While everyone's been writing the obituary for the newspaper industry, Borrell Associates is releasing advertising numbers today that show something entirely different.

In a memo written by Borrell Associates' president Colby Atwood, he notes that he is expecting U.S. newspapers to see a decline in 2009, then a mild rebound over the next five years. The latest Borrell projections call for a 2.4 percent increase in newspaper advertising in 2010, and low single-digit increases for several more years.

With news stories of newspaper bankruptcies, reduced distribution, and outright closures, it is easy to see why some observers think the newspaper is an endangered medium
But amateur pundits often make the error of forecasting with a ruler, extrapolating current trends straight into the ground.

"With news stories of newspaper bankruptcies, reduced distribution, and outright closures, it is easy to see why some observers think the newspaper is an endangered medium," said Atwood. "But amateur pundits often make the error of forecasting with a ruler, extrapolating current trends straight into the ground."