Gannett is joining Yahoo’s family of media affiliates in an agreement that brings Gannett’s U.S. publishing, Web and broadcasting properties into Yahoo’s vast local-ad network.

As part of the agreement, all of Gannett’s 81 publishing titles, its websites and seven of its broadcasting sites will sell Yahoo inventory as part of their local advertising mix. As other media groups enjoy – Hearst, Media General, MediaNews, Cox, Belo Corp., Lee Enterprise and E.W. Scripps, among others —  the deal gives Gannett’s local advertisers access to Yahoo’s APT ad-ordering capabilities, behaviorally and demographically targeted ads.

A news release from the two companies said the deal would “extend Gannett’s local media organization reach to cover as much as 80 percent of the total digital audience in each market.”

“This partnership builds on the strength of Gannett’s growing digital business and powerful local brands,” says Gracia Martore, president, COO and CFO of Gannett. “Working with Yahoo will allow us to offer targeted advertising messages with unmatched local audience reach.”

Gannett may also provide news and feature content across Yahoo properties. Rollout will begin in this quarter and continue into 2011.

“Local advertising continues to be an important area of focus for us, and Yahoo is committed to helping local businesses reach high quality target audiences,” said Hilary Schneider, EVP of Yahoo Americas. “This partnership significantly expands our local offering and gives advertisers the technology and scale they need to reach online consumers.”