Delaware’s largest newspaper raises weekday price to $1

If you hand over a one-dollar bill for a copy of The News Journal, don’t expect any change back.  The cost has gone up for the first time since 2008. 

The 25-cent increase took effect Monday, although it had been in the planning stages for several months according to News Journal Vice-President of Circulation Michael Kane.  He adds that the costs of putting out a daily newspaper, including newsprint, have been rising sharply.

“It got to a point where we had to take a pricing action,” Kane says.  Three years ago the price of the paper went from 50 cents to 75 cents.

The most recent audits indicated that just over 14-thousand News Journals are sold over-the-counter or on the streets on an average weekday or a Saturday.  Kane says subscription prices are unaffected, and the cost of the Sunday News-Journal remains $1.50.

While The News Journal now sells for one-dollar on a weekday, The Delaware State News retails for 75-cents.  The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News and the Baltimore Sun also sell for $1.00.  The Sunday Inquirer is $1.75, and The Sun sells for $2.00 on Sundays.

The Camden Courier Post of South Jersey, which like The News Journal is owned by Gannett, still sells for 75-cents Monday through Saturday.