The Santa Barbara News-Press has lost 16 percent of its Monday through Friday circulation and nearly 20 percent of its Sunday circulation as compared to a year ago. This according to the latest figures released Monday by the Audit Bureau of Circulations.
Monday through Friday circulation for the paper owned by Wendy McCaw's Ampersand Communications is at 27,189 compared to 31,575 a year ago.
Sunday circulation is 26,174 compared to 31,362 a year ago. That's a decline of 19.8 percent.
Between San Luis Obispo and Los Angeles, the only newspaper that appears to have lost a higher percentage of its daily circulation than the News-Press is the L.A. Times which saw a 17.3 percent decline compared to the News-Press' 16.1 percent.
The paper in the region which appears to have suffered the smallest decline in its circulation numbers is the San Luis Obispo Tribune which saw its Monday thru Friday circulation fall by 3.4 percent and its Sunday circulation drop by one percent.
Among the other papers in the south and central coast regions, the Santa Maria Times lost 6.4 percent of its daily circulation and 14 percent of its Sunday circulation. The Lompoc Record lost 11.2 percent of its daily and 16.1 percent of its Sunday and the Ventura County Star saw its circulation numbers fall by 8.6 percent daily and 3.1 percent Sunday.
"Read 'em and weep as they say," which is what a lot of newspaper publishers must be doing right now.
