Passage Nine
Manage Alerts | What Is This? NEW YORK (AP) -- Newspaper circulation fell 2.6 percent in the six-month period ending in March, according to data released Monday, as more people turned to the Internet and other media outlets for news and information. The decline in average paid weekday circulation was about the same as the previous six-month reporting cycle for the period ending last September, according to the Newspaper Association of America, a trade group.
Average paid circulation at Sunday newspapers fell 3.1 percent versus the same period a year ago, also a comparable decline with the last time circulation tallies were reported, the NAA said.
The figures were based on NAA's analysis of circulation figures released Monday by the Audit Bureau of Circulations, a separate group which reports figures on individual newspapers but not industry wide data.
Despite the declines in paid copies, the NAA also reported Monday that newspaper-run Web sites had an 8 percent increase in viewers in the first quarter. The data from Nielsen/Net Ratings found that newspaper Web sites averaged 56 million users in the period, or 37 percent of all online users in the period, the NAA said.
According to Audit Bureau data, Gannett Co.'s USA Today remained the top-selling newspaper with 2,272,815 copies, up 0.09 percent from the same period a year ago; while The Wall Street Journal, published by Dow Jones & Co., was second with 2,049,786, down 1 percent.
Several top newspapers reported significant declines in the period, including Tribune Co.'s Los Angeles Times, down 5.4 percent at 851,832; The Washington Post, down 3.7 percent at 724,242; the New York Daily News, also down 3.7 percent at 708,477. News Corp.'s New York Post slipped 0.7 percent to 673,379.
The largest slump at a major daily came at the San Francisco Chronicle, where average paid weekday circulation fell 15.6 percent to 398,246 as the newspaper continued to cut back on less desirable circulation such as copies paid for by advertisers and then distributed for free.
Besides USA Today, a handful of other major newspapers reported modest circulation gains in the period: The New York Times, up 0.5 percent at 1,142,464; Tribune Co.'s Chicago Tribune, up 0.9 percent at 579,079; and The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J., up 0.9 percent at 398,329. The Star-Ledger is owned by Advance Publications Inc.
1. Newspaper circulation began its fell by 2.6 percent from _______.
A. October last year.
B. March last year
C. December last year
D. February this year.
2. Which of the following statements about Audit Bureau of Circulations is TRUE?
A. it a governmental agency.
B. It reports figures of newspaper industry.
C. It belongs to Newspaper Association of American
D. It provides information about the circulation of individual newspapers
3. Which newspaper topped The Wall Street Journal by 1 percent in circulation?
A. Dow Jones
B. Los Angeles Times
C. New York Post
D. USA Today
4. During the six-months period of calculation, which newspaper showed slightest decline in circulation?
A. New York Post
B. San Francisco Chronicle,
C. Los Angeles Times
D. Chicago Tribune
5. The reason why the circulation of San Francisco fell remarkably is because _______.
A. the newspaper gave less copies to advisers
B. the newspaper gave copies free of charge
C. undesirable clients have been excluded
D. All of above
