MCLEAN, VA: As the bad news in the newspaper industry continues, circulation numbers have become a source of pride – and contention – for some outlets.

About a month after the Audit Bureau of Circulations released its numbers, which showed The Wall Street Journal had surpassed USA Today as the top-selling daily newspaper in the US, the latter continues to position itself as the nation's top-seller. When the ABC numbers were released, USA Today countered that it still had the ...