Factoids That Your Can Use

The latest circulation numbers for the newspaper industry continue the death march toward certain bankruptcy. What makes it newsworthy is that the day is drawing nearer when newspapers will no doubt come to the altar of government subsidy to remain afloat. There simply is no other way for the industry to survive. If that sounds overly pessimistic, consider these numbers from the latest report by the Audit Bureau of Circulations, a non-profit organization that verifies circulation data. Overall, the industry lost 8.7 percent of its readers during the past six months. The litany of losers included the nation's largest newspapers. The San Francisco Chronicle's circulation fell 23 percent. The Washington Post declined 13 percent. The New York Times dipped 8.5 percent. The Chicago Tribune shed 9.7 percent. The Dallas Morning News plummeted 21.4 percent. These latest figures might not be so deflating if it wasn't for the fact that the circulation declines have piled one on top of another for years. Among the nation's largest newspapers, only The Wall Street Journal increased readership, registering a meager 0.5 percent gain. Meanwhile, the industry's top executives are pinning all their hopes for revival on economic recovery and online editions of their same tired, old product, while clinging to an outdated business model. It's a giant miscalculation that spells certain doom for a once thriving industry.