ABC Top 25 (March '08)

[derwood]

1. USA Today, 2,284,219, up 0.3 percent
2. Wall Street Journal, 2,069,463, up 0.4 percent
3. New York Times, 1,077,256, down 3.9 percent
4. Los Angeles Times, 773,884, down 5.1 percent
5. New York Daily News, 703,137, down 2.1 percent
6. New York Post, 702,488, down 3.1 percent
7. Washington Post, 673,180, down 3.6 percent
8. Chicago Tribune, 541,663, down 4.4 percent
9. Houston Chronicle, 494,131, down 1.8 percent
10. Arizona Republic, 413,332, down 4.7 percent
11. Newsday, Long Island, 379,613, down 4.7 percent
12. San Francisco Chronicle, 370,345, down 4.2 percent
13. Dallas Morning News, 368,313, down 10.6 percent
14. Boston Globe, 350,605, down 8.3 percent
15. Newark Star-Ledger, 345,130, down 7.4 percent
16. Philadelphia Inquirer, 334,150, down 5.1 percent
17. Cleveland Plain Dealer, 330,280, down 4.2 percent
18. Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 326,907, down 8.5 percent
19. Minneapolis Star Tribune, 321,984, down 6.7 percent
20. St. Petersburg Times, Florida, 316,007, down 2.1 percent
21. Chicago Sun Times, 312,274, n.a.
22. Detroit Free Press, 308,944, down 6.5 percent
23. Portland Oregonian, 304,399, down 4.8 percent
24. San Diego Union-Tribune, 288,669, down 2.6 percent
25. Sacramento Bee, 268,755, down 3.7 percent

 

[Ace]

That is depresssing.

 

[Football_Bat]

That is depresssing.

Which more?

That it's down big generally, or that the multicolor fishwrap and the Murdoch-owned WSJ are up?

 

[JBHawkEye]

The three worst drops were the Dallas Morning News, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Boston Globe.

Didn't all three just go through massive newsroom cuts in the last year or two? And can you make the argument that the reduction in quality that comes with such cuts might have something to do with the plummeting circulation?

Throwing that out for debate.

 

[Moderator1]

Do they go beyond the Top 25?

 

[Moderator1]

Also, how big is the Boston metro area?

 

[Shifty Squid]

The three worst drops were the Dallas Morning News, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Boston Globe.

Didn't all three just go through massive newsroom cuts in the last year or two? And can you make the argument that the reduction in quality that comes with such cuts might have something to do with the plummeting circulation?

Throwing that out for debate.

Or were the massive newsroom cuts a response to the dwindling circulation?

I don't know the answer to that question, just throwing it out as another possibility. And I also recognize that JB's questions and mine are not mutually exclusive.

 

[Ace]

That is depresssing.

Which more?

That it's down big generally, or that the multicolor fishwrap and the Murdoch-owned WSJ are up?

Can I pick both?

 

[Ace]

The three worst drops were the Dallas Morning News, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Boston Globe.

Didn't all three just go through massive newsroom cuts in the last year or two? And can you make the argument that the reduction in quality that comes with such cuts might have something to do with the plummeting circulation?

Throwing that out for debate.

Or were the massive newsroom cuts a response to the dwindling circulation?

I don't know the answer to that question, just throwing it out as another possibility. And I also recognize that JB's questions and mine are not mutually exclusive.

Sometimes big cuts are a result of scaling back of home delivery to outlying areas.

At least that's what I keep telling myself.

 

[JayFarrar]

The Sunday numbers are more depressing. Not a single top 25 paper gained or maintained circulation. Every single one had a drop. The worst being Denver that lost more than 100,000 readers in six months, that could be explained by something else. I don't know the scene that well over there.
Only two papers are over a million, this time five years ago, six papers were over the one million mark for Sunday.

Newspaper Name -- As of 03/31/08 -- As of 03/31/07 -- % Change

THE NEW YORK TIMES: 1,476,400 -- 1,627,062 -- (-9.26%)
LOS ANGELES TIMES: 1,101,981 -- 1,173,095 -- (-6.06%)
CHICAGO TRIBUNE: 898,703 -- 940,621 -- (-4.46%)
THE WASHINGTON POST: 890,163 -- 930,989 -- (-4.39%)
DAILY NEWS, NEW YORK: -- 704,157 -- 775,544 -- (-9.20%)

HOUSTON CHRONICLE: 632,797 -- 677,425 -- (-6.59%)
THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER: 630,665 -- 672,953 -- (-6.28%)
DETROIT FREE PRESS: 606,374 -- 639,531 -- (-5.18%)
DENVER POST/ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS: 600,026 -- 704,169 -- (-14.79%)
STAR TRIBUNE, MINNEAPOLIS: 534,063 -- 574,385 -- (-7.02%)

