Illinois daily newspaper serving the Quad Cities region with overlapping Muscatine-area coverage — operates a comparable small-to-mid-market newspaper model in the same broader regional ecosystem.
• The Hawk Eye: Burlington, Iowa daily newspaper covering a small Iowa market with similar print + digital + mobile app distribution, providing a near-comparable small-market Iowa newspaper model.
• The Gazette (Cedar Rapids): Cedar Rapids, Iowa daily newspaper serving an Iowa regional market with a comparable mix of local news, sports, and digital subscriptions — directly comparable in scope and audience.
• Quad-City Times: Regional daily newspaper also owned by Lee Enterprises serving the adjacent Quad Cities market (Davenport/Bettendorf, IA and Rock Island/Moline, IL). Closest comparable in terms of ownership structure, regional Iowa/Illinois focus, and operating model.

Emerging players

• The Daily Iowan: Independent Iowa City-based newspaper focused on University of Iowa coverage; smaller and more niche than the Muscatine Journal but competes for Iowa local-news audience attention.

Regional players

• Beloit Daily News: Small-market daily newspaper in Beloit, Wisconsin along the Illinois/Wisconsin border — comparable small-market local newspaper model in an adjacent regional ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/journalonline
• Facebookfacebook.com/muscatinejournal

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Muscatine Journal