Independent.co.uk is the 7th Largest Newspaper Site in the US*

NEW YORK, April 3, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

The Independent (http://www.independent.co.uk) has become the 7^th largest digital newspaper in the US following a 131% year-on-year growth in the market, according to the latest numbers from ComScore.  The new ranking places the newsbrand ahead of the NYDailyNews.com and just behind The LA Times, with a digital audience of 34 million unique monthly users.  The new figures give The Independent a 13.9% share of the US digital population.

The figures come on the first anniversary of The Independent's transition to a digital-only proposition and reflects its massive advance in the US since that shift.  With a growing editorial staff in Washington, New York and soon to be appointed in San Francisco, and a commercial base In New York, the world's most free-thinking newsbrand has become a significant player in the US news media marketplace.

Whilst the brand is most famous for its progressive values, trustworthy news and agenda-setting comment, The Independent's growth has come across its content portfolio. While the site has an 8.7% share of the digital population for its news content its arts and entertainment coverage now reaches 6.8 million US readers each month, and its Life and Style content reaches 4.8 million US readers.  

Key news stories that have contributed to The Independent's growth in the US market include outstanding coverage of the US election and the start of the Trump era as well as a diverse offering from international affairs to science and tech. The Independent was the biggest UK newsbrand on Facebook in the 48 hours around the US election, according to a report from social media specialists Newswhip.  The site was the tenth largest in the world for overall engagement and sixth largest for average engagement levels per article during this period.

Christian Broughton, Editor, said: "The Independent has always been an internationalist title, making connections between stories that play out across international borders. Our growing number of US readers tell us this is very much part of the appeal, and we are delighted that America is now our largest territory - the Eagle is spreading its wings. We are welcoming more US journalists to our staff, particularly in Washington and New York, with recruitment taking place now in San Francisco. We have long believed there is a bright future for The Independent in America - now we have the numbers to back that up."

   
    Title                    Unique visitors 000
    WashingtonPost.com                    89,641
    The New York Times Brand              89,351
    Mail Online / Daily Mail              63,882
    USA Today Sites                       59,878
    The Guardian                          40,069
    LA Times                              34,503
    Independent.co.uk                     34,372
    NYDailyNews.com                       29,350
    NYPost.com                            28,253
    Telegraph Media Group                 18,790

*Source: ESI Media custom ranking based on comScore data. All entities selected for comparison are shown in table. Note that USAToday.com does not include the USA Today mobile app. 

Notes to editors 

About ESI Media 

ESI Media is the commercial division of the London Evening Standard, The Independent and London Live. ESI Media has a monthly cross-platform UK reach of 23m adults. The London Evening Standard is read by over 1.7m people every day and the Independent is visited by over 95m global unique browsers each month.

Sources: NRS 2016, ABC, NRS PADD Jan - Dec 16 BARB: ITV London

SOURCE ESI Media