BOSTON GLOBE: 525,959 -- 562,273 -- (-6.46%)
THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS: 520,215 -- 563,079 -- (-7.61%)
THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC: 515,523 -- 541,757 -- (-4.84%)
NEWARK STAR-LEDGER: 500,382 -- 570,523 -- (-12.29%)
THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION: 497,149 -- 523,687 -- (-5.07%)

NEWSDAY: 441,728 -- 464,169 -- (-4.83%)
ST. PETERSBURG (FLA.) TIMES: 432,779 -- 430,893 -- 0.44%
CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER: 428,090 -- 442,482 -- (-3.25%)
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE: 424,603 -- 438,006 -- (-3.06%)
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH: 414,564 -- 407,754 -- 1.67%

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER, TIMES: 409,231 -- 423,634 -- (-3.40%)
NEW YORK POST: 401,315 -- 439,202 -- (-8.63%)
MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL: 384,539 -- 400,317 -- (-3.94%)
THE SUN, BALTIMORE: 372,970 -- 377,561 -- (-1.22%)
THE OREGONIAN: 361,988 -- 375,914 -- (-3.70%)

 

[Fenian_Bastard]

The three worst drops were the Dallas Morning News, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Boston Globe.

Didn't all three just go through massive newsroom cuts in the last year or two? And can you make the argument that the reduction in quality that comes with such cuts might have something to do with the plummeting circulation?

Throwing that out for debate.

Or were the massive newsroom cuts a response to the dwindling circulation?

I don't know the answer to that question, just throwing it out as another possibility. And I also recognize that JB's questions and mine are not mutually exclusive.

I suspect some genius should figure this out.
Fast.

 

[MileHigh]

The Sunday numbers are more depressing. Not a single top 25 paper gained or maintained circulation. Every single one had a drop. The worst being Denver that lost more than 100,000 readers in six months, that could be explained by something else. I don't know the scene that well over there.
Only two papers are over a million, this time five years ago, six papers were over the one million mark for Sunday.

Newspaper Name -- As of 03/31/08 -- As of 03/31/07 -- % Change

THE NEW YORK TIMES: 1,476,400 -- 1,627,062 -- (-9.26%)
LOS ANGELES TIMES: 1,101,981 -- 1,173,095 -- (-6.06%)
CHICAGO TRIBUNE: 898,703 -- 940,621 -- (-4.46%)
THE WASHINGTON POST: 890,163 -- 930,989 -- (-4.39%)
DAILY NEWS, NEW YORK: -- 704,157 -- 775,544 -- (-9.20%)

HOUSTON CHRONICLE: 632,797 -- 677,425 -- (-6.59%)
THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER: 630,665 -- 672,953 -- (-6.28%)
DETROIT FREE PRESS: 606,374 -- 639,531 -- (-5.18%)
DENVER POST/ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS: 600,026 -- 704,169 -- (-14.79%)
STAR TRIBUNE, MINNEAPOLIS: 534,063 -- 574,385 -- (-7.02%)

BOSTON GLOBE: 525,959 -- 562,273 -- (-6.46%)
THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS: 520,215 -- 563,079 -- (-7.61%)
THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC: 515,523 -- 541,757 -- (-4.84%)
NEWARK STAR-LEDGER: 500,382 -- 570,523 -- (-12.29%)
THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION: 497,149 -- 523,687 -- (-5.07%)

NEWSDAY: 441,728 -- 464,169 -- (-4.83%)
ST. PETERSBURG (FLA.) TIMES: 432,779 -- 430,893 -- 0.44%
CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER: 428,090 -- 442,482 -- (-3.25%)
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE: 424,603 -- 438,006 -- (-3.06%)
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH: 414,564 -- 407,754 -- 1.67%

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER, TIMES: 409,231 -- 423,634 -- (-3.40%)
NEW YORK POST: 401,315 -- 439,202 -- (-8.63%)
MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL: 384,539 -- 400,317 -- (-3.94%)
THE SUN, BALTIMORE: 372,970 -- 377,561 -- (-1.22%)
THE OREGONIAN: 361,988 -- 375,914 -- (-3.70%)

Denver dropped a ton (double-figure for the Post and Rocky Mountain News in daily as well) because of the decision to cut back on special advertiser-sponsored copies that are delivered to nonsubscribers.

 

[Michael_ Gee]

Moddy, metro Boston population is slightly over 3 million, with variations according to how you define the area.
In 1990 Herald circulation was 300K. Now the Globe's 350. Yikes!

