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Monday, December 01, 2008

Oklahoman stops circulating statewide; Charleston Daily Mail switching to a.m. in bid for state sales

Today The Oklahoman became the latest, and one of the last, metropolitan daily newspapers to stop statewide circulation. The family-owned Oklahoma City paper announced Nov. 6 that it would stop distribution "in the four corners" of the state after Nov. 30 but "remains committed to covering news throughout the state, including in areas affected by the cutbacks of the print product, through a variety of digital products, some of which are newly developed." The paper cited rising nesprint costs and "the worst advertising climate for all media since World War II."

We're not sure if anyone keeps track of which papers still have statewide circulation, but The Oklahoman reported that "it was one of the last daily newspapers in the United States to deliver its product throughout its home state. About 7,000 households, most of them 100 miles or more from Oklahoma City, will be affected by the changes in daily home delivery. In a handful of communities, including Tulsa, home delivery will be discontinued, but the daily paper will be available from news racks and in retail stores. Despite the cutbacks, the redrawn circulation area of The Oklahoman still covers roughly two-thirds of the state." We asked Pat Dennis, The Oklahoman’s vice president of operations, for a map of its new circulation area but got no reply.

The Oklahoman's cutback follows similar measures in many other states, increasing the need for smaller daily and even weekly newspapers to fill the gaps in regional coverage.

In a possible exception to the trend, the Charleston Daily Mail will switch from evening to morning publication on Jan. 5 and try to extend its circulation beyond West Virginia's capital city over a six-month period. Editor and Publisher Nanya Friend said the change also would save distribution costs, since the paper has a joint operating agreement with The Charleston Gazette. "Our mission stays the same: Aggressive coverage of local news; a conservative editorial philosophy," Friend said. The paper and the Gazette, which has a liberal philosophy, have competing staffs and publish a combined edition on Saturdays and Sundays. Circulation is about 75,000 on Sunday and 61,000 on Saturday. The Gazette's daily circulation is 47,000; the Daily Mail's is 22,000, down from 29,000 two years ago.

The Gazette's owner, Charleston Newspapers Inc., handles business operations for both papers, including advertising, printing and delivery. The Justice Department filed suit last year, arguing that the papers "lost the protection of antitrust laws" when they changed the agreement in 2004, notes Daily Mail Business Editor George Hohmann. "Friend said the lawsuit has nothing to do with the Daily Mail's switch." (Read more) In the 2004 change, the Gazette's local owners bought the controlling interest in the agreement from Media News Group, which once owned the Mail and is now paid a fee to manage its editorial operations. The suit alleges that the Gazette intends to close the Mail, which the Gazette denies. (Read more)

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