NRS National Newspaper Round-Up -March 2003
The latest NRS figures for the six months to March 2003 reveal a relatively uneventful period for overall national newspaper readership, which, despite the unfolding war in Iraq, remained virtually unchanged at around 66.4 million.
The Financial Times, which recently launched a £2 million cross-platform advertising campaign to promote its redesign, experienced the most significant downward movement, with readership slipping by 21.9% year on year during March to just above 500,000 (see FT Pushes Redesign With £2 Million Branding Campaign). Pearson also recently announced that ad revenues at the Financial Times were down 18% in the year to date, with the outlook remaining uncertain (see FT Ad Revenue Drops 18% In Twelve Months, Says Pearson).
The Daily Telegraph‘s new look also appears to have done little to boost its readership, which slipped by 1.1% year on year to just below 2.5 million, despite an £8 million ad campaign to promote its February relaunch (see Daily Telegraph Launches Nation-Wide Ad Campaign).
Things were more positive for the Independent and the Times, which saw readership increase by 12.7% and 7.9% respectively during the six months to March. The Guardian also managed a healthy 6.5% year on year increase, taking its readership to 1,352,000.
Elsewhere, the Daily Mirror, which has been under increasing pressure over its hard-line anti-war stance, saw its readership decline by 2.2% year on year to 5,444,000. The paper also recently saw its circulation slip below the key 2 million mark, however, Trinity Mirror chairman, Sir Victor Blank, has announced that the Piers Morgan is to continue as editor of the title.
News International’s Sun continued to rise during the six months to March, with readership improving by 1.7% year on year to 9,252,000. However, it was Richard Desmond’s Daily Star, which saw the most notable upward movement, with readership expanding by 29.7% to top 2 million.
The Daily Express also brought good news to Desmond, with readership rising by 7.8% year on year to 2.2 million. The paper’s closest mid-market rival, The Daily Mail, saw readership improve by a more modest 1% during the same period.
The News Of The World maintained it position as the UK’s most widely read newspaper, despite readership declining by 5.5% year on year to 9,679,000.
| National Newspaper NRS Figures – March 2003 | ||||
| Title | Oct 01-Mar 02 | Oct 02-Mar 03 | Actual Change | % Change |
| Daily Express | 2,050,000 | 2,210,000 | 160,000 | 7.8 |
| Daily Mail | 5,845,000 | 5,905,000 | 60,000 | 1.0 |
| Daily Mirror | 5,569,000 | 5,444,000 | -125,000 | -2.2 |
| Daily Record | 1,629,000 | 1,494,000 | -135,000 | -8.3 |
| Daily Star | 1,548,000 | 2,007,000 | 459,000 | 29.7 |
| Daily Telegraph | 2,482,000 | 2,454,000 | -28,000 | -1.1 |
| Financial Times | 652,000 | 509,000 | -143,000 | -21.9 |
| Guardian | 1,270,000 | 1,352,000 | 82,000 | 6.5 |
| Independent | 504,000 | 568,000 | 64,000 | 12.7 |
| Independent On Sunday | 650,000 | 666,000 | 16,000 | 2.5 |
| Mail On Sunday | 6,190,000 | 6,250,000 | 60,000 | 1.0 |
| News Of The World | 10,237,000 | 9,679,000 | -558,000 | -5.5 |
| Observer | 1,274,000 | 1,259,000 | -15,000 | -1.2 |
| People | 3,021,000 | 2,675,000 | -346,000 | -11.5 |
| Sun | 9,100,000 | 9,252,000 | 152,000 | 1.7 |
| Sunday Express | 2,147,000 | 2,165,000 | 18,000 | 0.8 |
| Sunday Mirror | 5,283,000 | 5,158,000 | -125,000 | -2.4 |
| Sunday Telegraph | 2,106,000 | 2,108,000 | 2,000 | 0.1 |
| Sunday Times | 3,085,000 | 3,360,000 | 275,000 | 8.9 |
| Times | 1,756,000 | 1,894,000 | 138,000 | 7.9 |
| Total | 66,398,000 | 66,409,000 | 11,000 | 0.0 |
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