17 West 12th St. Columbus, GA 31902 706-324-5526 www.Ledger-Enquirer.com The Paper The Community

Mission Statement/Motto: More. Local. Every day.

Founded: The Ledger-Enquirer was first published under is current nameplate Jan. 18, 1988, when the morning edition, the Columbus Enquirer, merged with the afternoon edition, the Columbus Ledger.

The Columbus Enquirer was founded in 1828 while the city was still in the planning stages. The Columbus Ledger, founded in 1886, was purchased in 1893 by R.W. Page, grandfather of former Knight Ridder Chairman and CEO Alvah H. Chapman Jr. The R.W. Page Corp. purchased the Enquirer in 1930. Knight Newspapers acquired the company in 1973. In 2006, The McClatchy Company became the owners of the Ledger-Enquirer with McClatchy's purchase of Knight Ridder.

The Columbus Riverwalk is a relatively new addition to downtown. Construction began in 1989 and, when completed, will stretch 20 continuous miles from the Lake Oliver Marina to the Fort Benning Infantry Museum.

Key Executives:
Valerie Canepa, President and Publisher
Ben Holden, Vice President and Executive Editor
Jodi Bell, Advertising Director
Jim Daugherty, Human Resources Director
John Kelly, Circulation Director
Nathan Laney, Chief Financial Officer
Pat Stubbs, Operations Director
Heather Williams, Marketing Manager

General Hiring Contact: Job listings can be found at www.ledger-enquirer.com/careerbuilder. Mail resumes to Ledger Enquirer, Human Resources Department, 17 West 12th St., Columbus, GA 31902.

Distinction: The Ledger-Enquirer is the dominant newspaper in the market, based on all measures of readership reach and frequency. Ledger-Enquirer.com is the most visited media website in the Columbus area.

The Ledger-Enquirer reaches more people every day than any other source. The Ledger-Enquirer is considered the most useful source of advertising information in this market, both overall and for a variety of categories of goods and services. The Ledger-Enquirer coupled with Ledger-Enquirer.com reach 85 percent of the market in a 30-day period.

Market: The economy has transitioned from dependence on textile manufacturing to a balanced economy, including rapid growth in financial services. Columbus has the largest public-sector project in the state of Georgia; the base realignment and closure of the Armor Center and School from Fort Knox to Fort Benning brings an anticipated 33,000 residents and 11,000 military and civilian jobs. In addition, Columbus has the second-largest private-sector project with Aflac, creating 2,000 jobs during the next five to seven years with a $100 million investment in a call center campus.

Circulation Area: A 19-county area in west central Georgia and east Alabama

Customers: The Ledger-Enquirer reaches eight out of 10 adults each week. Ledger-Enquirer readers are, on average, somewhat better educated and have higher incomes than the market overall. The average past-week reader of the Ledger-Enquirer reads the paper about four days a week.

Site: 174,000-square-foot facility, combining the 1931 Chapman building, the 1971 Page building and the 1989 Ashworth building

The Columbus, Ga., team celebrates after winning the Little League World series in 2006.

Readership: The Ledger-Enquirer has an average daily readership of 97,800 and Sunday readership of 122,900.

Circulation: The Ledger-Enquirer has an average daily circulation of 42,272 and a Sunday circulation of 51,223.

Size: The Ledger-Enquirer averages 44 pages daily and 63 pages on Sunday.

Single-Copy Sales: 20% daily average; 33% Sunday average

Production: Press HO (Headerliner Offset); purchased in 1989

Color: Capacity to run 16 full-color pages and 16 spot-color pages

Newspaper Website: www.Ledger-Enquirer.com, the most visited media website in the Columbus area.

Average Monthly Page Views/Unique Visitors: 442,000 average visitors; 265,000 average unique visitors; 2 million average monthly page views (March 2007)

Other Websites: www.hermagazineonline.com

Employees: The Ledger-Enquirer employs 208 full-time and 39 part-time employees.

Newsroom Staff:
The Ledger-Enquirer newsroom has 56 full-time employees.

Major Awards:
Pulitzer Prizes:

