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Newspapers are Obsolete

AndrewAndrew
edited June 2007 in Flamewars
With the rise of the internet and the speed at which information is spread is increasing exponentially, I believe that newspapers are becoming obsolete and will no longer have a viable place within our society to function. Discuss.

Comments

  • Dr. TimoDr. Timo
    Just like radio killed newspapers before the internet, TV killed books, CD killed vinyl?
  • cosmicenemacosmicenema
    I would have agreed with you yesterday . . .

    I read lots of newspapers daily from around the world, a possibility thanks to the internet. Unfortunately my local news websites are a total pain. Yesterday I went to the DOT to renew my drivers license and they had moved to a new location this week. I got there and mentioned to the lady doing my eye test that I went to the wrong place and she asked me if I lived in a cave because the local news and newspapers had covered this move for weeks. I tried to explain that I don't watch TV or read the local newspaper and she was floored. Here I'm thinking I'm more connected because I'm plugged in . . . apparently not in all cases.
  • ZeehatZeehat
    As long as there are people who can't or don't want to learn how to use the internet, newspapers will exist. However, this is just my opinion. XD
  • RymRym
    The average age of newspaper readers has risen by about one year each year.
    I personally have never subscribed to a newspaper, and I find them wholly without benefit.
  • JasonJason
    National newspapers are obsolete, but regional ones are not. The Internet has provided a terrific way to disseminate information, but there must still be agencies in place to collect it; Google, Reuters, the Associated Press, Yahoo, etc. can grab world and national news, but local city hall coverage, information about fires, crime, localized feature stories, special interest, and small events coverage will always remain in the domain of newspapers.

    The company at which I am employed has stumbled bass-ackward into success here. It is a small conglomerate with a century-old business model, and owns one daily and many weekly newspapers; these institutions have become embedded in their respective communities and are the primary source of information for locals about local issues.

    Scrym have previously stated that there will always be a need for trained journalists, and this is true. Blogging is one thing, but I, for one, am sick of the idea that anyone can be a legitimate news source.
  • RymRym
    Oh, I think local press and professional press in general will continue to exist.
    I just think that newspapers as a medium will die.  I'd rather see them replaced by individual town or local press RSS feeds/websites/whatever.  No amount of local information is worth paying for or parsing through the garbage see of advertisments that is the local dead tree paper (at least where we live). ^_~
    Luckily, Beacon itself periodically publishes and distributes its own newsletter with city-specific information.  It's the only local publication I read.
  • cosmicenemacosmicenema
    I think once we get e-paper as a viable alternative, even the older generation will prefer RSS news to physical paper. The ability to change font size alone should be enough. :)
  • AndrewAndrew
    National newspapers are obsolete, but regional ones are not. The Internet has provided a terrific way to disseminate information, but there must still be agencies in place to collect it; Google, Reuters, the Associated Press, Yahoo, etc. can grab world and national news, but local city hall coverage, information about fires, crime, localized feature stories, special interest, and small events coverage will always remain in the domain of newspapers.
    While it is true that there will always be a need for agencies to collect information, newspapers will not always be the medium in which this will occur. I envision that one day all journalists will export their articles on RSS type feeds via wireless to portable readers (much like the readers in Star Trek). Much like the advancement of the printing press, computers will provide a new information revolution (I suppose they already have) and will further the dissemination of information to a broader audience.
  • JasonJason
    So..... without advertising..... how do I get paid?
  • MrRobotoMrRoboto
    Well, newspapers here in Costa Rica sell quite well, everyone likes to read the news with their breakfast, plus its got educational stuff for the kids, the wanted adds and other none news stuff, I'm subscribed to one of the four newspapers in the country (keep in mind that my country is smaller than most of the states in the US) and I also recycle.
  • AndrewAndrew
    So..... without advertising..... how do I get paid?
    Subscription fees.
  • JasonJason
    Do you understand the economics of the situation here? Are you willing to pay $20 per issue? That's like saying that your cable bill covers the cost of making Heroes.
  • AndrewAndrew
    WTF, how much do they pay you people? Hells no I'm not paying $20 per issue. What ever happened to the 5 cent papers?
  • MrRobotoMrRoboto
    edited June 2007
    BTW how much does a newspaper cost where you live. here its $0.50 weekdays and $0.75 on sundays

    I think he meant that with no adds on the paper, the fee would go up to like $20
    Post edited by MrRoboto on
  • JasonJason
    edited June 2007
    image
    They pay us nothing. Absolutely jack shit nothing. Less than teachers, and people are always whining about how little teachers make.

    Your subscription or newstand cost does nothing, except marginally defray the cost of distribution. It's the ads that make a newspaper run, and even that is not lucrative.

    Going all online would be wonderful for my paperless society idea, but not for the news business. The best form of advertising newspapers have is still physical representation on news racks. True, going paperless would eliminate the cost of paper, ink, printing presses, press operators, and delivery, but it would incur equally great costs for technology infrastructure, servers, bandwidth, marketing, tech support, coders, etc.

    And the going rate for a single newspaper issue is $0.75.
    Post edited by Jason on
  • HMTKSteveHMTKSteve
    edited June 2007
    Tell us Jason, how badly has craigslist hurt the newspaper industry?
    Post edited by HMTKSteve on
  • JasonJason
    Um... not in any way. In the same way that The Powerpuff Girls hurt Disney.
  • HMTKSteveHMTKSteve
    Really? I remember reading (a few years ago) that craigslist was hurting newspapers because they were offering free classified advs.
  • AndrewAndrew
    I'm waiting for Joe to come in here and tell a grand tale of how he was a newsie during the early 20th century and how he stood at the corner of 5th Street and Main yelling "Extre! Extre! Read all about it!" He made twenty cents a day, just enough to buy a loaf of bread to feed his family.
  • ZakoSoldierZakoSoldier
    It is not the small classified ads that pay for the paper it is the big page that Macy's has every day that is why is paying for the paper.
  • HMTKSteveHMTKSteve
    Yeah... Good ole' Joe...

    Or about how he met one of his girlfriends on the same street corner selling corn chips. She was yelling, "Free lays, free lays..."
  • StarfoxStarfox

    The average age of newspaper readers has risen by about one year each year.

    I found this hilarious, more so than I should have. The UW has two student newspapers, the Daily Cardinal and the Badger Herald. We're the only place I've ever heard of with more than one.
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