600 GERMAN NEWSPAPERS CLOSE DOWN

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3152, 2 August 1917, Page 5

600 GERMAN NEWSPAPERS CLOSE DOWN

— • —: WAR TIME CASUALTIES IN THE HUN PRESS. Some instructive facts on the condition of the German Press to-day are quoted by the "Lokalanzeiger" from the "Handbook of Gsruian Newspapers" for 1917, which lias just been published. It appears that the number of dailies bas fallen since last year from, roughly, 3500 to 2938, the remainder having suspended publication either permanently or for the duration of the war.-' There are no fewer than 905 dailies which before the war were produced by staffs of four writers and less, but which have now for their sole contributor the publisher or manager himself. In consequence, the use of ready matter supplied by other papers or by special agencies has enormously increased.

Tho size of the papers has also been reduced, though there are still a considerable number which issue from f.«. to six thousand pages per annum. The largest yearly issue is that of a daily with 10,913 pages per annum, while the smallest has an .aggregate of only 98 pages. As against this the daily circulation of the papers has not fallen off, though the differences in this respect are very great. There are no fewer than 55 dailies with a circulation up to 500 copjes(some of them have only a circulation of 150). while there are others witli a circulation of over a quarter of a "million. But it. must be noted that more than a thousand papers—presumably the most important—hm-p refused to supply the editors of the Handbook with information on tho subject of their circulation.

Tt is further of interest to note that no fewer thAn 2-163 dailies ore the yVh perlv of individuals, while 6G belong to public companies. Tbe rest belong to private companies. What is most striking of nil is the extreme cheapness of Germ"" <bi'lip»— "ven in war lime. T]n>re. n ™ nnlv pes rlriilipc (-lip 'siliconotin?i Io w'''ch exceeds 9 mark' per nunrtc, while 13fiS charge their siiTwcrilwri Is. fid. and lew per minrter. T" re»a"l to polities, tho'itiaiorif" of Ihe dailies, viz., 1450.. call themselves -non-party p:\pers. Amonir tl">"« which do not hid" (heir nnlitical lisht under a bushel 47(1 are .rin*pi-vntivc 400 nrp oreans of th" Centra CCi-Hiolic), °ifi Mo™ to the Notional Lilvwls, 277 ure Radicnl, and "0 nre Socialist.