Continuing our line of thoughts from yesterday, there have been some expected, but still surprising, announcements recently in the publishing world. One of the major disclosures is the public admission that the Tribune Co. is on the verge of completely collapsing. They are the publishers of the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Baltimore Sun and several other influential newspapers. The L. A. Times has already become a virtual shell of its former self, due to a combination of massive circulation losses and drastic newsroom cuts in reporters and related jobs. And of course, the fleeing advertising dollars that are going to where they have more impact.
Two months ago, the paper with one of the best reputations for journalistic integrity and quality, the Christian Science Monitor announced that in 2009 they will cease printing their daily edition altogether and put all of their content online. They will continue printing a weekly edition for the time being. Last week another major paper, the Rocky Mountain News in Denver, said that they were for sale and if nobody buys them soon, then they’ll just shut down.
In Detroit, the two major daily newspapers are independently owned but share publishing facilities in a production partnership. Two weeks ago they disclosed that they plan to offer only three days of home delivery and will push their online editions instead, making the city the largest in the nation to have its daily papers undergo such a makeover. They plan to still offer daily print editions for sale at newsstands, for the time being. But the expense of such a limited distribution will probably bring a cessation of that. Firegeezer suspects that decision was made mainly to keep within the bounds of union labor contracts with the pressmen and delivery truck drivers,and they’ll get out of that as soon as they can.
Starting in March, the Free Press will be delivered on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays, while the Detroit News which doesn’t have a Sunday edition now, will be delivered on Thursdays and Fridays only. The Free Press, a Gannett company, is the 20th-largest newspaper in the country. Following this same trend, the East Valley Tribune in the Phoenix area will cut back their print editions from seven days to four while maintaining a daily online edition.
You can see there are two trends here. The print newspapers are starving, primarily from a drastic drop-off in readership. The current readership broken down by age groups show no promise of a future readership coming along:
Age 18-24: 37% read daily newspapers; 44% read Sunday papers
Age 25-34: 35% read daily newspapers; 45% read Sunday papers
Age 35-44: 47% read daily newspapers; 56% read Sunday papers
Age 45-54: 56% read daily newspapers; 64% read Sunday papers
Age 55-64: 52% read daily newspapers; 68% read Sunday papers
Age 65+: 68% read daily newspapers; 72% read Sunday papers
Source: Newspaper Association of America.
The other trend is the migration of some forward-thinking news reporting businesses to a combination television/internet delivery program. The television has the immediacy that can show what is happening at the moment and the internet has the ability to keep current via constant updating along with being able to focus on a more narrow field of topics.
Tomorrow we’ll look in and see how newer techniques are being adopted by the people who make their living finding and writing the news, the journalists themselves. The Young Turks, so to speak, who are joining in this revolution out of a desire for survival.
Now, though, we have to get the equipment checked out. And I have to get a fresh pot of coffee going.
