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‘Christian Science Monitor’ Kills Daily, Launches Weekly

The Christian Science Monitor will no longer publish a daily newspaper; the paper made the announcement today, giving the news a positive spin by saying it is “the first newspaper with a national audience to shift from a daily print format to a daily online publication that operates 24/7.”

In April 2009, the Christian Science Monitor will launch a weekly print edition. It will also produce an “enhanced, constantly updated version” of its website, CSMonitor.com, along with a daily electronic subscription product.

The weekly pub will look behind the headlines to help readers understand global issues, according to a release.

Monitor managing publisher Jonathan Wells said the move to a web-first format enables the Monitor to more effectively reach a global audience. Ad revenues from the website and circulation revenue from print and enews editions will form the basis of the paper’s business model.

Editor John Yemma estimates that cutbacks resulting from the changes could be 10% to 15% of the workforce.

The move comes as a dramatic decline in circulation - down to about 52,000, from a peak of 230,000 in the 1970s - has hampered the paper, particularly as it has moved to become economically independent from the Church of Christ, Scientist, which has been subsidizing the paper since it began in 1908, writes The Boston Globe.