The actual number of paid-for newspapers is much smaller than the audited circulation figures announced annually by the Korea Audit Bureau of Certification (ABC), the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said in a report released Tuesday after it conducted a sampling survey on three national dailies. The average ratio of paid copies to circulation reported was 63 percent, compared with the 79 percent to 96 percent announced by the bureau in 2019. This means that four out of 10 copies sent to branches from news organizations have been certified as paid although subscription fees have not been received.
The ministry said it also found faults in the bureau's overall auditing process ― from the selection of sample branches to the assignment of auditing staff. “In many cases, a single auditing staffer was in charge of producing ABC results without outside observers or adequate records,” the report said.
When it comes to the bureau's certified circulation figures, nothing is more important than accuracy because they are used as the yardstick for government advertisements and support for local newspapers. In fact, it's an open secret that verified circulation figures, which are meant to help companies execute advertising rationally, have not been accurate. Newspaper companies have relied on free distribution, discounts and bulk sales to expand their certified circulation. So the relevance of circulation audits has been in doubt amid the free-fall of newspaper readership.
So the resulting loss of confidence in circulation audits comes as little surprise. Major publications have had a stronger say in the bureau's board of directors and shared most of its operational expenses, resulting in a loosening of certification standards for print sales.
Fundamental improvements are necessary to make the country's newspaper distribution market, including circulation audits, more transparent. Inflating the number of paid copies is unthinkable, given that newspapers live on readers' confidence. The culture ministry should expand its scrutiny to other publications so that the ABC circulation audit system can be seen to be transparent, fair and credible.