The American Press Association has released a report indicating that the number of weekly publications in the United States has decreased by an average of 2.6% per month over the past six months.
The decline in daily newspapers is even more severe, at 3.1% per month…
Analysts suggest that this significant drop is primarily due to the rapidly increasing trend of online news consumption and the reliance on information from the Internet, particularly among young people in America.
In a similar report issued six months ago, the American Press Association stated that the average decline in weekly publications was 1.9% from October 2004 to March 2005, while daily newspapers saw a reduction of 2.5%.
USA Today remains the best-selling daily newspaper in the U.S. (averaging 2,296,335 copies per day), but it has experienced a decline of 0.6% compared to the same period last year. The Wall Street Journal, owned by Dow Jones & Co. (averaging 2,083,660 copies per day), also reported a decrease of 1.1% year-on-year. The only newspaper to show an increase in circulation compared to last year is The New York Times, which saw a rise of 0.5%, reaching 1,126,190 copies per day.
The remaining newspapers in the top 20 largest publications in the U.S. all experienced circulation declines ranging from 1% to 8% compared to the previous year. The most alarming decline was seen in the San Francisco Chronicle, owned by Hearst Corporation, which reported a staggering 16.4% drop in circulation compared to last year.
The circulation of print newspapers has steadily declined over the years, primarily due to the rapid dissemination of news through television and the Internet. Electronic media have developed at a remarkable pace, capturing a significant audience from print publications.
Print newspapers are also facing fierce competition for advertising revenue from television and online news outlets. The Internet has become an exceptionally effective advertising medium. At any given moment, consumers can compare prices for products from various sources online, something print newspapers cannot facilitate, as few people have the time to sift through piles of advertisements to make comparisons.
The print publishing group Knight Ridder is at risk of fragmentation as two of its major shareholders are seeking to sell off some of its newspapers to recover capital for business restructuring.
Four major newspapers serving the New Orleans area and its surroundings (The Times Picayune, The American Press, The Beaumont Enterprise, The Daily Leader) are currently in a state of near irrecoverability due to Hurricane Katrina, which has wiped out a significant portion of their readership.
Four other newspapers, including Newsday from Long Island, Dallas Morning News, Chicago Sun-Times & Hoy, and a Spanish-language newspaper published in New York, are also facing potential suspension for similar reasons.
HOÀNG HẢI (according to AP)
