Earnings per Common Share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Dec. 25, 2016	Dec. 27, 2015
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Income (loss) attributable to Lee Enterprises, Incorporated	$ 12,173	$ 11,237
Weighted Average Number of Shares Outstanding, Basic [Abstract]
Weighted Average Common Shares	55,935,000	54,856,000
Less non-vested restricted Common Stock	(2,407,000)	(1,716,000)
Basic average common shares	53,528,000	53,140,000
Weighted Average Number of Shares Outstanding, Diluted [Abstract]
Weighted Average Number Diluted Shares Outstanding Adjustment	1,873,000	718,000
Weighted Average Number of Shares Outstanding, Diluted	55,401,000	53,858,000
Earnings Per Share, Basic	$ 0.23	$ 0.21
Diluted	$ 0.22	$ 0.21
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share, Amount	6,828,000	7,684,000