 

[Sxysprtswrtr]

21. Chicago Sun Times, 312,274, n.a.

Wonder why percent change isn't available for the Sun Times?

 

[Michael_ Gee]

Legal issues relating to the Hollinger Corp.?

 

[Sxysprtswrtr]

Legal issues relating to the Hollinger Corp.?

Thought all of those issues (sale, court action, etc.) were resolved by 2006?
Oh well.
More on topic -- I'm with Moddy - I'd like to see more than just top 25. Will have to research that.

 

[User 4332]

Do they go beyond the Top 25?

E&P has only put up the Top 25. The FAS-FAX reports come out about two weeks before ABC makes data generally available on its web site through the eCirc section. So unless you can get a credential for press access to the reports, then you have to wait a little bit before you can check out the gains/declines at papers that E&P and other trade publications don't say much about. The lag time gives publishers a chance to correct any mistakes, among other things.

 

[EStreetJoe]

Do they go beyond the Top 25?

There's the story I posted that shows the Top 12 circulation gainers.
Of the Top 12, 6 have circulations below 90K and that figure increases to 8 if you want to make it papers under 100K.

So it appears that the mid-sized papers are weathering the storm better than some of the big metros. But that can all change in a quarter or a year.

 

[JayFarrar]

So it appears that the mid-sized papers are weathering the storm better than some of the big metros. But that can all change in a quarter or a year.

I think this has been true, in my state, the top eight papers, three lost circ, and five gained. All tiny percentages, but they were still up. The ones that lost, were also tiny percentages as well.
So my market is relatively stable. For now.
Interesting to hear on Denver. I know one paper in my market that lost circ a year or so ago, because they weren't allowed to count the copies they sold to the hospitals and nursing homes.
But lots of places have cut what they call "vanity circulation" the most notable being Dallas axing its multi-state distribution.

 

[Pete Incaviglia]

The Sunday numbers are more depressing. Not a single top 25 paper gained or maintained circulation. Every single one had a drop. The worst being Denver that lost more than 100,000 readers in six months, that could be explained by something else. I don't know the scene that well over there.
Only two papers are over a million, this time five years ago, six papers were over the one million mark for Sunday.

Newspaper Name -- As of 03/31/08 -- As of 03/31/07 -- % Change

THE NEW YORK TIMES: 1,476,400 -- 1,627,062 -- (-9.26%)
LOS ANGELES TIMES: 1,101,981 -- 1,173,095 -- (-6.06%)
CHICAGO TRIBUNE: 898,703 -- 940,621 -- (-4.46%)
THE WASHINGTON POST: 890,163 -- 930,989 -- (-4.39%)
DAILY NEWS, NEW YORK: -- 704,157 -- 775,544 -- (-9.20%)

HOUSTON CHRONICLE: 632,797 -- 677,425 -- (-6.59%)
THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER: 630,665 -- 672,953 -- (-6.28%)
DETROIT FREE PRESS: 606,374 -- 639,531 -- (-5.18%)
DENVER POST/ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS: 600,026 -- 704,169 -- (-14.79%)
STAR TRIBUNE, MINNEAPOLIS: 534,063 -- 574,385 -- (-7.02%)

BOSTON GLOBE: 525,959 -- 562,273 -- (-6.46%)
THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS: 520,215 -- 563,079 -- (-7.61%)
THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC: 515,523 -- 541,757 -- (-4.84%)
NEWARK STAR-LEDGER: 500,382 -- 570,523 -- (-12.29%)
THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION: 497,149 -- 523,687 -- (-5.07%)

NEWSDAY: 441,728 -- 464,169 -- (-4.83%)
ST. PETERSBURG (FLA.) TIMES: 432,779 -- 430,893 -- 0.44%
CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER: 428,090 -- 442,482 -- (-3.25%)
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE: 424,603 -- 438,006 -- (-3.06%)
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH: 414,564 -- 407,754 -- 1.67%

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER, TIMES: 409,231 -- 423,634 -- (-3.40%)
NEW YORK POST: 401,315 -- 439,202 -- (-8.63%)
MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL: 384,539 -- 400,317 -- (-3.94%)
THE SUN, BALTIMORE: 372,970 -- 377,561 -- (-1.22%)
THE OREGONIAN: 361,988 -- 375,914 -- (-3.70%)

Denver dropped a ton (double-figure for the Post and Rocky Mountain News in daily as well) because of the decision to cut back on special advertiser-sponsored copies that are delivered to nonsubscribers.

But didn't Denver's online subscription for PDF versions of the paper skyrocket recently? I believe I heard/learned that at a recent conference I attended.