If newspapers lose the fight for survival, we all lose

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Ever since Ben Franklin started the industry by publishing the Pennsylvania Gazette in Philadelphia in 1729, Americans have depended on newspapers, much more than on any other medium, not only for bringing them the latest news and information but also the ideas affecting their community, their country and, indeed, the world.

Neither television nor radio nor magazines nor books nor any other medium can begin to match newspapers for depth and breadth of coverage. In fact, all these media themselves depend on newspapers to bring them information that they then process and distribute as their own brand of news.

Now many newspapers as we know them are locked in a struggle for survival. If they lose -- which is by no means impossible -- we all lose.

The great task for editors and publishers is to turn back the competitive challenge posed by online news and at the same time use their own online news to expand their profits. As yet, they haven't figured out a smooth and sure way to do that.

So they cut, cut and cut some more to squeeze out profit. The cuts in physical size that they are making are in some cases risky and in others reckless.

Scarcely a week goes by that some major paper does not announce that it is chopping staff or size or both. This Tuesday, for example, the Dallas Morning News, the nation's tenth largest circulation paper (about 520,000 daily and 755,000 Sunday), will cut its width by one-quarter inch.

With every cut, publishers tirelessly argue that readers won't even know the difference. Trouble is, by the time that customers do notice that they are getting less for their money, it will be too late -- too late to notice the defection of readers.

The other big cuts, of course, are in staff. The victims of downsizing tend to be the oldest and most experienced employees because they are the highest paid. While there is plenty of tired deadwood among them, there is also a lot of talent. By one count, at least five out of the 16 board members of the prestigious Overseas Press Club of America had lost their jobs in recent months.

When experienced staff leave in large numbers -- as they often do now -- the newspaper loses considerable institutional memory. How can it possibly replace the reporter who has covered the city council, or the local philharmonic, for say, 20 years? The real loser is the reader, who is suddenly robbed of the insights that only the veteran (but, alas, too expensive) reporter can bring.

Some of the worst losses are in overseas coverage. Precisely at the time when we are rushing into a global economy, when foreign competition and foreign markets, NAFTA and foreign trade issues are becoming more and more important and controversial, coverage by U.S. correspondents in the American newspaper, as well as in American magazines and TV, is being gutted.

Publishers may argue that national newspapers, notably the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post do a commendable job on these issues. In fact, there are always key local angles that only individual newspapers can cover. Also, these few elite newspapers are also suffering deep cuts, and most foreign bureaus of U.S. newspapers seem well on their way to extinction.

As for the future, there is at least one big, bright sign: intelligent young people will continue to flood into journalism in urgent search of jobs, despite its legendary high demands and modest pay. Most will find themselves doing not only writing and reporting but also much online and video work.

Nobody knows for sure where Ben Franklin's good old American newspaper is headed, but it is sure to be an exciting ride.

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/ther...D39141165C23%7D

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Yep - the downturn in printed news is rather worrying.

[eau_xplain 2]

Although I don't really read our printed paper from front to back, I would not want our local paper to "die". That's why we have a subscription. We do whatever we can in our own little way.

[almaty 19]

i see a long decline in newspapers sales here..you can get most of the info. needed on-line from their edition./////i ahve not bought a newspaper in over a year,.,,

save a tree...f##k the printed word ...

(endorsed by eco-people of the pagan forest )

[DeadPoolX 9]

I suppose the reason many people would feel that newspapers are a waste is because they can't be updated instantly and you need to pay for a subscription. Internet news sources, however, can be updated constantly (or as the story progresses) and most of these sources don't require any payment to view. Add in the problem that newspapers are generally made from paper, so that means cutting down trees to make them and the need to either throw away or recycle the paper when done. So I could understand why newspapers are declining in popularity.

Having said that, there is something nice about the simplicity of a newspaper. Especially when you're away from home and lack access to a computer and the Internet.

By the way... I know we can get our news from TV and radio, but I dislike both. Usually those two mediums are far too sensational (or just plain stupid, such as those early morning news shows) and employ commercials to cover costs. I'd rather read about the news, whether the story is online or on paper.

[GaryC 7]

I don't see it as a death of newspapers but rather an evolution. The printed news will shift from paper to the internet. IMO it will make it more informative and more in depth. Newspapers are not dieing, they are just changing.

[SpiritAlight 1]

Interesting read:

Media Consolidation

http://www.freepress.net/node/71

Who Owns the Media

http://www.stopbigmedia.com/chart.php?chart=pub

What You Should Know About the Newspaper Industry

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/ne...aperprimer.html

Enjoy!

[Sister Fracas 5]

i see a long decline in newspapers sales here..you can get most of the info. needed on-line from their edition./////i ahve not bought a newspaper in over a year,.,,

save a tree...f##k the printed word ...

(endorsed by eco-people of the pagan forest )

awwwwwwwww I knew you were a hippie tree-hugger at heart!

[almaty 19]

i see a long decline in newspapers sales here..you can get most of the info. needed on-line from their edition./////i ahve not bought a newspaper in over a year,.,,

save a tree...f##k the printed word ...

(endorsed by eco-people of the pagan forest )

awwwwwwwww I knew you were a hippie tree-hugger at heart!

yes i am..need more trees for the squirrels and birds.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

newspapers are great......... for me to poop on!

anyone remember that dog from conan o'brien?