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Newspapers ABC Q2 2020: Newspapers reflect the 'new normal'
13 Aug 2020
The second quarter of 2020, the period April to June 2020, has mirrored the chaos caused by Covid-19 on the newspaper industry. As a result, only a third of publications submitted circulation data to the Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC).
For this quarter, publishers were given the option by the ABC Board not to submit circulation data if they felt that their circulation had been materially impacted. As a result, a decision regarding the 'normal' submission of data from the next period (July to September 2020) will be made by the ABC Board.
Daily newspapers
Only seven out of 27 daily newspapers submitted circulation data. Of these, only one increased on the previous quarter and the prior year. Daily Ugandan newspaper, Bukedde, increased its circulation on the previous quarter and prior year. Apart from Bukedde, all the other dailies that submitted data decreased both on the previous quarter and prior year - like Bukedde, these are all from outside of South Africa (Zambia Daily Mail, Times of Swaziland and The Namibian). However, the biggest loses in circulation were from two local dailies, Daily Nation and New Vision.
| Publication name | Frequency | Total circulation | % change quarter | % change year |
| Daily Nation | MD, Mo-Sat | 69,379 | -31.4% | -32.4% |
| Bukedde | MD, Mo-Sat | 41,141 | 22.9% | 15.2% |
| Namibian, The | MD, Mo-Fr | 20,922 | -22.6% | -33.7% |
| Times of Swaziland | MD, Mo-Fr | 17,985 | -9.5% | -11.6% |
| New Vision | MD, Mo-Fr | 17,331 | -26.4% | -29.5% |
| Taifa Leo | MD, Mo-Sat | 6,768 | -39.3% | -38.8% |
| Zambia Daily Mail | MD, Mo-Sat | 5,215 | -13.7% | -16.3% |
| Beeld, Daily | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Burger, Die Daily | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Business Day | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Cape Argus | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Cape Times | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Citizen, The (Daily) | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Daily Dispatch | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Daily Monitor | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Daily News | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Daily Sun | Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Diamond Fields Advertiser | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Herald, The | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Isolezwe | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Mercury, The | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Pretoria News | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Son (Daily) | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Sowetan | Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Star, The | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Volksblad - Daily | Mo-Fr | No Submission | ||
| Witness, The | MD, Mo-Fr | No Submission |
Weekly newspapers
Of the 10 weekly newspapers in this category, only three submitted circulation data. Of these, all three - The Voice, The Mmegi Reporter and The Monitor - saw declining circulation on the prior year. The Voice also saw a decline on the previous quarter.
| Publication name | Frequency | Total circulation | % change quarter | % change year |
| Voice, The | Wkly, Fr | 8,435 | -35.3% | -41.9% |
| Lesotho Times | Wkly, Th | 5,611 | -18.9% | -25.3% |
| Mmegi Reporter, The | 4xW, Tu-Fr | 5,524 | -51.6% | |
| The Monitor (Formerly Mmegi Monitor) | Wkly, Mon | 4,014 | -53.1% | |
| Botswana Gazette , The | Wkly, Wed | No Submission | ||
| Burger, Die Friday | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Ilanga | 2xW, Mo&Th | No Submission | ||
| Mail & Guardian | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Post, The | Wkly, Wed | No Submission | ||
| Soccer Laduma | Wkly, Wed | No Submission |
Weekend newspapers
The category saw one discontinuation, Son op Sondag, with none of the local weekend newspapers submitting data. The four weekend newspapers that did submit circulation data were all from outside of South Africa.
