How Many People Read The Denver Post?

The Denver Post has released its first full six month circulation figures:

Circulation for The Sunday Denver Post was reported at 495,485; circulation for The Saturday Post was 410,358; and Monday through Friday circulation was 340,949.

The Post says that "it has retained 86 percent of News home-delivery customers," and that it "showed circulation declines of 5 percent to 8 percent compared with the one-month average after the News closed. About 75 percent of the decline was due to scaled-back statewide distribution and a reduction of free distribution to area hotels, schools and employees. . . . The Post's daily circulation had dropped to about 210,000 before the News closed."

So, the pie is smaller, but the Post is getting a bigger share of the pie without proportionately increasing its expenses. This would be great news for the Post if it weren't for the fact that the Great Recession has devistated advertising revenue.

Real estate sales, car dealers and grocery stores make up a huge share of newspaper advertising revenues. But, real estate sales have been mediocre, car sales are dismal with many dealers being shut down entirely, and their major grocery store advertisers face the prospect of a strike that could cost the chains billions.

Well under half of metro Denver adults read a newspaper of any kind daily. The decline in the total market for newspapers has been slowly accumulating for decades and shows no sign of stopping.