The Newspaper Agency Corporation Inc. (or NAC or NACorp) is a

printing Printing is a process for mass reproducing text and images using a master form or template. The earliest non-paper products involving printing include cylinder seals and objects such as the Cyrus Cylinder and the Cylinders of Nabonidus. The ea ...

, delivery, and

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

company. It is jointly owned by the ''

Deseret Morning News The ''Deseret News'' () is the oldest continuously operating publication in the American west. Its multi-platform products feature journalism and commentary across the fields of politics, culture, family life, faith, sports, and entertainment. Th ...

'' and ''

The Salt Lake Tribune ''The Salt Lake Tribune'' is a newspaper published in the city of Salt Lake City, Utah. The ''Tribune'' is owned by The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc., a non-profit corporation. The newspaper's motto is "Utah's Independent Voice Since 1871." History ...

'', the two major daily

newspapers A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports ...

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

. In 1948, the long-time rivals, the ''

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is the oldest continuously operating publication in the American west. Its multi-platform products feature journalism and commentary across the fields of politics, culture, family life, faith, sports, and entertainment. Th ...

'' and ''

'', along with several other newspapers in the country, were experiencing financial troubles. The ''Deseret News'' had begun an aggressive plan to win new subscribers, including improving content and offering prizes to new readers but had been floundering for years. ''The Salt Lake Tribune'' controlled market share but still felt economic pressure. Rising printing costs also contributed to the decline. In 1952, the two papers worked out a 30-year agreement, known as the

Joint Operating Agreement The Newspaper Preservation Act of 1970 was an Act of the United States Congress, signed by President Richard Nixon, authorizing the formation of joint operating agreements among competing newspaper operations within the same media market area. It ...

(JOA). It founded the NAC and combined the expenses of

press Press may refer to: Media * Print media or news media, commonly called "the press" * Printing press, commonly called "the press" * Press (newspaper), a list of newspapers * Press TV, an Iranian television network People * Press (surname), a fam ...

advertising, circulation, and mechanical departments but still maintained separate newsrooms. Longtime ''Tribune'' publisher

John F. Fitzpatrick John Francis Fitzpatrick (January 18, 1887 - September 11, 1960) was the publisher of ''The Salt Lake Tribune'' from 1924 to 1960. He created the Newspaper Agency Corporation (NAC) in 1952. Early life Fitzpatrick was born January 18, 1887, in P ...

was the architect of the NAC. He approached his friend and LDS President

David O. McKay David Oman McKay (September 8, 1873 – January 18, 1970) was an American religious leader and educator who served as the ninth president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1951 until his death in 1970. Ordain ...

with the idea. Fitzpatrick's brainchild, the JOA would ensure the continuation of the ''News'' and still keep the dominant position of the ''Tribune'' in the state. Without the agreement the ''News'' may have fallen into ruin after a failed subscription promotional effort. The agreement also allowed the ''Tribune'' to sell its lackluster afternoon paper, the ''Salt Lake Telegram'', to the ''News'', which was then an evening paper. The ''Telegram'' promptly ceased publication. There was much early confusion. Many people confused joint presses with joint newsrooms, and in 1952, the ''Deseret News'' stopped printing a Sunday edition. ''News'' subscribers would receive a Sunday copy of the ''Tribune'' instead. The NAC was the subject of congressional

antitrust Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust l ...

investigations during the 1960s, but in 1970, US President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

signed the Newspaper Preservation Act, protecting the NAC. The JOA was renewed in 1982 after negotiations between publishers Wendell J. Ashton of the ''Deseret News'' and John W. Gallivan of ''The Salt Lake Tribune'' allowed the ''Deseret News'' to print a Sunday paper again."Deseret News to start Sunday Edition in 1983," Deseret News, May 19, 1982
/ref> The new agreement was in effect until 2012. In a move thought to be an embrace of the "convergence" of newspaper, radio, television and the Internet, NAC is planning to change its name to "Media One" and to rid itself of the notion that it is dedicated to the production only of newspapers. However the confusion carried from NAC still exists with most advertisers and subscribers alike.

References

*Woodward, Don C., ed. (1999), ''Through Our Eyes: 150 Years of History as Seen Through the Eyes of the Writers and Editors of the Deseret News'', Salt Lake City: Deseret News Publishing Co. {{ISBN, 1-57345-660-8 *Malmquist, O. N. (1971), ''The First 100 Years: A History of the Salt Lake Tribune, 1871-1971'', Salt Lake City: Utah State Historical Society. Companies based in Salt Lake City Mass media in Utah Deseret News 1952 establishments in Utah