• 1955 and 1926, Gold Medals for Meritorious Public Service, staff

• McClatchy President's Award
• Outstanding coverage of the Little League World Series Champions
• Society of American Business Editors and Writers Award
• Susan Miller won best in business for columns among small newspapers with circulation of 125,000 and below.
• Associated Press Sports Editors Award
• The Ledger-Enquirer's Little League special section was named on of the 10 best in the country (40,000 to 100,000 circulation category).
• Troy Johnson was named one of the 10 best sports columnists in the country (40,000 to 100,000 circulation category).
• Georgia Press Association
• First place, business coverage, Chuck Williams
• First place, humorous column, Tim Chitwood.
• First place, serious column, Richard Hyatt
• Second place, news photo, Robin Trimarchi
• Second place, community service for Alcohol: A Life of Choices series
• Second place, religion coverage, Allison Kennedy Owen
• Second place, sports writing, David Ching
• Second place, feature photo and sports photo, Philip Wartena
• Second place, humorous column, Chris Johnson
• Second place, serious column, Dusty Nix
• Second place, hard news writing for a collection of crime coverage, Lily Gordon
• Third place, sports column, Richard Hyatt
• Third place, investigative reporting, Lily Gordon, Tim Chitwood, Brad Barnes
• Third place, news photo, Philip Wartena
• Third place, community service for Home & Abroad series
• Georgia Associated Press
• First place, sports writing, coverage of Northern Little League
• First place, nondeadline reporting, Chuck Williams, Kaffie Sledge.
• Third place, community service, for Alcohol: A Life of Choices series

• Georgia Associated Press
• First-place award for best business story in Georgia for 2004 for a story focused on a land war between developers; competed at-large against all newspapers, including the Atlanta Journal Constitution, with circulation eight times larger.
• First place Freedom of Information award for reporting in the Kenneth Walker Interstate 185 shooting. Using the First Amendment, the newspaper went to court to win release of details in the shooting.
• Georgia Press Association
• First and second place, serious column, Dusty Nix and Kaffie Sledge, respectively
• First place, sports photograph, G. Marc Benevidez
• First place, news photograph, Mike Haskey
• First place, community service for coverage of the Kenneth Walker shooting and ongoing fight for information in the case
• First place, headline writing
• First place, layout and design
• Associated Press Sports Editors Award
• Second place, best sports columnist in the country, Troy Johnson (40,000 to 100,000 circulation category)

Nothing says fall like the start of high school football. Here, a quarterback tries to maintain his balance while stepping past a defender.

Major Advertisers: JD Kinder's (local furniture store); Dillard's; Bill Heard (local auto dealer); Publix; Jay Auto Group (local auto dealer); HHGregg; Macy's; Piggly Wiggly (local grocery store chain); JCPenney; Raymond Rowe (local furniture store)

Creative Ventures: The Ledger-Enquirer continues to implement many innovative initiatives on Ledger-Enquirer.com. In 2006, the paper began a weekly webcast featuring upcoming stories, news and commentary. The Ledger-Enquirer has since expanded the frequency of the webcasts and plans to make it daily on weekdays.

Readers can now get door-to-door directions for local garage sales with a new garage sale map on Ledger-Enquirer.com. In addition, a pull-out map featuring that day's garage sales is available in the Saturday print edition.

In an effort to make Ledger-Enquirer.com the community's one-stop destination for local information, Columbus Connect was developed in 2006. This portal of Ledger-Enquirer.com provides residents with a directory with a wide array of categories.

Special Publications: The Ledger-Enquirer constantly seeks out new publishing opportunities to expand its customer base. In 2006, Ledger-Enquirer launched "her" magazine, the only local magazine for women. Fall of that same year, the Ledger-Enquirer launched the area's only business-to-business publication, The Business Leader.

• "her" magazine -- targeted monthly woman's publication; mailed and racked
• The Business Leader -- targeted monthly business-to-business publication; mailed and racked
• Jobs Weekly -- weekly employment publication; available in racks
• Northland Neighbors -- geographically targeted; mid-week TMC publication; mailed/carrier delivered; rack copies available
• This Week's Homes and More -- weekly real estate publication; published in the Ledger-Enquirer on Saturdays; available in racks
• Community Weekly -- geographically targeted; mid-week TMC publication; mailed/carrier delivered; rack copies available
• East Alabama News -- geographically targeted; mid-week TMC publication; mailed/carrier delivered; rack copies available
• Columbus Living -- geographically targeted; mid-week TMC publication; carrier delivered; non-subscribers

Well-Known Newsroom Personalities: News columnists Tim Chitwood, Richard Hyatt and Kaffie Sledge; sports columnist Troy Johnson; business reporter Chuck Williams; editorial writer Dusty Nix; nightlife reporter Sonya Sorich; arts and entertainment reporter Sandra Okamoto

Community Involvement: The Ledger-Enquirer has a long history of community service. Each year, the Ledger-Enquirer provides monetary, advertising and volunteer assistance to nonprofit organizations in the community.

• The Ledger-Enquirer has held an annual Page One Awards for 32 years. By 2007, 6,239 extraordinary students and teachers have received recognition for their scholarship, achievements and service to others. To date, the Ledger-Enquirer has awarded $419,750 in scholarships.
• Each holiday season, the Ledger-Enquirer profiles families and individuals who are in need through its Holiday Help program.
• For the past 14 years, the Ledger-Enquirer's Headline Awards have recognized the top middle school students in math, English, science and social studies and a top teacher from each of the 26 local middle schools.
• The Ledger-Enquirer supports the local United Way through employee giving and company contributions each year.

