May 29th 2012 08:08 am The big house V
After being bouyed by a trip to the home offices of Universal Uclick in Kansas City, where I was told that newspapers’ revenue decline is showing signs of bottoming out and that Web income is blossoming, and a trip to Knoxville, where I was delighted by the old-fashioned pride and enthusiasm at “The News Sentinel,” I returned home to learn I now live in a state where only one major city, the capital city of Montgomery, will have a daily newspaper. The daily newspapers in Birmingham, Mobile and Huntsville, all part of the Newhouse chain Advance Publications, will go to publishing three times a week. Another Newhouse property, The New Orleans Times-Picayune, also will go to three days a week, making New Orleans the largest city in the United States without a daily newspaper.
Posted by jimmyjohnson / Vintage A&J
35 Responses to “The big house V”
Sam in Alabam(a) on 29 May 2012 at 8:34 am #
I don’t imagine the Montgomery Advertiser is much longer for the daily world. After all, if all the other kids are doing it . . . They’ve already eliminated any editorial content in the Saturday edition, and more and more news and features pages look like they were cut and pasted wholesale from USAToday (same company owns them both).
Jeff in Ann Arbor on 29 May 2012 at 8:45 am #
And yet newspapers are thriving in much of the rest of the world, I understand, including Europe, so it can’t be a matter of how connected to the internet people are. Do they support themselves more by getting revenue from the price of the paper rather than the ads?
I know I was willing to pay more for the Ann Arbor News than they were charging before they closed, and I now pay $7.50 for the NY Times to be delivered every Sunday. (I got into the habit many years ago as a journalism student, when our prof one term required that we subscribe to the NYT every day, and read it!)
As Arlo once said, “You never miss the water ’til the well runs dry.” To which Janis said, as I recall, “Well, of course.”
Tom from the Front Range on 29 May 2012 at 8:49 am #
Newhouse claims that they are moving their news presentation emphasis to the web. The sites, AL.COM and NOLA.COM (Alabama and New Orleans), give new meaning to the term “yellow journalism.” These sites are literally painful to look at.
billinbossier on 29 May 2012 at 8:53 am #
We still have a daily newspaper in Shreveport, even though New Orleans doesn’t anymore. However, they still will not A&J, even though I have prompted them several times to do so. Thank goodness we still have the blog.
sideburns on 29 May 2012 at 9:10 am #
Mark, to answer the question you asked, I served on the USS Ouellet, DE 1077: http://www.ussouellet.com/content/ although later, after I left, they changed the designation from Destroyer Escort to Fast Frigate, making it the FF 1077. Personally, I found it absurd to call a class “fast” when it couldn’t keep up with a carrier in a hurry, (Max speed of 27.5 knots is not, repeat not fast!) but that’s what NATO wanted them called and the US went along.
MarkinTTown on 29 May 2012 at 10:39 am #
Hey Jimmy, Tuscaloosa News is still daily. For what that is worth. And we are a large city for Alabama. I think 5th largest.
Neal in Bahstawn on 29 May 2012 at 10:44 am #
I am a true dinosaur… three newspapers land in my driveway each morning: a Boston Globe, a Wall Street Journal, and a New York Times. But the Globe is doing its damnest to put itself out of business. We are promised delivery each day by 6 a.m., and by 8 a.m. on weekends and holidays. On a ‘good’ day, the papers arrive around 7:15 and on weekends, they’re seldom delivered before 9:30.
You might ask, ‘so what’? And, if you work from home, are retired, or have a job that doesn’t take you out of the house before 8:30 or so, the papers’ chronic late delivery isn’t an issue. But I live on a street of nine houses. When I move to my current home in 1999, eight of the nine took at least one newspaper. Today, three homes get a paper. Why? Because my neighbors leave home between 7 a.m. and 7:30. They had breakfast at 6:15 or 6:30. They would have at least had an opportunity to scan headlines (OK, and read the comics). Instead, the paper lies in the driveway until they return home in the evening, bu which time the news – and the paper – is stale.
