Decreasing competition between daily newspapers led the United States Congress to pass the Newspaper Preservation Act (NPA) of 1970, providing limited exemption from antitrust laws for newspapers working under joint operating agreements. The bill was passed after the Justice Department successfully brought suit against two Arizona newspapers that had combined advertising, circulation, production, and business departments. Newspapers in 21 other cities were operating under similar agreements, and Congress felt that splitting up other agreements would cause some of the newspapers to fail. Many who are not alarmed at decreasing competition among newspapers have questioned whether newspapers deserve the special exemption, but the NPA has withstood a Constitutional test and has become more defined through judicial interpretation. The Justice Department now must closely scrutinize newspapers applying for exemption under the NPA so that new joint operating agreements do not drive out or prevent the entrance of other newspapers in the marketplace. The effectiveness of the NPA has yet to be determined since only a few papers have applied and since a significant lawsuit involving two California papers has yet to be completed. Used properly, however, the NPA can successfully protect needed newspapers from extinction. (Author/HTH)