Press Herald Finally Files Circulation Figures
Better late than … The Portland Press Herald and Maine Sunday Telegram have filed new circulation figures with the Audit Bureau of Circulations more than two weeks after numbers for other Maine dailies were released.
According to a reliable source at the paper, the Press Herald and Telegram, both owned by MaineToday Media, had always intended to file with ABC, but missed the deadline for reasons unknown.
The report isn’t pretty. Press Herald circulation Monday through Friday declined from 59,487 in March 2009 to 55,813 in March 2010, a loss of over 6 percent. On Saturdays, the Portland daily lost nearly 7 percent of its readers.
The numbers were even worse for the Sunday paper. The Telegram was selling 90,523 papers each week in 2009. This year, it’s down to 82,979, off by more than 8 percent.
Another ABC audit of Maine papers covering the six months ending September 30 is scheduled to be released in the fall.
Kimball komeback: I’m just speculating, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see Susan Kimball, who retired from WCSH-TV in Portland on May 14 after twenty-eight years of television journalism, back on the air soon – but on the other side of the camera. Kimball told staff writer Ray Routhier of the Press Herald that she hasn’t decided on her next career move, but she was interested in politics and social services.
I could hear the sounds of gubernatorial candidates’ ears pricking up clear across the state.
Al Diamon can be e-mailed at aldiamon@herniahill.net
The views expressed on this Web site are those of the authors alone and do not necessarily represent the views of Down East Enterprise or its employees.
And what about Down East?
Nice to have all this focus on Maine Today. Hold them accountable, for sure. But it begs the question, what has become of Down East's circulation over the last few years? It'd sure be worth seeing those numbers from 2005-2010. I imagine you've seen a decrease and I'm sure it ain't pretty. So how about Down East posts your numbers and highlight your decreases? I'm sure it will be better late than...
Down East's Circulation Numbers
For the record, Down East is audited by the Audit Bureau of Circulations (it is the only Maine-themed magazine that has its numbers reviewed and verified). The magazine's circulation information is available at the ABC; Al Diamon has also reported on Down East's circulation (including for the years referenced here) several times within his blog.