The sad part is that I’ve told this story to various managers on the circulation side of the Globe (which contracts for home delivery of, effectively, all newspapers sold in the region). They listen politely, tell me they share my concern, and…. do nothing. This morning’s papers arrived around 7:30.
Newspapers aren’t cheap anymore. The collective cost of my three-newspaper habit is approaching $2,000 a year. But the joy of a newspaper is in discovering the fascinating story that does not rise to the level of local or network news. The ‘A-hed’ in the Wall Street Journal alone makes that paper worthwhile. My apology for rambling but, once upon a time in a very different era, I was granted a degree in Journalism. Though it was never used as intended, I still have great respect for the profession, and shake my head in wonder at how the print media that begat journalism is quickly dying.
Bob on 29 May 2012 at 11:07 am #
Jimmy – the capitol is in the capital city. (Sorry – one of my pet peeves.)
James Pollock on 29 May 2012 at 11:27 am #
Bob, I think you meant “Capital”.
Robin in Fl on 29 May 2012 at 12:25 pm #
Not too long ago we were discussing concrete boats. The Mobile paper (at least online) runs a historical news item and today’s was about concrete boats.
http://blog.al.com/live/2012/05/yesterdays_news_88.html
Cattye on 29 May 2012 at 12:40 pm #
I live in Baltimore and get the newspaper every day. I read the comics section during breakfast with my son and then the rest of the paper after work sometime.
It’s sad to hear about all these papers going away… SIGH
Ghost Rider 6 on 29 May 2012 at 1:10 pm #
Judging by ML’s body language, I figured Gene was far from home free. But of course what’s on the table changed my mind.
And, as it just occurred to me, perhaps she had her arms crossed in front of her chest for some other reason.
sandcastller on 29 May 2012 at 1:42 pm #
I am finding this discussion on newspapers most interesting, I grew up in an era of morning and evening papers, only to see these merge as television news became more popular. I just renewed our subscription to the Houston-Chronicle so my wife can have her daily paper. There is no Arlo and Janis so she gets them online from gocomics. My news reading is confined to electronic media and one weekly news magazine, a broader spectrum of material at a reasonable cost. I still possess and add to a large tree-book library, further I also am acquiring a substantial eBook library.
My personnel view is that today the world of information transmission has reached an inflection point not seen since the Gutenberg press was started up. Print, photography, television and movies are all being merged into an electronic folder. This allows for individual customization, access from anywhere, and the ability to link and drill for more detail when desired. We are witnesses to a historical change and I hope enough of our commentary is preserved so that future generations will be able to learn of the profound impact this transition had on their ancestors.
Now here is Mindy and John for rebuttal.
Dave in MA on 29 May 2012 at 1:46 pm #
Home delivery, yeah, a royal pain.
Local newspaper went to a morning format, but it wasn’t delivered until afternoon when the kids got out of school. Not helpful.
Then we had someone who couldn’t keep track of which people paid and which didn’t.
Then they stopped delivering altogether, despite the fact we were still subscribed. Although SOMETIMES a paper would show up. We left a note, which the paper deliverer took, indicating we wanted to cancel our subscription.
Several months go by and we start getting newpapers on the wrong porch, and after a week there were notes demanding payment. We called the newspaper and they informed us we had a new delivery person. I told them, no, we don’t, we have no delivery person because we cancelled our subscription. They had no record of that.
If and when I get the paper, it’s from the local store.
As for the Boston Globe, not only is their home delivery horrible, but they also started removing their kiosks from many places, so you can’t buy them where you used to. There are still stores that sell them, but we used to have a kiosk here in our building where you could put in your money and open the door and take out a paper. The Globe removed it. They apparently did so at a large number of other locations too. So let’s see, you don’t want us to buy one in person from the kiosk, you won’t deliver it to our home on time, and you wonder why your readership is down? Uh, yeah, ok.