| Publication name | Frequency | Total circulation | % change quarter | % change year |
| Sunday Nation | Wkly, Sun | 87,459 | -20.5% | -20.3% |
| Sunday Vision | Wkly, Sun | 11,281 | -16.4% | -23.9% |
| Taifa Jumapili | Wkly, Sun | 6,651 | -27.8% | -26.8% |
| Sunday Mail | Wkly, Sun | 3,458 | -8.2% | -26.1% |
| Beeld, Saturday | Wkly, Sat | No Submission | ||
| Burger, Die Saturday | Wkly, Sat | No Submission | ||
| Citizen, The (Saturday) | Wkly, Sat | No Submission | ||
| City Press | Wknd | No Submission | ||
| Daily Dispatch Weekend Edition (formerly Saturday Dispatch) | Wknd | No Submission | ||
| Ilanga Langesonto | Wknd | No Submission | ||
| Independent on Saturday | Wkly, Sat | No Submission | ||
| Isolezwe ngeSonto | Wkly, Sun | No Submission | ||
| Isolezwe ngoMgqibelo | Wkly, Sat | No Submission | ||
| Pretoria News Saturday | Wkly, Sat | No Submission | ||
| Rapport | Wknd | No Submission | ||
| Saturday Star, The | Wkly, Sat | No Submission | ||
| Sunday Monitor | Wknd | No Submission | ||
| Sunday Sun | Wknd | No Submission | ||
| Sunday Times | Wknd | No Submission | ||
| Sunday Tribune | Wkly, Sun | No Submission | ||
| Sunday World | Wknd | No Submission | ||
| The Southern Cross | Wkly, Sun | No Submission | ||
| Volksblad - Saturday | Wkly, Sat | No Submission | ||
| Weekend Argus | Wknd | No Submission | ||
| Weekend Post | Wknd | No Submission | ||
| Weekend Witness | Wkly, Sat | No Submission | ||
| Son op Sondag (formerly Sondag Son) | Wkly, Sun | Discontinued |
Local newspapers
| Publication name | Frequency | Total circulation | % change quarter | % change year |
| George Herald (Thursday) | Wkly, Th | 8,341 | -37.7% | -37.2% |
| Vaalweekblad | Wkly, Th | 5,017 | 9.9% | -8.2% |
| Mosselbay Advertiser | Wkly, Fr | 4,412 | -29.4% | -28.5% |
| Limpopo Mirror | Wkly, Fr | 4,000 | -38.5% | -39.3% |
| South Cape Forum/Suid Kaap Forum | Wkly, Th | 2,019 | -34.5% | -38.6% |
| Knysna Plett Herald | Wkly, Th | 1,547 | -27.9% | -33.0% |
| Graaff Reinet Advertiser | Wkly, Th | 1,197 | -5.5% | -21.8% |
| Oudtshoorn Courant | Wkly, Fr | 1,169 | -15.5% | -23.8% |
| The Courier | Wkly, Fr | 1,126 | 0.0% | 16.6% |
| African Reporter | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Bosvelder Review | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Brits Pos | Wkly, Th | No Submission | ||
| Capricorn Voice | Wkly, Wed | No Submission | ||
| Daller, Die | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Die Noordwester | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| District Mail | Wkly, Th | No Submission | ||
| Estcourt and Midlands News | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Gemsbok | Wkly, Wed | No Submission | ||
| Hermanus Times | Wkly, Th | No Submission | ||
| Klerksdorp Rekord | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Ladysmith Gazette | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Lowvelder, The / Laevelder, Die ( Tuesday) | Wkly, Tue | No Submission | ||
| Lowvelder, The / Laevelder, Die (Friday) | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Mid South Coast Mail | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Middelburg Observer, Fri | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Mpumalanga News | Wkly, Th | No Submission | ||
| Newcastle and District Advertiser | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Northern Natal Courier | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Northern Review Weekend | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Paarl Post | Wkly, Th | No Submission | ||
| Representative | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Rustenburg Herald | Wkly, Th | No Submission | ||
| South Coast Herald | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Stellalander | Wkly, Wed | No Submission | ||
| Streeknuus | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Streeknuus Delmas | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Talk of the Town | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Tembisan | Wkly, Th | No Submission | ||
| The Mail | Wkly, Th | No Submission | ||
| Vryheid Herald | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Weslander, The | Wkly, Th | No Submission | ||
| Witbank News, Fri | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Worcester Standard | Wkly, Th | No Submission | ||
| Zululand Observer Monday | Wkly, Mon | No Submission | ||
| Zululand Observer Weekend (Formerly Friday) | Wkly, Fr | No Submission | ||
| Carletonville Herald | Wkly, Fr | Changed Sector | ||
| Potchefstroom Herald | Wkly, Fr | Changed Sector |
The category saw nine data submissions and one changed sector (out of 47). The Courier maintained its circulation on the previous quarter and increased slightly on the prior year, while the Vaalweekblad increased on the previous quarter, but decreased on the prior year. All the other submissions showed decreases on the previous quarter and prior year. The George Herald (Thursday) and Limpopo Mirror showed some of the biggest losses in the category.
