The Cordova daily times., 1921-12-20
COUNTRY WEEKLIES DYING BEFORE COMPETITION OF
 METROPOLITAN PAPERS
Carl C. Taylor Says Rural Newspapers Must Serve Communities If They Would Survive in the Stiff Battle for Circulation North Carolina Educator Makes Constructive Suggestions

| The largest towns carried 21 per cent in their papers.
 When these papers were analysed as to percentage of country circula- tion it was found, as might be eX- pected that with the increase of country circulation the total space 1 given to local interests increased. A surprise is found here, however, in the fact that the largest percentage of this local space devoted to Coun- try papers was in papers having from 51 to 75 per cent of their cir culation in the country, while the papers having more than 75 per cent rural circulation carried almost as little country local news as did the papers with small country circula- tion. The total showed less than 20 per cent of the total space devoted to country interests Although the cause of this condition is not shown in the tables of the report, it is prob able that the heavy use of boiler plate may have cut out local material, as the latter necessarily means of flee composition.
 Editorials seem to increase in inn portance in the eyes of editors as the percentage of country circulation in creases. The total space devoted to ] editorials and the percentage of this space devoted to local editorials alike increased as the country cir culation grew.
 ! The total space devoted to news in creased with the increase of the country circulation. The percentage of total news space given to local news is least in those papers having 25 per cent or less country circula- pers having from 26 to 50 per cent local circulation. The percentage of local given to strictly country news is only l5 per cent It is geratest, 16 per cent. in those papers having from | 51 to 75 per cent country circula- ton and lowest. 8 per cent. in papers having less than 9 per cent local circulation.
 The papers with heavy country cir culation carried about 59 per cent ad- vertisinG. The greater percentage of total space, 72 per cent, is among country circulation. The next high est percentage of advertising is among those papers having 25 per cent or less the papers having the heaviest country circulation, which means the papers usually having patent insides. Only per cent of the local advertising space is given to the country advertising by those papers that have the smallest coun- try circulation, while the next small est percentage is by the papers hay ing the largest circulation in the country
 l Prof Taylor recognized in the country weekly a powerful rural ser vice agency through it's reading, news and advertising material. In his conclusions he pointed out that the advertising agencies appear to try interests than have the editors themselves. if the larger percentage of country advertising over country 1 editorial or news material is an in ! dication.
 The whole report shows that only two-thirds of the total space in these papers is filled with local material. ! Of the local material only fifth ! is devoted to country interests. the [ towns getting four times as much. This is notwithstanding the fact that almost 6G per cent of these papers send from 50 to 100 per cent of their circulation into country homes.
 The papers that had over E per cent of their circulation in the coun- try had only about one-sixth of their total space given to country inter ests. The advertising material was T per cent local, as compared with 69 per cent editorial and 57 per cent news. About per cent of the local editorials, about 15 per cent local news and 25 per cent local advertis- ing concerned country interests.