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Newspapers- a dying product

Andar

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It is interesting that in our town the local newspaper of 100 years is dying. :(
They have lost all their talent and have outsouced everything. The only "news" is AP feeds now. I am wondering if this is happening everywhere.
Our friends that were "let go" by the newspaper have struck back here:
www.donigreenberg.com

Is this the wave of the future in all areas?
 

Patri

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I sure hope not. The local paper contains the news that relates most to people. It is a history of the community and individual lives. It is what people cut up for scrapbooks. It is where people can see their names in print, for achievements that would never be recognized by a metro paper or other media. Even the ads are a testament to the times and who is in business doing what. Ad rates surely must be more reasonable in a local paper, than in one overtaken by a larger outlet.
What makes each community special and gives it an identity, is that it has its own newspaper, library, schools etc. When any of these goes missing, the public loses big time.
 

ricoba

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I think that even the large city newspapers are a dying industry.

Since so much of a newspapers revenue is advertising based, many are suffering due to the advent of the internet providing news without all the ads.

I have never lived in places where there are great little hometown papers, but I know how important their heritage is to a community. But again, don't you think that if the big guys are suffering because of the web, that the small local guys are suffering even more? :(
 

Brett

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it may seem unfortunate that local newspapers are losing subscribers but it's just a continuation of news that's moving to the internet. I like reading real "paper" but at several hundred dollars a year it's just better to get it online free or a 24hour cable channel
 

Patri

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Our daily is about $120 a year and our weekly is about $25. I guess it's just where you live. Even our daily comes from what would be considered a small town compared to most cities.
 

MULTIZ321

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Fern Modena

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The last time I subscribed to the newspaper (Las Vegas Review Journal) they had a special "internet rate" of $99. a year. Since then the daily single copy cost has gone to 75 cents and the weekend (remains the same at) $2.50. By subscription it is a flat $4. a week. Ouch! I love reading the paper every morning, but that's a lot of money.

Our "big city" paper also downsized last week, getting rid of the "Living" section on Mondays and Tuesdays (its not published on Fridays, either). Now if you want to find the lifestyle columns (Dear Abby, Miss Manners, Heloise, etc), the movie information, or the comics, you have to search all over.

I like getting the paper, because it has a good Metro news section, and also a good Business section. I always read or at least scan Business, because this being Vegas, Business is about Vegas. One day a week we also get an Anthem supplement, and it frequently contains local news.

We also get a "shopper" every week, the South Valley News. It is published by the people responsible for the Las Vegas Sun. It is free. It is a "zoned" publication and has local news and crime stats, and local restaurant ads, frequently with discounts. I'd really miss that (said the coupon queen).

We also get many lifestyle magazines via US Mail. I've never lived in a place where I've gotten so many. There are at least a half a dozen, some months more, although it seems with the economy down we've gotten less the past couple of months. I guess they can't sell enough ads to keep them viable.

Fern
 

Passepartout

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Timely post...

Out here in rural America, in today's paper, they announced they are eliminating the 'weeklies' from two areas, geographically and economically some distance from here. All the newspapers are owned by an Iowa company. They will provide these subscribers our newspaper with weekly supplements of their local, business news, and shopping sections. Seems like a logical move. It does eliminate 19 jobs. As Alan says, "So it goes".

Jim Ricks
 

PigsDad

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I haven't subscribed to a newspaper for at least 10 years. The internet provides amble resources for me. And looking at the driveways on my way to work, I am not alone. I see fewer and fewer people subscribing -- maybe only about 1/4 of the houses in my neighborhood.

Kurt
 

Liz Wolf-Spada

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I can read articles on the internet, but I still love sitting comfortably and browsing through the daily paper, for the LA Times. Newspapers may be going away, (my son actually now works as a reporter on a new small Palo Alto daily), but I for one would miss them. I remember when each town had two newspapers, a morning and evening paper and one could get a different news slant by reading them both.
Liz
 

Fern Modena

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Why I still subscribe to the daily newspaper:
  • I like to relax and read it with my first (humungous) cup of coffee. Can't do that with the computer.
  • I like the fact that I get local and neighborhood news, much more "targeted" than online coverage.
  • I like reading ads for new places, sales, and getting coupons.
I sometimes read the online version of my paper, and also the one from where I used to live. They never have as many local interest stories as the print issues.
 

laura1957

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Being from a very rural area - we don't have a daily, only a twice-weekly. The internet does not have our local news, no really local TV coverage. Sometimes Virginia Pilot or Salisbury Md paper has a little coverage - but not enough. I would really hate to see out paper go. It has all the "tidbits" we cant get anywhere else. Marriages, obits, church happenings, local events, honor roll from school, school sports, town meetings, county news...

We also get the daily and Sunday Virginia Pilot - but it really is not LOCAL to us. Also read LI Newsday online - for old times sake
 

ace2000

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Why I still subscribe to the daily newspaper:
  • I like to relax and read it with my first (humungous) cup of coffee. Can't do that with the computer.
  • I like the fact that I get local and neighborhood news, much more "targeted" than online coverage.
  • I like reading ads for new places, sales, and getting coupons.
I sometimes read the online version of my paper, and also the one from where I used to live. They never have as many local interest stories as the print issues.

Nice list! No matter what you read, there will always be a need for local news. Until the USA Today starts printing local news, local papers will always be around. Probably scaled back in some way though.
 

Aussiedog

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The "real" part of the paper is shrinking

Remember when the Sunday paper was huge? You could spend hours reading it. It was great!

So today the bulk of my Sunday paper is ad inserts. My beloved paper has become an ad delivery vehicle and that's about it. The rest of the paper is about the size of the old local section, and even the paper part of the paper is full of 3/4 and full page ads!

The Classifieds have moved online or just disappeared - Craigslist, Monster.com
The stories previously contributed by local beat reporters have been replaced by reruns of national wire stories that you could access online via Yahoo or Google the day before. I know several local reporters that have either been terminated or they retired and were not replaced.

End of an era :bawl: .

Ann
 

Liz Wolf-Spada

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The LA Times new format has count a lot. No longer has a separate real estate section, but combined it with business, leaving out charts of stocks, bonds and mutual funds changes and ratings, leaving out mortgage rates and housing data for local counties. Has merged books with art, gotten read of Friday Calendar section, Opinion is now just a couple pages at the back of the first section, instead of its own section. I'm very disappointed.
Liz
 
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