Free newspapers
Fifty out of 202 free newspapers submitted circulation data for this period for this category. There were 18 discontinuations, two rebrands and two new members. Notables include Taxi Times and Rosebank Killarney Gazette with an increase on the previous quarter and prior year, while South Coast Fever, Randburg Sun, Maritzburg Fever and Sandton Chronicle showed a decrease on the previous quarter and prior year.
| Publication name | Period | Frequency | Total circulation | % change quarter | % change year |
| Taxi Times | Apr -Jun | F | 149,975 | 92.3% | 20.9% |
| Sedibeng Ster | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 91,000 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Tame Times - Weekly | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 79,988 | 10.4% | -6.7% |
| Phoenix Tabloid | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 54,344 | -2.9% | -2.9% |
| Kathorus Mail | Apr -Jun | F | 52,939 | -0.8% | -2.8% |
| Chatsworth Tabloid | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 50,231 | -4.3% | -4.3% |
| The Springfield Weekly Gazette | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 48,480 | -3.0% | -3.0% |
| Roodepoort Record | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 46,553 | -7.7% | -8.3% |
| Kempton Express | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 45,714 | -16.3% | -16.8% |
| Maritzburg Echo | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 41,666 | -29.9% | -29.9% |
| Ster, South | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 41,500 | 8.0% | 0.1% |
| Randburg Sun | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 41,473 | -30.3% | -30.5% |
| Ethekwini Times | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Fr | 40,980 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Umlazi Times | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 40,980 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Bedfordview & Edenvale News | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 38,845 | -14.4% | -15.0% |
| Sandton Chronicle | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 35,423 | -28.8% | -28.8% |
| Boksburg Advertiser | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 34,986 | -19.5% | -19.5% |
| Tongaat & Verulam Tabloid (former Northern Star) | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 34,980 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Southern Courier | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 34,555 | -12.2% | -12.4% |
| Alberton Record | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 34,051 | -10.6% | -11.0% |
| Fourways Review | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 33,266 | -9.4% | -9.8% |
| Ster, North | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 32,800 | 7.7% | 0.0% |
| Southern Star | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Fr | 31,980 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Benoni City Times | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 31,948 | -17.5% | -17.6% |
| Rosebank Killarney Gazette | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 31,048 | 21.6% | 18.3% |
| Issue Mangaung | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 29,950 | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Rising Sun Lenasia | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 27,941 | -15.1% | -15.1% |
| Krugersdorp News | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 26,976 | -10.7% | -10.6% |
| Roodepoort Northsider (FormerlyNorthside Chronicle | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 26,197 | -9.5% | -9.8% |
| Germiston City News | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 24,292 | -19.3% | -19.5% |
| Stanger Weekly | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 24,104 | -19.4% | -19.4% |
| Coastal Weekly | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 24,037 | -18.7% | -18.7% |
| South Coast Fever | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 23,461 | -32.9% | -32.6% |
| Northcliff & Melville Times | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 21,929 | -25.8% | -28.2% |
| Issue, Eastern Free State | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 21,900 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Midrand Reporter | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 21,820 | -22.0% | -22.9% |
| Randfontein / Westonaria Herald. | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 18,349 | -6.3% | -6.5% |
| Comaro Chronicle | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 18,312 | -12.1% | -11.8% |
| Hillcrest Fever (formerly Forest Express) | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 17,986 | -9.1% | -9.8% |
| Potchefstroom Herald. | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Fr | 16,975 | ||
| Brakpan Herald | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 16,432 | -13.4% | -13.3% |
| Carletonville Herald. | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Fr | 11,975 | ||
| Maritzburg Fever (formerly Mirror, The) | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 10,416 | -70.2% | -70.2% |
| Eastern Cape Rising Sun | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Tue | 9,947 | -76.8% | -76.6% |
| Amanzimtoti Fever (formerly Uppercoast Fever) | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 9,943 | -33.0% | -33.1% |
| Alex News | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 9,790 | -50.4% | -50.4% |
| Greytown Gazette | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Mon | 8,900 | 0.0% | -2.7% |
| Maseru Metro | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 8,046 | -77.0% | |
| Parys Gazette | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Fr | 7,500 | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Die Ghaap - Kimberly Gazette | Apr -Jun | F | 5,000 | -37.5% | -37.5% |
| The Weekly Free State | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 4,950 | 0.0% | |
| Inner City Gazette | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 4,936 | -0.5% | -0.8% |
| Free State Sun | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Th | 4,750 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| CXpress | Apr -Jun | Wkly, Wed | 2,495 | -74.8% | -74.8% |
*Does not include newspapers with no submission or which has been discontinued
About Danette Breitenbach
Danette Breitenbach is a marketing & media editor at Bizcommunity.com. Previously she freelanced in the marketing and media sector, including for Bizcommunity. She was editor and publisher of AdVantage, the publication that served the marketing, media and advertising industry in southern Africa. She has worked extensively in print media, mainly B2B. She has a Masters in Financial Journalism from Wits.
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