Peoria Journal Star

What Peoria Journal Star does

Peoria Journal Star is a local newspaper publication serving the Peoria, Illinois metropolitan area, including Peoria, Tazewell, and Woodford counties. Founded in 1857 and headquartered at 1 News Plaza, Peoria, IL, the publication operates as a subsidiary of Gannett (NYSE: GCI) within the USA TODAY Network, one of the largest local news organizations in the United States. The company's core offering is a digital news platform (pjstar.com) complemented by a digital eNewspaper replica, an archive dating to 2007, photo galleries, video content, newsletters, and community engagement features such as contests.

The business operates a multi-stream revenue model: recurring print and digital subscriptions for individuals, advertising (display, digital, sponsored content via USA TODAY advertising channels), and transactional listings in jobs, real estate, classifieds, and public notices. Distribution occurs through print home delivery, the pjstar.com digital platform, self-serve online marketplace portals for jobs and real estate, and syndicated distribution of job listings to Indeed, ZipRecruiter, and Jobcase (claiming reach to 100 million+ job seekers). The publication also partners with LocaliQ to provide digital marketing services to local businesses.

Customer segments are diversified across local residents seeking community news and information, small-to-medium local businesses purchasing advertising and recruitment solutions, and job seekers/real estate participants in the Peoria metropolitan area. Strategic, financial, and technology decisions are managed at the Gannett parent level; the publication functions as a regional operating unit rather than an independent enterprise. No specific revenue, headcount, or growth figures are disclosed at the subsidiary level.

Name

Peoria Journal Star

Legal name

Peoria Journal Star

Website

https://eastpeoriatimescourier.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1857

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Peoria Journal Star is a local newspaper serving Peoria, Illinois and surrounding central Illinois counties with digital news, eNewspaper, classifieds, jobs marketplace, and advertising. Operated as a subsidiary within Gannett's USA TODAY Network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Newspaper Publishing

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110), Newspaper Publishers (51311)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

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

Keywords

• Local news publishing
• Digital newspaper subscriptions
• Classified advertising
• Community journalism
• Print and digital media

Headquarters

HQ city

Peoria

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Print and Digital Subscriptions: Paid subscriptions for print newspaper delivery and digital access including eNewspaper
2. Classifieds and Marketplace: Job listings, real estate, obituaries, legal notices, and general classifieds
3. Display and Digital Advertising: Advertising solutions including print display ads, digital banner ads, sponsored content, and USA Today Network advertising
4. Job Postings: Employment listings with options for online-only or combined print and online placement through partnerships with job aggregation platforms

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Peoria Journal Star is a local newspaper that publishes daily news, sports, entertainment, opinion, and lifestyle content for Peoria, Illinois and surrounding central Illinois communities. It distributes this content via a print newspaper, a digital subscription platform (pjstar.com), and an eNewspaper digital replica, supplemented by a Jobs Marketplace, Real Estate Listings, and Classifieds sections.

Product overview

Peoria Journal Star is a local news media organization offering a digital-first news platform with a variety of content products. The core offering is digital news content delivered via pjstar.com, supplemented by the eNewspaper digital replica of the print edition. Additional products include a Jobs Marketplace, Real Estate Listings, Classifieds, Email Newsletters, Contests, Photo Galleries, Video Content, and Archives. The site operates as part of the USA TODAY Network, providing local news, sports, entertainment, opinion, and real estate coverage for Peoria, Illinois and surrounding communities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Digital News Content Subscription

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Gannett (USA TODAY Network)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPeoria Journal Star is owned and operated by Gannett as part of the USA TODAY Network, one of the largest local news publishers in the United States, providing shared technology, advertising solutions, and editorial resources
• IndeedminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorJob board distribution partnership allowing job listings to be syndicated to Indeed's job search platform
• ZipRecruiterminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorJob board distribution partnership enabling job postings to reach ZipRecruiter's job seeker audience
• LocaliQ Digital Marketing SolutionsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDigital marketing services partner providing local businesses with advertising and marketing solutions integrated with the publication

Scale indicators3 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Tribune Publishing: Established metropolitan newspaper company operating regional dailies (e.g., Chicago Tribune, New York Daily News) with a print + digital subscription model that overlaps Peoria Journal Star's core offering at a larger scale.
• Lee Enterprises: Large diversified local newspaper company operating dozens of mid-market dailies across the U.S. with a subscription + advertising model comparable to Peoria Journal Star. Useful benchmark for peer-group economics in the local newspaper segment.

Direct peers

• Belleville News-Democrat: Illinois-based local newspaper covering the St. Louis metro east side, providing geographic and demographic proximity to Peoria. Also a Gannett property, making operational comparison especially direct.
• The Tennessean: Gannett/USA TODAY Network publication covering Nashville, with similar mid-sized-market positioning, identical product suite (news, eNewspaper, jobs, classifieds), and shared corporate parent — making operations, pricing, and ad strategy directly comparable.
• The Courier-Journal: Louisville-based Gannett/USA TODAY Network daily with analogous mid-major-market subscription and marketplace model. Operates within the same Gannett shared-services and advertising infrastructure as Peoria Journal Star.
• The Cincinnati Enquirer: Gannett/USA TODAY Network daily serving the Cincinnati metro with a multi-product digital offering nearly identical to Peoria Journal Star. Same ownership, ad platform (LocaliQ), and operational footprint make it a benchmark peer.
• The State Journal-Register: Springfield, Illinois daily newspaper owned by Gannett serving the state capital. Geographic adjacency within Illinois makes it a strong direct comparable for reader demographics, advertiser base, and state-political coverage.
• The Des Moines Register: Gannett/USA TODAY Network flagship serving Des Moines, Iowa — a mid-sized Midwest capital market highly comparable to Peoria in demographic profile, with the same subscription, advertising, and marketplace business model.
• The Indianapolis Star: Sister Gannett/USA TODAY Network publication serving the Indianapolis metropolitan market with a comparable print + digital + classifieds + jobs + real estate product mix. Most directly comparable peer given shared ownership, shared tech stack, and similar mid-major market positioning.
• Democrat and Chronicle: Rochester, NY-based Gannett/USA TODAY Network publication serving a comparable mid-sized Rust Belt metropolitan market, with overlapping subscriber demographics and identical product mix.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/pjstar
• Facebookfacebook.com/journalstar
• Instagraminstagram.com/journalstar

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

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 Peoria Journal Star