By: E&P Staff The numbers are in, and they're not good. Eighteen out of the top 20 papers reported weekday circulation losses in the most recent FAS-FAX report, including sharp drops at the San Francisco Chronicle (-16.58%) and the Boston Globe (-8.25%). Average weekday circulation at U.S. newspapers fell 2.6% during the six month-period ending in September, and Sunday circulation also fell 3.1% at newspapers reporting to the Audit Bureau of Circulations.
Below are average weekday circulation (Table 1) and Sunday circulation (Table 2) figures of America's 20 biggest newspapers for the six-month period ended Sept. 30.
Average Weekday Circulation
| Newspaper | Sept. 2005 Circ | Gain/Loss | Change |
| USA Today | 2,296,335 | -13,518 | -0.59% |
| The Wall Street Journal | 2,083,660 | -23,114 | -1.10% |
| The New York Times | 1,126,190 | 5,133 | 0.46% |
| Los Angeles Times | 843,432 | -33,184 | -3.79% |
| Daily News, New York | 688,584 | -26,468 | -3.70% |
| The Washington Post | 678,779 | -28,991 | -4.09% |
| New York Post | 662,681 | -11,708 | -1.74% |
| Chicago Tribune | 586,122 | -14,866 | -2.47% |
| Houston Chronicle (M-S) | 521,419 | -33,367 | -6.01% |
| Boston Globe | 414,225 | -37,246 | -8.25% |
| Arizona Republic (M-S) | 411,043 | -2,225 | -0.54% |
| San Francisco Chronicle (M-S) | 400,906 | -79,681 | -16.58% |
| Star-Ledger (N.J.) | 400,092 | 50 | 0.01% |
| Star Tribune (Minn.) (M-S) | 374,528 | -961 | -0.26% |
| Atlanta Journal-Constitution | 362,426 | -34,674 | -8.73% |
| Philadelphia Inquirer | 357,679 | -11,635 | -3.15% |
| Detroit Free-Press | 341,248 | -7,590 | -2.18% |
| Cleveland Plain-Dealer | 339,055 | -15,845 | -4.46% |
| Oregonian (Portland, Ore.) | 333,515 | -4,192 | -1.24% |
| San Diego Union-Tribune | 314,279 | -20,908 | -6.24% |
* Changes are calculated based on FAS-FAX circulation numbers for the same period in 2004. The Dallas Morning News, Chicago Sun-Times, Newsday, and the Spanish-language newspaper Hoy deferred filing for the period pending completion of their next six-month audit. The first three papers had previously been in the top 20.
Sunday Circulation
| Newspaper | Sept. 2005 Circ | Gain/Loss | Change |
| USA Today | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Wall Street Journal | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| New York Times | 1,682,644 | 2,061 | 0.12% |
| Los Angeles Times | 1,247,588 | -44,686 | -3.46% |
| Daily News (New York) | 781,375 | -5,577 | -0.71% |
| Washington Post | 965,919 | -41,568 | -4.13% |
| New York Post | 425,279 | -28,862 | -6.36% |
| Chicago Tribune | 950,582 | -13,345 | -1.38% |
| Houston Chronicle | 708,312 | -29,268 | -3.97% |
| Boston Globe | 652,146 | -55,667 | -7.86% |
| Arizona Republic | 517,699 | -13,052 | -2.46% |
| San Francisco Chronicle | 467,216 | -73,104 | -13.53% |
| Star-Ledger (N.J.) | 600,262 | -7,995 | -1.31% |
| Star Tribune (Minn.) | 636,977 | -41,673 | -6.14% |
| Atlanta Journal-Constitution | 570,126 | -29,829 | -4.97% |
| Philadelphia Inquirer | 714,609 | -36,171 | -4.82% |
| Detroit Free-Press | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Cleveland Plain-Dealer | 457,049 | -22,082 | -4.61% |
| Oregonian (Portland, Ore.) | 394,992 | -10,303 | -2.54% |
| San Diego Union-Tribune | 416,682 | -17,291 | -3.98% |
* Changes are calculated based on FAS-FAX circulation numbers for the same period in 2004. The Dallas Morning News, Chicago Sun-Times, Newsday, and the Spanish-language newspaper Hoy deferred filing for the period pending completion of their next six-month audit. The first three papers had previously been in the top 20.
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