Morgan Lewis on Media: Winter 2005

In this Issue:

The Circulation Scandals of 2004: The Litigation So Far:
The newspaper and magazine industry underwent major scrutiny in 2004. The rates paid for print advertising are in most cases based on circulation volume as reported by the publisher to audit bureaus. The audit bureaus are then responsible for the dissemination of circulation data that are reported by member companies to advertisers. Advertising rates are a major source of revenue for print publications and a principal driver of profits.

Scandals involving inflated circulation numbers at one magazine and four newspapers in the last year have become front page news: Gruner + Jahr's Rosie magazine, Newsday and Hoy in New York, the Chicago Sun-Times and the Dallas Morning News. This bulletin updates the scandals and resulting litigation, and describes a few simple things you can do to ensure that your company is not next on the hot seat.

For the full story, please view the PDF.