Where they don’t take newspapers for granted

Add comment June 25th, 2009

Petina Gappah was on NPR this morning talking about her book, which is a set of fictional stories that paint a picture of her real homeland, Zimbabwe.

One of the characters, a salesman, carries a newspaper around to show he’s credible. Gappah said she did that because in rural communities, newspapers are treasured; often one copy is read by many at the same time.

First newspapers, then computers, then cell phones…

Add comment May 5th, 2009

… Now, another news platform, the Kindle, the electronic reader.

If you’ve never heard of it, the device syncs to the Web wirelessly and delivers books to you for $9.99 a pop. You also can subscribe newspapers and magazines on the thing, which weighs less than a pound but costs more than $350.

To be clear, the Kindle is not new (it debuted in 2007), but this week, the buzz is high this week because a large-screen version more compatible for reading newspapers is expected to be released. Though some say Kindle won’t save newspapers anyway because, again, if you can go to the Web site for free, why would you subscribe with this? Others are more optimistic.

I’m not waiting for Kindle to save newspapers, but I am intrigued. One of our editors takes hers everywhere because she is a voracious reader.

A piece of art, for 75 cents

Add comment April 12th, 2009

Putting together the front page of a newspaper could be considered an art form, with new puzzle pieces every day.

But The Louisville Courier-Journal in Kentucky surprised readers this morning with an artist’s rendition of the front page. On the front page. The regular page appeared on page 3.

Courier-Journal publisher Arnold Garson said the project intrigued him because it can generate discussion, and because it points out how art is a valuable part of everyday life.

“It is about starting the thought process, which is what art is about,” Garson said. “It makes you stop and think.

“We are in the business of communication. This is just another way of doing that,” he added. “I hope it’s exciting, surprising to our readers.”

Dear Oprah

1 comment April 11th, 2009

Todd Franko, who worked at the Register Star as the Local&State editor a few years ago, has gotten national attention for his “letter to Oprah.”

He’s now the editor of a newspaper in Ohio and upset about allowing Suze Orman to say on O’s show that people should cancel their newspaper subscriptions to save a few bucks. Below is an excerpt.

Let me remind you of your audience: They do what you say.

I know. I have a wife, a mother and at least one sister-in-law who all follow your every move. My mom has a bookshelf in her house that should be labeled ”Oprah’s Bookshelf.” You wave it; she reads it.

After the Dow and Wal-Mart, you are the No. 3 economic force in America.

You so influence the lives of these women that I’ve been dying for an episode entitled “Mrs. Franko, it’s time for you to go back into the workforce” because my chats with my wife are certainly not working.

What will you do if your fans go out today and cancel their newspaper?

Here’s an irony: Had this show aired in October, and your audience listened to you, you might not have had a Chicago Sun-Times in November to wave on TV to proclaim “the best paper in the world.”

Sex sells

Add comment March 30th, 2009

What will save newspapers? This is one songwriter’s take, in a 36C.

Ka-ching! Kachingle!

1 comment February 19th, 2009

Have you ever heard of Kachingle? It’s basically an itty-bitty, voluntary tip jar for blog readers to contribute to sites they visit. Click!

This has come up ever since much buzz has been made over how to save newspapers, including micropayment on the Web.

The Newsosaur (an “old” journalist exploring our “new” clothing) says the math just won’t add up. Meaning the revenue would barely pay for a handful of reporters, basically.

The top 15 newspaper sites of 2008

1 comment February 18th, 2009

The good news? They’re showing an increase in readership.

As rated by Nielsen Online, using average monthly unique visitors, they are:

1. The New York Times
2. USA Today
3. The Washington Post
4. The Los Angeles Times
5. The Wall Street Journal
6. The Boston Globe
7. New York Post
8. Chicago Tribune
9. New York Daily News
10. San Francisco Chronicle
11. Newsday
12. Politico (Yes, it does actually have a newspaper.)
13. Chicago Sun-Times
14. The Houston Chronicle
15. The Dallas Morning News

I read four of the top five, plus the Trib, on an occasional basis. How about you?

What if you had to pay?

2 comments February 11th, 2009

Last week, our editor blogged about the Time article about “how to save your newspaper.” Some of it suggests that if there were an easy micropayment system, to “use as you go,” that the media could benefit.

This week, there’s a suggestion out there that newspapers should cease posting news to their Web sites for a week so that people would understand their value. A petition, actually. It certainly would pain Google and Yahoo, who feed all those headlines to their users.

Actually, there’s been a bunch of reaction to that Time story. Notably, Jon Stewart from “The Daily Show” suggests we use addictive ink. And an opinion that “news by the slice” won’t cut it.

Chicago’s ‘new’ tabloid

Add comment January 16th, 2009

This week, in a bid to remain competitive with the Sun-Times, the Chicago Tribune announced it will sell tab versions of its newspaper on the weekdays for those who pick it up at the newsstand and commuter stations in Chicago and the ‘burbs. It’s more handy to read on the train, for example.

The Tribune will remain a broadsheet for home delivery subscribers. The full story is here. Sounds like more work, but we’ll see if it’s worth it.

This story reminds me that the Rockford Register Star’s front-page digest format, which has appeared in all copies of the paper since May 1999, was originally conceived as a “single-copy” concept. Readers have almost universally embraced it ever since as a quick scan of the day’s news.

I think Monday’s tabs will be free as a first-day promotion. Otherwise, the price is the same 75 cents.

We didn’t go into the biz to get a date

Add comment December 23rd, 2008

Light fare for a holiday week. No surprise: Journalists are not considered prime marriage material. Well, we work wild hours, and we certainly aren’t making doctors’ salaries.

Although honestly, we fall in love with a person, not his or her job. So surveys like this are just amusement.