The Ledger-Enquirer also is a sponsor in many of the area's most successful events, including Thunder in the Valley airshow, Greater Columbus Fair, Fiesta Columbus, Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce Golf Tournament, Men's and Women's Health Expo, Steeplechase, Altrusa Book Sale and the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce Business Expo.

The Community

A lieutenant at Fort Benning waves goodbye as she and her unit deploys to Afghanistan.

The Market: Located on the Chattahoochee River, on the border of Georgia and Alabama, the area is the economic, industrial and medical hub of a 16-county trading zone in west Georgia and east Alabama. Known for its extensive textile industry, Columbus has a widely diversified economy in manufacturing and service-sector jobs.

Location: 90 minutes from Atlanta; four hours from the Florida Gulf Coast and five hours from the Smoky Mountains

Transportation: Columbus Metro Airport; Columbus Shuttle and Groome shuttle service to Hartsfield International Airport in Atlanta

Columbus NDM Population: 274,000

Columbus NDM Households: 104,356

Household Growth Rate: 1.75% annualized growth through 2011

Education:
11.5% do not have high school degrees
33.7% have high school degrees
30% have some college education
24.9% have college degrees

Ethnic Makeup: 55% white; 40% African American; 5% Asian or other

Median Age: 34.2

Average Income: $39,412

Median Home Value: $121,458

Average Rent: $575

Climate: Mild year-round; average temperature, January low of 40 degrees, June high of 87 degrees; average rainfall 4.5 inches per month in spring, 1.7 inches per month in winter

Major Employers/Industries: Fort Benning (9,047 civilian employees total); Synovus and TSYS (12,000); Aflac (4,000 locally); Columbus government (2,700); Muscogee County School District (2,500); Columbus Regional Healthcare Systems (2,300)

A Columbus State University cheerleader tries a few flips on a trampoline.

Major Retailers: Lowe's, The Home Depot, Wal-Mart, Dillard's, Macy's, JCPenney, Target, Kohl's, Sears, Publix, Walgreen's, Winn-Dixie, Best Buy, Dick's Sporting Goods

Higher Learning: Columbus State University, Troy State University, Chattahoochee Valley Community College, Columbus Technical Institute, Georgia Military College, Beacon College, Georgia Southwestern State University, LaGrange College, Southern Union State Community College, West Georgia Technical College, Auburn University

Culture: RiverCenter for the Performing Arts; Columbus Symphony; Springer Opera House; Columbus Museum; Columbus College Southeastern Music Center; Liberty Theatre, Confederate Naval Museum

Sports: Columbus Catfish (minor league baseball); Cottonmouths (professional hockey); Columbus Lions (arena football); Home of the 2006 Little League World Champions

Major Annual Events: Miss Georgia Pageant; Indian Cultural Festival; Callaway Gardens Fantasy in Lights; Masters Water Ski Tournament; Steeplechase; ASA National Girls Softball Championship; GHSA Cheerleading State Championship; Sky High Hot Air Balloon Festival; Southeastern Amateur Golf Tournament

Tourist Attractions: Callaway Gardens; Port Columbus Civil War Naval Museum; FDR's Little White House; Fort Benning Infantry Center and Museum; Westville; Providence Canyon; Pine Mountain Wild Animal Safari

Recreation: Golf, fishing, boating, hiking, hunting, whitewater rafting (coming soon)

Nightlife: Downtown nightclubs and bars; Columbus Symphony; Springer Opera House; RiverCenter for the Performing Arts; Liberty Theatre

Claim to Fame: Birthplace of Coca-Cola formula; home of Royal Crown Cola and Nehi; song Columbus Stockade Blues was written here; site of last land battle of Civil War; headquarters of Aflac; four Fortune 500 companies are headquartered here; Fort Benning's Infantry and the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security and Cooperation; home of the 2006 Little League World Champions

Famous Citizens: Country musician Chet Atkins; author Carson McCullers; blues singer Ma Rainey; philanthropist George Foster Peabody; golfer Larry Mize; pro baseball player Frank Thomas; pro baseball player Tim Hudson; American Idol season one runner-up Justin Guarini

Trivia: First consolidated government in Georgia; home of Swift Spinning, the world's fourth-largest producer of denim; the Columbus Symphony Orchestra was the third symphony formed in the nation; site of the first factory in the world to produce ice machines; one of the first cities in the South to maintain a full-time recreation department as part of its city government

Area Information:
Columbus Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 1200
Columbus, GA 31902
706-327-1566
www.columbusgachamber.com

Recent Issues of the Newspaper:
Veronica Dozier
Ledger-Enquirer
P.O. Box 711
Columbus, GA 31901-0711
706-324-5526, Ext. 383

Past Issues of the Newspaper:
Jenny Chandler
Ledger-Enquirer
P.O. Box 711
Columbus, GA 31901-0711
706-324-5526, Ext. 525

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