SEEKING to arrest the decline of newspaper readership in the country, the Circulation Management Association of the Philippines launched its first reading awareness seminar to motivate the youth to patronize newspapers and help “revive” the print industry.
“In the past three years since 2006, newspaper readership has been decreasing due to media competition. We thought that schools are the best strategic partners to address the dilemma the print industry is facing today,” Edwin Sacramed, association president and Philippine Daily Inquirer sales manager, said during the forum titled “Relive, Reinforce, and Read to Achieve: Shaping the Future of Printed News and Information” last February 25 at the Thomas Aquinas Research Complex Auditorium.
Data presented by the association showed that in 2006, only 24 percent of the population in urban areas like Metro Manila as well as cities in the Visayas and Mindanao read newspapers daily.
The readership percentage further dropped to 14 percent in the third quarter of 2008.
Sacramed attributed the decline in readership to stiff competition among media outfits now that news can be easily accessed through the Internet.
The global economic crisis has also pushed people not to buy printed materials anymore, Sacramed said.
The association’s statistics further revealed that 40 percent of newspaper readers are “pass on” readers, or those who do not buy their own newspaper, and instead get it free from fast food chains or from a friend.
Jess Mallare, assistant vice president of the circulation department of the Manila Bulletin, underscored the effect of the economic crisis on the circulation of printed materials.
“Before, companies subscribed to three different broadsheets a day. Today, some of these companies (subscribe to) just one publication,” Mallare said.
“There are even some offices that have stopped subscribing at all and they just buy their newspapers once in a while,” he added.
Sacramed said countries with shaky economies have seen a decline in readership. In the United States, readership declined from 59 percent in 1998 to 48 percent in 2008.
However, in a booming economy like Singapore, readership has increased by 8.4 percent.
“It is noticeable that economically stable countries have high readership percentage. This gives us the message that it is all about readership,” Sacramed said. “Let us increase readership in the country and let us help our economy improve.”
Month-long drive
To enhance readership among UST students, the association placed a newspaper rack at the lobby of the St. Raymund’s Building where copies of various publications were given for free from Feb. 26 to March 27.
Suggestion boxes were also placed near the newspaper rack to get the students’ feedback on the campaign.
Dante Castro, Seniors Monthly circulation manager, said that by tapping students, “readership will relive and be reinforced.”
“We piloted the reading campaign in UST because we believe that college students are the future of our print industry,” Castro said.
The reading awareness campaign was spearheaded by the association, in cooperation with the UST Journalism Society, Communication Arts Students’ Association, The Journalese, the official publication of Journalism students, and the Varsitarian.
