The Daily Planet was a weekly "underground" tabloid newspaper distributed free to colleges throughout the greater Philadelphia area in the 1970s. Greater Philadelphia has at least 60 or 70 colleges and universities. Although it was primarily an arts and entertainment weekly update to the vibrant counterculture and music scene, including the New Jersey suburbs, it contained many politics-oriented features, often on such topics as opposition to the Vietnam war and police brutality. As popular musical acts toured through the area, an in-depth Daily Planet interview was commonly published. In one such instance, the post-Morrison Doors came through town, resulting in an interview with keyboardist Ray Manzarek, who stated that Christian Culture as a whole was in its downfall, and that meth, but not psychedelic drugs, was aiding in its demise.
Veteran journalist Bob Ingram fills in some history of the publication: "Campus freebie- These days, every time I look at a daily newspaper’s weekend entertainment, I think of The Daily Planet, which was The Drummer’s entertainment section with a different cover, distributed free to the Greater Philadelphia colleges to grab all that youth market advertising." Many readers of the free "Planet" didn't know it was a repackaged part of a larger weekly with a paid circulation. The Daily Planet was an early example of the now-common business model of an advertiser-funded weekly local entertainment guide. By comparison to today's examples, however, it had substantially more political and arts feature content. As of 2012, an internet search yields little evidence of the once popular Daily Planet.
Ingram, former editor of Philadelphia’s “underground” newspaper, The Drummer/The Distant Drummer/Thursday’s Drummer – makes the case that the role of 1970s alternative weeklies continues today - blogs are doing it now.