This sample includes the Coffs Harbour City Council and the two neighbouring local government areas of Bellingen Shire Council to the south and Clarence Valley Council to the north. It corresponds to the Coffs Harbour-Grafton statistical area.

Two weekly newspapers serve the area: the Clarence Valley Independent and Coffs Coast News of the Area. News Corp has a digital presence in Coffs Harbour with the Coffs Coast Advocate and in Grafton with The Daily Examiner. The area is well-served by radio outlets. Commercial stations include both hit and Triple M. Community radio stations include 104.1 CHY FM broadcasting from Coffs Harbour and Bellingen Community Radio 93.3 FM broadcasting from Bellingen. The ABC has two local newsrooms: ABC Coffs Coast covering the area broadly, with ABC North Coast additionally covering Clarence Valley Shire. 10, Nine and Prime make up the commercial television network for Northern New South Wales, including Coffs Harbour and surrounds.

Seven changes have been observed in Coffs Harbour and surrounds since PIJI began monitoring. In mid-2020, a News Corp restructure resulted in ended print editions, such as the Coffs Coast Advocate and Grafton Daily Examiner which were merged into the Daily Telegraph’s website. It also resulted in masthead closures, such as the closure of Coastal Views based in Clarence Valley Shire. Later in 2020, News of the Area, and independent weekly newspaper group, launched a new edition for the Coffs Coast region. Subsequent years also saw the closure of the Bellingen Courier Sun and Clarence Valley News. In August 2023, Australia’s last letterpress newspaper, the Don Dorrigo Gazette, closed after 110 years.