A 5.1 percent circulation drop for the 12-month period ended March 31 is pretty bad, but pull back 10 years and the numbers look even worse. In an April 23, 1998 press release, then-publisher Mark Willes (remember him?) was touting the paper's "journalistic enhancements" and "innovative marketing programs" that were "connecting with readers." He also crowed about a "revamped Los Angeles Times Sunday Magazine” (that was the year before the Staples fiasco). As for circulation, well…

LAT Average Daily Circulation
March, 1998 - 1,095,007
March, 2008 - 773,884
Change - 321,123

In that same 1998 press release, Willes says, "These latest circulation increases are proof of what can happen when an entire organization is committed to growth."