Murder on the Thirty-First Floor Read Online Free PDF Page A

and looked down into the concrete yard of the police station. At the entrance to the body search area, he could see two policemen in rubber boots and waterproof overalls. They were getting hoses ready for sluicing out the arrest cells. He loosened his belt and gulped air until the gases in his stomach were forced up through his gullet.
    The telephone rang. It was his man at the post office.
    ‘This is going to take time.’
    ‘You can have the time you need but no more.’
    ‘How often shall I report back?’
    ‘At eight every morning, in writing.’
    Inspector Jensen replaced the receiver, put on his hat and left the room.
    The Ministry of Communications was in the city centre, between the Royal Palace and the central offices of the Coalition parties. The Secretary of State for Press Affairs had his office on the second floor, with a view over the palace.
    ‘The company is run in an exemplary fashion,’ he said. ‘An absolute model of free enterprise.’
    ‘I understand.’
    ‘What I can provide you with, however, is some purely statistical information.’
    He picked up a file from his desk and flicked through it distractedly.
    ‘They publish one hundred and forty-four different titles. Last year, the net circulation of all these magazines combinedamounted to twenty-one million, three hundred and twenty-six thousand, four hundred and fifty-three copies. A week.’
    Jensen noted down the total on a small white card. 21,326,453.
    ‘That is a very high figure. It means our country has the highest frequency of reading in the world.’
    ‘Are there any other weekly magazines apart from theirs?’
    ‘A few. They have print runs of a few thousand and are distributed only within limited areas.’
    Jensen nodded.
    ‘But the publishing company is naturally only
one
branch of the group’s activities.’
    ‘What are the others?’
    ‘Within the remit of my department, there’s a chain of printing companies mainly producing daily newspapers.’
    ‘How many?’
    ‘Companies? Thirty-six.’
    ‘And how many papers?’
    ‘A hundred or so. One moment.’
    He consulted his paperwork.
    ‘A hundred and two at present. The make-up of the newspaper chain is constantly changing. Some titles cease publication, others replace them.’
    ‘Why?’
    ‘In order to respond to new needs and follow current trends.’ Jensen nodded.
    ‘The net circulation of the daily papers last year …’
    ‘Yes?’
    ‘I’ve only got the figure for the country’s total newspaper production. A net circulation of nine million, two hundred and sixty-five thousand, three hundred and twelve a day. It’ll be about the same, anyway. There are a few newspapers printedentirely independently of the publishing group. They have big problems with their distribution, and their circulations are insignificant. If you reduce the figure I gave you by about five thousand, you should have more or less the correct number.’
    Jensen made another note on his slip of paper: 9,260,000. He said:
    ‘Who controls the distribution network?’
    ‘A democratic association of newspaper publishers.’
    ‘All newspaper publishers?’
    ‘Yes, with the proviso that their papers have to have print runs of more than fifty thousand.’
    ‘Why?’
    ‘Smaller circulation papers aren’t considered profitable. In fact, the group immediately shuts down publications if their circulation falls below the figure I mentioned.’
    Inspector Jensen put the slip of paper in his pocket.
    ‘In practice then, that means the group has control of all newspaper production in the country, doesn’t it?’
    ‘If one cares to put it that way, yes. But I would just like to point out that their titles are extremely comprehensive in their coverage, commendable in every respect. The weekly magazines in particular have proved their ability to cater for all legitimate tastes in a moderate manner. In times past, the press often exerted an inflammatory and unsettling influence on its readership.