The newspaper industry apparently has a death wish. After enduring a number of scandals of large papers fraudulently inflating circulation figures, it is now giving advertisers more reasons to be suspicious that circulation guarantees mean little or nothing. The Board of the Audit Circulation Bureau (ABC) has approved a number of changes to their rules for counting hard copy newspaper and magazine circulation. The Board agreed to change the rules making their circulation reporting more uniform, and relaxed rules on counting unpaid distribution in the circulation guarantees they make to advertisers:They have eliminated the payment requirement for employee and agent copies. The board also voted to eliminate the payment requirement for school distribution. Effective October 10, 2010, copies generated from school programs will be reported as "verified" distribution." The board also broadened the definition of...(Read Full Post)