Media companies notice the sexiness of business news

NEW YORK -- Nearly everyone knows that this is a trying time for news media. People are drifting away from major television networks, radio, newspapers and magazines — and too few make up the loss by getting news from the Internet.

But there's a surprising oasis in this parched landscape: A host of changes in the economy, technology and demographics have made business and financial news — traditionally one of the least sexy fields in journalism — into a hottie.

"I would call it the last growth industry in the (news) media world," says Chris Roush, a professor of business journalism at the University of North Carolina. "In 1970, only 10% of households owned stock in the market. Today it's more than 50%. There's greater interest in wanting to know what's happening in the business world. We're more and more affected by it."

That's a big reason some of the media's most powerful companies are bulking up to battle for business news dominance.

• Thomson bought Reuters in May for $17 billion, creating a company that would top Bloomberg in providing financial data — mostly to traders and other professionals, but also to consumers.

• Condé Nast recently launched a lavishly designed business magazine, Portfolio, that could poach readers and ad sales from industry leaders Fortune, Forbes and BusinessWeek.

The surge of interest in business news comes just a few years after a spectacular fall from grace. Business TV ratings, print circulation and ad sales for both plummeted after the Internet bubble popped in 2000 and the economy fell into recession.

The field also suffered from consumer disillusionment when it became all too clear that all too few reporters asked tough questions that might have exposed corporate scandals that disintegrated highflying companies including Enron, WorldCom and Adelphia Communications.

Several business news outlets still are struggling. For example, Dow Jones stock fell about 23% in the three years before news of Murdoch's $60-a-share offer leaked out. Ad pages have fallen over the last few years at Fortune, Forbes and BusinessWeek.

So, why is business news a hot business?

Rich people like it.

It's certainly easier to attract big audiences with stories about Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan and Orlando Bloom than it is with features about stocks, corporate strategy and retirement plans.