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Statesman circulation drops, but readership rises

To save money, the newspaper stopped delivery of papers to hotels and other sites.

 - STATESMAN STAFF

Published: 10/26/09


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Those newspapers, sponsored by third parties, have little value to advertisers, the Idaho Statesman said.

The cuts have trimmed the print edition's circulation at a time when newspaper circulation nationwide is still falling, partly in response to readers' migration to the Internet.

Industry figures to be released Monday show a 10 percent drop in the Statesman's Monday-through-Friday circulation to 52,169 from September 2008 to September 2009. They also show a 6 percent drop in Sunday circulation to 72,042.

In part, the circulation decline also reflects readers' reaction to a June increase in the daily newsstand price to 75 cents from 50 cents. The Sunday price rose to $2.

But a survey by an independent research firm also shows the Statesman's Sunday and daily readership - not circulation - grew by 6 percent this year. The Statesman is the only newspaper in the Pacific Northwest surveyed by The Media Audit that has shown an increase in readership this year.

Readership is the number of people reading the paper, comparable to the viewership numbers that broadcast media use. It's the most relevant measurement for advertisers. Circulation is the number of newspapers purchased in a market.

And the Statesman says its circulation numbers for the last two months have turned upward. Recent Sunday paid circulation is 2.8 percent higher than the April-through-September numbers to be released Monday by the Audit Bureau of Circulation, the newspaper said. Home delivery is up from 2008 levels.

The recession may actually be helping the newspaper's Sunday circulation. After the main news section, advertising inserts are the most popular part of the Sunday paper, and consumers are watching them for coupons and sales, the Statesman said in a news release.

"It is clear from the recent numbers that in these prolonged tough economic times, consumers actively seek out value," the paper said.

The Statesman remains profitable, Publisher Mi-Ai Parrish told a City Club audience last week, despite recession-induced declines in advertising and the flight of some classified ads to free online sites. To stay in the black, the Statesman has laid off about 30 percent of its work force in the past two years and cut the pay of the remaining staff.

The newspaper has made other changes to survive while serving the changing needs of busy readers and small advertisers. Its printing partnership with the Idaho Press Tribune since March has added color to more pages while reducing production costs. It also allowed a smaller, easier-to-use size that saved money, the Statesman said.

Catching Up briefs on pages A2 and A3, plus efforts to reduce repetition of information among headlines, stories and other text elements, have drawn positive responses from readers.

The Sunday newspaper is read by more than 244,000 Treasure Valley adults, while the daily newspaper reaches more than 223,000, the Statesman said. Meanwhile, readership of its Web site, IdahoStatesman.com, has grown 14 percent this year, and the site remains the Treasure Valley's most-read Web site for local news and information.

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