Dilemma Facing Us and Others
While the Daily News circulation declines (see previous post) traffic to our online newspaper is growing at a fast clip, up 30% for the month compared to last year.
Walter Hussman, Jr. publisher of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette says this is How to Sink A NewspaperÂ
Newspapers initially created their Web sites with the best of intentions. After all, newspapers are in the information business. And rather than fight the new medium, the Internet, why not embrace it? Wanting to be the leading information providers and thereby have the most popular Web site in the community, they posted all of their news online for free.
He goes on to make his case by comparing his newspaper’s circulation gains compared to the industry declines. he also explains the economics of the print newspaper and the online newspaper. It’s expensive to run a newsroom, Hussman admits and he’s concerned that more free local news will jeopardize the strength of newspapers.
The newsroom layoffs are most troubling, as less news with less quality, context and details results in more declines in readership and later, declines in advertising. If the $7 billion spent covering news becomes $6 billion, and later $5 billion, it is not just the newspaper industry that gets hurt. Journalism will be diminished in America with less investigative and enterprise reporting; indeed, less reporting of state houses, city halls, school boards, business and sports. Clearly a lot is at stake.
His premise makes for his newspaper, because they never did give away their local news. The Democrat-Gazette has always charged readers to get their local news online.
But they are in a very, very small minority. The question we are facing now is what do we do now that the horse is out of the barn?