The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1874-05-28
STARTING A NEWSPAPER.
what IL Cests to Try the Experiment i'm
New York City.

new hork Otty.
There being several projects for the
establishment of new papers in New
York, city journal gives us some idea
of the cost of such an experiment
"In order to be really successful, Q
four cent morning journal should have
circulation of 35, 900, with an addition.
al weekly circulation of 10000. II
could not hope to have daily circula
tion equal to that of the Sun or that OF
the Herald. Nor are present indica
tions such as to lead the organizers tc
expect that they could rival the weekly
circulation of the old strawberry seed.
ling Tribune. During its first year, such
q journal would hardly reach a circula.
tion of 100000 Its value, including the
worth of the Associated Press franchise
(about 800, ,000,) and presses and type,
would be about 5000, 1000. In the days
of Raymond and Greeley the Times and
Tribune were estimated at that price.
Shares of the present Times and Iri
6une have, however, sold for 81, 900.
The last purchase on the World was OF
one-fourth the whole establishment fol-
100000. With such circulations as we
have mentioned a paper should have
from sales and subscriptions yearly in
come of 100000. Its expenses would
be about as follows Printing paper al
10 cents a pound, $250,O00; presswork,
Bullock, ETC., $50, 600; composition and
stereotyping, 100000; publication sala-
ries. $50, 900; ink, etc., $4,000
edit, editors Sand and reporters, $4,000
kilograms, $4,000; correspondence,
5O,00O; advertising, 1000; gas, S.,
600; rent, $12, 900 (; interest, $40, 200
office sundries of all kinds, $25, 1000
making q sum total for year of 1854,
900. The expenses would be more like
ly to be above than below this esti-
mate; but at these figures they are
greater than the income from sales, by
$184,000. This sum must be made up
by receipts from advertising. The usual
price for transient advertising is 20
cents line. Railroads, steamship
companies and theatres pay low prices
so that after deducting agents commits
sions, the rate is reduced to an average
of about 12 cents line. An ordinary
newspaper column, say the length of
one in the Times, contains, after deduc-
ting for spaces, about $50 ratable lines,
the value of which at 12 cents each
would be $50. AS even ct our low esti-
mate, it would be necessary to make up
deficiency of about six hundred dol
lars day, it would be demanded of the
publishers that they should daily fill
about twenty columns, or about three
pages of the paper, with advertising,
When they had done that they might
begin to expect pronUs. HOW easy il is
to lose or to make money in metropoli-
tan journalism is evident from the fact
that one column at the average rate of
advertising is worth nearly ton thou
sand dollars a year. 1t must be remem-
bered, too, that the rate of expense per
sheet decreases with an increase of cir
culation. For instance, after the type
is set, the composition for sixty thou
sand papers costs no more than if only
ten thousand were printed. The same
may be said Of editorial expenses, of
rent, of interest the additional expense
for an increase of circulation always be-
ing for ink, paper and presswork. There
are journals that makea profit on circu-
ation alone. Weekly editions of daily
journals are usually inexpensive, and
advertisements in them are very profit
able. Profits fSom weekly advertising
would go to decrease the deficiency be-
tween expenses and receipts spoken of
above. They can hardly be estimated.