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- None of the country's newspapers registered growth in circulation numbers in the fourth quarter of 2020.
- Hardest hit was Pretoria News which dropped by 80%, with the Sunday Times recording a 44% drop in circulation.
- The Covid-19 economic slowdown hit at a time when print media was already battling lower circulation.
None of the country's newspapers registered growth in circulation numbers in the fourth quarter of 2020 as numbers for various online publications showed an upward trend, figures released by the Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) showed.
The significant slump in the numbers came on the back of reduced printing volumes by publishing houses as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to the ABC, Pretoria News was down 80% compared to the corresponding period, City Press -16%, The Star -60%, Daily Sun -42%, Sunday Times -44%, and its sister publication Business Day shaved 26%.
Some Independent News Media titles - such as Independent on Saturday, Weekend Argus, Isolezwe NgeSonto, Sunday Tribune, Saturday Star - had the largest drop in circulation numbers among weekend titles.
A number of free community newspapers ceased publishing in the quarter, highlighting the impact of the Covid-19 economic turndown on the media industry.
True Love and Sarie magazines showed positive numbers, while YOU reported a 13% decline. The Saturday Citizen had the lowest decline of all the weekend titles at 9%, followed by the Die Burger's Saturday edition with 7%.
The Covid-19 economic slowdown hit at a time when print media was already battling lower circulation and revenue numbers, forcing some titles to reconsider the ownership of poor-performing titles, cut jobs and temporarily slash salaries.
In its Covid-19 Impact on Journalist Report, the South African National Editors' Forum warned that "some of the ills of the news media will not wane with the crisis", with print publishers forced to migrate to a less profitable online environment.
Here are some of the worst-impacted national magazines:
GQ: -60%
Glamour: -56%
Conde Nast House & Garden: -53%
Fairlady: -29%
Huisgenoot: -14%
You: -13%
SA Rugby: -30%
Kick Off: -25%
News magazine were also not spared, with the Financial Mail and Fin Week, the country's weekly business and financial publications, reporting a 13% and 23% drop respectively. The Mail & Guardian, which has battled dire financial challenges prior to Covid-19 that even threatened the payment of salaries, had circulation sink by 43%.
In March, the newspaper sounded a distress signal over its diminishing finances, urging the public to take up subscriptions.
Isolezwe, the isiZulu daily newspaper launched in 2002 and subsequently added Saturday and Sunday titles also saw a dip in numbers. The papers had enjoyed steady growth over the past years and extended circulation outside its KwaZulu-Natal base. All the three titles saw a drop ranging from 35% to 41%.
