Growth for online newspapers’ ad revenue slowed sharply in Q1, rising only 7.2 percent to $804 million versus the 22 percent gains posted the year before, ClickZ reported, citing numbers from the National Newspaper Association. That yawning gap in online growth rates is perhaps one reason that the NAA told ClickZ that it’s abandoning its quarterly ad revenue reporting. Combined print and online ad spend dropped about 13 percent to $9.2 billion during the quarter from Q107’s $10.6 billion, the NAA said. Additionally, the NAA’s report offers more evidence for the declining print side, as Q1 national ad revenue slid 9.5 percent, while classifieds, hit hard by struggling real estate and employment ads, saw the worst retreat years, plummeting 25 percent to $2.5 billion from $3.4 billion year-over-year. A chart of NAA’s Q1 numbers is available here.

• NAA Conference: Tierney: Focus On Older Audience; Stop Self-Flagellation; Singleton On Wireless
• NAA: Online Newspaper Traffic Gains 6 Percent In ‘07, Though Growth Rate Slows
• Amid General Declines, Online Ad Spend On Newspaper Websites Climb 21.1 Percent, NAA Reports