Increasing public ownership of United States daily newspaper companies is an important trend in modern journalism. Since it is impossible to grasp the essence of daily newspapers without understanding their unique economic principles, this study draws data from the yearly financial reports (1971-1974) of 13 publicly owned publishing companies which are used by newspaper executives and analysts as industry indicators. The three major components in a company's financial statement--revenue, costs, and net income--all increased throughout the period. Strongest economic conditions were evident in the first two years studied. Costs escalated throughout the period, with newspaper companies trying to reduce expenses whenever possible. In many cases, advertising and circulation-rate increases enabled newspaper companies to increase revenue and to offset rising costs. As a group, newspaper companies are highly profitable, with profit margins outpacing the return on sales at all newspapers. Publicly owned newspaper companies are surviving a weak national economy better than is industry in general, and they can expect to do well in the future. (Author/JM)