Note 14 - Earnings Per Common Share - Computation of Basic and Diluted Earnings Per Common Share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Sep. 27, 2020	Jun. 28, 2020	Mar. 29, 2020	Dec. 29, 2019	Sep. 29, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 30, 2018	Sep. 27, 2020	Sep. 29, 2019	Sep. 30, 2018
Income attributable to Lee Enterprises, Incorporated:	$ (1,784)	$ (1,275)	$ (5,367)	$ 5,320	$ 819	$ 5,766	$ (2,678)	$ 10,361	$ (3,106)	$ 14,268	$ 45,766
Weighted average Common Stock (in shares)									58,105	57,648	57,009
Less non-vested restricted Common Stock (in shares)									(1,536)	(2,083)	(2,307)
Basic average Common Stock (in shares)									56,569	55,565	54,702
Dilutive stock options and restricted Common Stock (in shares)									367	1,319	1,246
Diluted average Common Stock (in shares)									56,936	56,884	55,948
Basic: (in dollars per share)	$ (0.03)	$ (0.02)	$ (0.09)	$ 0.09	$ 0.01	$ 0.10	$ (0.05)	$ 0.19	$ (0.05)	$ 0.26	$ 0.84
Diluted: (in dollars per share)	$ (0.03)	$ (0.02)	$ (0.09)	$ 0.09	$ 0.01	$ 0.10	$ (0.05)	$ 0.18	$ (0.05)	$ 0.25	$ 0.82