And they started charging heavily for online usage, btw. I stopped going to the Globe for anything. If I want to browse online, I can do so for free and get the same exact stories (since local reporting wasn’t much of the paper’s content, most of it (even local stories) coming from AP these days) from other newspapers’ sites.
I buy when I am interested at the local store. When I’m not, well, my hands remain ink free. (Another pet peeve about print newspapers – the ink they leave behind on my fingers which reduces tactile sensation drastically until I wash my hands!)
Oh well. At least the paper I DO buy at the local store carries A&J!
Dave in MA on 29 May 2012 at 1:48 pm #
Oh, and I’m not Mindy or John.
But I certainly wrote an awful lot, didn’t I?
sandcastler on 29 May 2012 at 2:10 pm #
The above was provided by Dave in MA. It seems Mindy and John are out investigating activty in the bamboo patch, update forth coming.
Anonymous on 29 May 2012 at 3:13 pm #
This CW in 617, using a different machine, and so I’m anonymous this afternoon.
Dave in MA, my delivery problem with the Globe was that my neighbors would “borrow” it and not tell me, or take some sections and leave the rest.
When they upped the price to $1.25 for the daily, well, my feeling is that if I can put five quarters together at once, it means I’ve put off doing laundry for too long. Enough neighborhood stores carry it, but they always ask if I have a quarter to spare, as they quite reasonable don’t want to exhaust their own quarter supply.
I agree that they are doing all they can to put their hard copy out of business.
My major peeve about their local coverage is their rarely missing a day when Tom and Giselle Brady aren’t part of a story.
vettefool on 29 May 2012 at 4:35 pm #
so glad you enjoyed your visit to Knoxville, my home, and the news-sentinel. it is still printed each day but it’s only a shadow of its former self. I sometimes think that if they didn’t get to publish and charge for listing the foreclosures, they would close shop. UT sports coverage is ok, but most everything else is lacking. it is a shame as the newpapers used to dig up news and keep the politicians in their place, or a least try. I see where Warren Buffett is buying up newspapers. maybe he knows if they gave us a good product, we would pay more for subscriptions.
Bryan on 29 May 2012 at 6:07 pm #
Sounds like the boys at Universal Uclick don’t have the full story. I’ll be honest with you: for those of us who would read a newspaper, having them all morning papers is a mistake. I don’t have time to read the paper before going to work. If I’m driving, forget that. I used to take a 90 minute train, and the paper was good then. Now I have no car and take the subway. Get to the office in ~15 minutes. No time to read, there. I’m not even concerned about whether its delivered on paper or through an eReader.
Of course, there’s web based news sources. How many of them have articles that are just slideshows of photos? Maybe with a paragraph of text; often not. If you like sports, check out the bleacherreports site…
But: would I buy a paper, walk it home with me, and read it upon arrival? Far more likely
Symply Fargone on 29 May 2012 at 7:21 pm #
Sandcastler, when you wrote “The above was provided by Dave in MA. It seems Mindy and John are out investigating activty in the bamboo patch, update forth coming.”
That was Symply Fargone!
Anonymous on 29 May 2012 at 8:25 pm #
Another music legend has left us… Doc Watson passed away. His music was wonderful and, the fact that he was blind from infancy, just makes his talent more special. R.I.P. Doc…
http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/obit/story/2012-05-29/doc-watson-dies/55271498/1
Galliglo in Ohio on 29 May 2012 at 8:26 pm #
Dad gum – it happened again. I am NOT anonymous! LOL
Just Jay on 29 May 2012 at 8:44 pm #
Robin in FL
Watch out for those concrete worms!
