Mirror spat can't flap Trinity

By NICK GOODWAY FOR MAILONLINE
Updated:

 

IT MAY be under fire from politicians, soldiers and rivals alike for its Iraq prisoner-of-war photographs but Trinity Mirror, publisher of the Mirror titles and a host of regional newspapers, appears to be thriving on controversy.

Chairman Sir Victor Blank told shareholders at today's annual meeting that the recovery seen in the final quarter of last year has continued in the first four months of the current one.

'Group advertising revenues increased by 4.9% year-on-year with advertising revenues for our regionals division increasing by 5.8% and for our nationals by 2.8%,' he said.

Blank highlighted the fact the group was also seeing the first positive signs of recovery among its titles in London and the South-East with ad revenues up by 3.1% in the first four months of the year.

But when it comes to circulation, the boot is on the other foot with the national titles' cover-price sales up by 8.6% against a rise in regional circulation revenues of 3.7%.

A large part of the increase reflects the fact that the two year price war between the Mirror and the Sun ended a year ago, allowing the group to raise and hold cover prices.

So the revenue numbers belie the actual fall in circulation, which saw the Mirror down 4.6% in March and down by 7% for the six months from October to March compared with a year earlier.

Chief executive Sly Bailey said recently that her aim was to hold market share at the group's current 20.3% as she promotes 'seriously good' rather than serious journalism among her editors.

Bailey approved Mirror editor Piers Morgan's decision to publish photographs purporting to show British soldiers abusing Iraqi prisoners. But Trinity said that while she was aware of the pictures ahead of publication, she was not responsible for verifying their authenticity.

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