Hearst Corp. has asked its titles to cut costs by 20 percent through various cutbacks in light of falling ad revenue, Bloomberg reported.

Hearst has struggled against the faltering economy, converting its Seattle Post-Intelligencer to an online-only model and negotiating the future of its San Francisco Chronicle, which saw a loss of more than US$50 million last year.

Barclays Captial projects a 22 percent drop in ad sales this year, an increase from the 17 percent drop last year. In response to bleak conditions, Hearst will potentially consolidate certain editorial functions and outsource printing, according to Bloomberg.

Steve Swartz, president of Hearst's newspaper division, told analysts in a presentation that the "industry is largely overstaffed and we are working hard to adjust our cost base."