Jay
Steve from Royal Oak, MI on 29 May 2012 at 9:27 pm #
I took a lot of flack from people over the years because I always bought both Detroit papers as well as the Oakland press on Weekends when the Detroit papers merged on a joint operating agreement. For years it was 15-20 cents but eventually climbed up to 50 cents a few years ago. Still, I bought my papers. Because I did not trust getting a delivery before I left for work, I often took the paper to work and scanned stories until lunch when I read the entire paper.
But a couple of years ago the Detroit papers announced that they were going 3 days a week delivery and the price would go up to $1 for the weekday paper. Since the days that were not delivered were only about 10 pages, I quickly gave up buying the papers. I still might buy one on a special occasions and maybe on Thanksgiving for the ads. Getting comics and the sport league standings is what I miss the most, but I use the favorites links to get that.
My wife has often said the death of newspapers occured when I decided not to buy one anymore.
TruckerRon on 30 May 2012 at 1:11 am #
I wonder how many papers have died because their owners listened to consultants who promised them everything but delivered nothing worth having? I seem to remember someone claiming that someone who led a single company into bankruptcy was an experienced consultant while someone who led two or more into bankruptcy was an industry-renowned consultant. Or something like that.
Anonymous on 30 May 2012 at 4:17 am #
Fond memories of the Times-Picayune from my years time in Cajun Country many years ago.
chaz on 30 May 2012 at 6:21 am #
Detroit hasn’t had a daily newspaper for years. Currently down to 3 days a week (published) and 4 “e” editions.
MWL on 30 May 2012 at 6:26 am #
Years ago the paper was a key to keeping in touch with the world and nation. As already mentioned, we have far more outlets for keeping in touch and as a general rule our society would rather be entertained than informed. Heck most of us still admit that miss the funnies. This led to more potential readers abandoning papers for other means of contact.
The papers themselves definitely caused some of their own heartache with poor management. The largest also becoming quite infected with a condition of yellow colored glasses. As mouthpieces of a predominantly one sided argument they have abandoned objectivity and have lost some readers by this as well.
Alas fear not. The gray lady and her ilk shall be rescued! They are too important to fail.the government will bailout the largest so that they can continue. Remember when we laughed and sneered at anything Pravda put out? Well our content will be just as unbiased as that great rag of the former USSR. It will not matter who occupies the White House as no action to remove the ties to the government paper or to let it go belly up if it cannot sustain itself will be tolerated! Freedom of the press! Yes, it must go on! Even if the government needs to run it.
How ironic. Yes, it is a sad occasion. The local papers will be missed. I say that with all sincerity. But what some have or may become will make us sadder.
Crab from Grapeland on 30 May 2012 at 7:05 am #
Where is all of this headed ?
David in Austin on 30 May 2012 at 7:15 am #
Does anyone else find it ominous that Gene didn’t say anything for the entire walk to the beach in today’s strip?
Nancy in Bucks County on 30 May 2012 at 7:53 am #
Like the scenery in today’s strip. And the quiet…
Gave up our local paper 3 years ago. Could not stand the typos, the editing, articles that ended mid-sentence, news that was a week old. I don’t miss the black smudges on my fingers. I do miss the rustle of the paper and starting in the back to read the comics first.
Brenty on 30 May 2012 at 7:55 am #
I have a sneaky feeling I know where this is going, and that’s cool. Guess all you want! I can’t wait for tomorrow. Hope it leads to a big test………….
Bob on 30 May 2012 at 11:29 am #
Galliglo – thanks for the info; I did not know Doc Watson had passed. Saw him in concert in the early ’80s. Great show.
JP – no, I meant “capital.”
Lost in A**2 on 30 May 2012 at 7:53 pm #
I expect the two were talking on the way to the beach. There’s no dialogue because we don’t need it to continue the story.
Lost in A**2 on 30 May 2012 at 7:56 pm #
The guy who directed MASH (the movie) was known for having the supporting cast (and extras) carry on real conversations, which would be picked up when the camera panned by them. Often, background ‘conservations’ are (or were) on the order of “pick a little, peck a little.”