JCOM
2010
The Deseret NEws
Who owns them?
The Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day Saints owns the Deseret Management Corporation, which is over the Deseret news. The newspaper was first published on June 15, 1850 making it the oldest and longest continuously operating business in the state of Utah.(Deseret News, 2018, par. 2).
How many are owned by the same parent company?
The Deseret News is the only newspaper that The Church of Jesus Christ owns. (Secret Agent exMo, 2005, page 1). However, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints owns The Deseret Management Corporation. The Deseret management Corporation (DMC) owns many large entities including: Beneficial Life, Bonneville Communications, Bonneville International, Deseret Book, Deseret Digital media, Deseret News, Foundations, and Temple Square Hospitality.(To be Trusted, 2018, page 1). Together, these companies own KSL news, radio stations, and much more. (Secret Agent exMo, 2005, page 1). The Church also owns Polynesian Cultural Center, Brigham Young University, LDS Business College, City Creek mall, and much more. (Secret Agent exMo, 2005, page 1).​
Are any owned by independent sources?
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is an independent source.
What is their annual revenue?
The exact revenue of the Deseret News is not provided. However, The Salt Lake Tribune suggests that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints brings in around $15 billion annually through profit-making investments. (Stack, 2017, par. 8) An article from 6 years ago suggests that The Church’s net worth is likely $40 billion dollars. The Church owns millions of dollars’ worth of stock holdings, property, and tithing. (Winter, Burton, tamasi, Kumar, 2012, par. 15, 25, 26)
Where do they get their revenue from?
According to the Deseret Management Corporation, “the business of the Deseret new is supported with a combination of subscription revenues and advertising sales.” (Deseret News, 2018, par. 3). The newspaper offers a variety of subscription plans and rates. To be delivered just the Saturday edition for a year, it costs $33, for the Sunday edition, it costs $33, a 7 day-12 week subscription is $95, and much more. The Deseret news offers online subscriptions as well as print. (Subscribe, n.d., page 1). As stated before, the Deseret News does generate revenue through advertising. Advertising usually depends on the length of the advertisement and placement. However, the Deseret News is strict with advertising because they do not allow advertising that violates the Church’s views. (Deseret News, 2018, Par. 2). Since 1952, the Deseret News and the Salt Lake Tribune have been part of a Joint Operating Agreement. This agreement prints, distributes, and sells advertising and subscriptions for both papers. (Deseret News issues, 2016, par. 2).
What’s their reader/viewer share?
According to the Utah Media Group, The Deseret News’ Sunday circulation is around 134,884, Saturday circulation is 61,862, and average daily circulation is 58,198. As for readership, the weekly readership is 363,758 and Sunday readership is 231,414. (Circulation, 2014, page 1). In 2012, the newspaper reported an 88% increase in Sunday newspaper circulation. This made it the largest in Utah and one of the fastest growing newspapers in the United States. (Ferguson, 2012, par. 1). As of 2017, the Deseret News had 328,122 weekly readers, 138,890 daily readers, and 190,333 Sunday readers. Utah Media Group claims the Deseret News continues to see circulation growth. (Utah Media Group, 2017, page 15).
Is there a particular story that “made” this news venue particular popular?
There is no single story that made this news venue popular. Because this newspaper is owned and operated by the dominant religion in Utah, it is popular among the people.
Was there a story that this news venue is particular well known for scooping?
The Deseret News “offers news, analysis, and commentary on issues impacting families, including faith, education, media and culture, care for the poor, and financial responsibility.” The Deseret news is also known for publishing stories on official news of the Church. (Deseret News, 2018, par. 1)
How does the news site frame itself?
The Deseret News’ mission is to “Inform, Edify, and Educate the Public Within the Framework of Journalistic Integrity That Our Readers Have Come to Trust.” (Deseret News, 2018, par. 4). The newspaper believes in maintaining the trust they have built with the people they serve. The Deseret News focuses on writing about families, faith, education, care for the poor, and official church news. (Deseret News, 2018, par 1).
How is it perceived (conservative/liberal/moderate/completely unreliable/well-respected
for fairness/etc)?
The Deseret news, according to Media Bias fact Check, is moderate to conservative in bias. This is because the newspaper publishes articles that focus on conservative causes. (Deseret News, 2018, par. 1). Its conservative nature stems from the owners. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day saints is known for being the one of the most conservative religious groups in the United States. (Newport, 2010, graph 1).
DAY 1: November 5, 2018
Grade:
F
Total: 41/95
43%
DAY 2: November 6, 2018
Grade:
D
Total: 60/95
63%
DAY 3: November 7, 2018
Grade:
D
Total: 60/95
63%
FINAL GRADE
F
Total: 56%
161/285
The Deseret News seemed to be similar to The Salt Lake Tribune. Their scores are not too different from one another. However, when it comes to the stories these two newspapers publish, they differ. The Deseret News typically focuses on family, church, and education. However, the week we graded the news was during elections so this wasn't necessarily the case. The stories I graded were about elections, education, the fallen soldier, medical marijuana, and some medical information. The medical marijuana was a controversial topic for church members and those against the church, which is probably why it was included in the newspaper these days. So even though they didn't focus as much on the religion, family, and education, the were still able to fit in a couple stories based on these topics.
Overall the Deseret News did a really good job at including many credible sources in their articles. The only time they got a 0 for not having credible sources was when they published a peripheral story. I would include that including this peripheral story isn't necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes it attracts readers. The Deseret News also did a good job at including more diverse voices in their articles, which was surprising to me. I assumed that a more conservative newspaper wouldn't have much diversity in their sources for some reason, so I was pleasantly surprised, though this might not be the case all the time.
They also had a few unnamed sources throughout their articles, which led to many point deductions. The Deseret News was not very good at including controversy in their news stories. I believe they could've done better at presenting their stories in a way that shared multiple perspectives on the issue. You can definitely tell there is some bias in their publications that are more conservative. One reason this could be the case is because it is owned by The Church.
Though the Deseret News got an F as an overall grade, I would still say they could be a fairly credible source. If they worked on eliminating their bias, the newspaper would be much better. This seems to be a trusted source.
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