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The number of copies distributed, either on an average
day or on particular days (typically Sunday), is called the
newspaper’s circulation and is one of the principal factors
used to set advertising rates. |
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Circulation is not necessarily the same as copies sold,
since some copies or newspapers are distributed without
cost.
According to the Guinness Book of Records, the daily
circulation of the Soviet newspaper Trud exceeded 21,500,000
in 1990, while the Soviet weekly Argumenty i Fakty boasted
the circulation of 33,500,000 in 1991
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There is also a small
group of newspapers which may be characterized as
international newspapers. Some, such as The International
Herald Tribune, have always had that focus, while others are
repackaged national newspapers or "international editions"
of national or large metropolitan newspapers. |
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In some cases
articles that might not interest the wider range of readers
are omitted from international editions; in others, of
interest to expatriates, significant national news is
retained. |
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Before the invention
of newspapers in the early 17th century, official government
bulletins were circulated at times in some centralized
empires. |
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In Ancient Rome, Acta
Diurna, or government announcement bulletins, were produced.
They were carved in metal or stone and posted in public
places.
In China, early government-produced news sheets, called
tipao, circulated among court officials during the late Han
dynasty (second and third centuries AD). |
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