Newspaper Circulation Rates Continue to Plummet

In a continued sign of the times, newspaper circulation rates once again plummeted in the most recent reporting period.

According to Editor & Publisher (emphasis added throughout):

The Audit Bureau of Circulations released circulation numbers for more than 700 daily newspapers this morning for the six-month period ending September 2007. Of the top 25 papers in daily circulation (see chart, separate story), only four showed gains.

All together now - awwwwww.

For your entertainment pleasure, here were some of the declining dinosaur totals:

For The New York Times, daily circulation fell 4.51% to 1,037,828 and Sunday plunged 7.59% to 1,500,394, at least partly due to a price increase.

Daily circulation at The Washington Post was down 3.2% to 635,087 and Sunday was down 3.9% to 894,428.

Daily circulation at The Boston Globe tumbled 6.6% to 360,695 and Sunday fell about the same, 6.5% to 548,906.

Total readership numbers are likely even worse:

Of course, the trend points to fewer people reading the paper too as single-copy sales, considered a barometer of the industry, is decreasing at larger rates than the overall top line number -- somewhere in the ballpark of 5%.

Maybe these outlets should stop reporting the future extinction of species due to global warming and start worrying about their own.

For those interested, here's the complete listing.