Do You Believe In Ghost Readers? Learn the ABC's Of It.

Whether it is television, radio or newspaper, the numbers (rating or circulation) are looked at, studied and massaged to find the littlest ray of hope to sell the advertisers. That is as it always has been and always will be. With the changing demographics, newspaper circulation has been especially affected. There is not a big city newspaper in New York, Chicago, Los Angles or Erie that has not seen diminished circulation. In spite of heavy newspaper promotion and education programs, the younger audience for actual newspaper print readership continues to slide downward. Advancing technology provides far greater choices for young adults than they used to have even 10 years ago. The publishers of the Erie Times-News have always recognized this vulnerability and have instituted new programs and technologies to support the basic structure of today's newspaper. (www.goerie.com)

But back in 2001, the enterprising Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC), the newspapers' version of AC Nielsen, has come up with sort of an answer to this circulation slide, change the way the circulation is counted. According to The Slate, (http://www.slate.com/id/2105344/) newspapers have been using "fuzzy" numbers.

Advertisers regard paid circulation as the most desirable, and in the old day's newspapers that sold for a discount greater than 50 percent did not count as paid circulation. But in 2001 the ABC changed the rules to allow newspapers to consider circulation that was discounted by 75 percent "paid circulation."

These could be newspapers that were given away free at airports, hotels or used for education. They would be grouped and discounted. Several years ago, Newsday was caught in a scandal as they took this to the extreme.

Keep in mind that virtually all daily newspapers belong to the ABC and follow the current code. I can't say that the Erie Times-News follows that same method of reporting. Mike and Ed Mead were very strict and particular when reporting their numbers to the ABC in the "old" days.

Is the current ABC practice wrong? No more than radio or TV stations slicing a tiny demographic and touting they are number 1 with non-documented aliens. (That's a stretch, but you get the idea.) There is no guarantee that a paid or unpaid circulation ad is being read more or less than someone counted in the ratings that has their TV on and sitting on a British water closet? (That's a toilet.) The point is that no matter how you look at media numbers be sure you know how the numbers are really collected. There are almost as many games being played in media than at an Erie City Council budget meeting. (Notice that I said "almost")

"Congress passed a law on February 1, 2006, setting a final deadline for the DTV transition of February 17, 2009. Most television stations will continue broadcasting both analog and digital programming until February 17, 2009, when all analog broadcasting will stop.” FCC www.dtv.gov

Just 10 Days To Go Before WSEE DT Channel 16 Construction Permit Expires.