Without a newspaper, will Chicagoans become illiterate?

By on March 31st, 2009 In Media

Today came the news that Sun-Times Media Group, the parent of the Chicago Sun-Times and more than 60 other papers and web sites, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In a press release, the company’s chairman said it filed for bankruptcy because “the significant downturn in the print advertising environment that has affected newspapers across the country has continued to severely impact us.” The paper will remain in operation during the procedures, but there’s no indication as to how long it can stay afloat.

This news comes just a few months after the Chicago Tribune company announced it has filed for bankruptcy protection as well, meaning there is a possibility that the Windy City could become the first major American city without a major daily newspaper. Will anyone notice? Will Chicagoans stop reading?

I’m not even going to bother listing all the newspapers that are in trouble because this is getting old. Is anyone going to come up with a viable business model for the news industry?

Comments

Marketing Sociologist Says:
March 31st, 2009 at 7:06 pm

For all those who believe PR stands for press releases and have been most interested in getting clients into the newspapers and television, where is your future?

Not to be cruel, the day of the press agentry is akin to buggy whip makers.

It is time PR practitioners rethink their craft.

What about ASU’s journalism department graduating 1,300 new practitioners yearly, with 1,000 unemployed journalists in the 4-corners region. Why?

Wendy Kenney Says:
April 1st, 2009 at 8:03 am

Len,

Here’s my 2 cents. The sweetest sound to a person is a sound of their own name. Papers need to get smaller, not bigger. Focus on community news. Put the names and faces of the people back in the news. People will buy a paper just to get proof that they were in it!

The newspapers have done it to themselves by creating exclusive online content and publishing online. Perhaps they should go back..Now it’s time for exclusive print content. Don’t you think that would sell?

Dave Says:
April 1st, 2009 at 9:34 am

A little antagonism in the headline, folks? There are a lot of Chicagoans here in the Valley, and some of them even went to college.

Sue Kern-Fleischer Says:
April 1st, 2009 at 9:49 am

I think Marketing Sociologist brings up some valid points. I do a lot of work for non-profits in a very small town and it’s clear that with the community newspapers/magazines, in order to get coverage, they have to purchase an ad. There was some of that years ago, but not like today.

Linnea Maxwell Says:
April 1st, 2009 at 10:38 am

re: Is anyone going to come up with a viable business model for the news industry?

Remember the old saying that the railroads went out of business because they clung to the idea that they were in the railroad business, not the transportation industry?

Maybe the answer is that giant news publishers are simply no longer viable in every major city. Too much overhead, not enough local credibility would be my vote. Ad revenues go down when eyeballs go away.

It’s ironic to read blogs and online postings from people who say they love print and don’t want it to go away, but at the same time they are embracing the alternative and maybe preferring it.

Print won’t totally go away, but the market is certainly changing. I agree that truly local news is often missed in our daily papers. You see national stories online and then repeated the next day in “local” newspapers.

As for the ASU journalism students, I was surprised to hear an IABC speaker talk about the different skill sets in his print vs. electronic majors. They should just teach good communication skills across all platforms because today’s students can’t choose where they’ll be working in the future. Why specialize today?

I don’t know what the ideal business model is for delivering news and making money, but it’s clearly not what worked in the past. The sooner people stop clinging to the past, the better.

Tyler Hurst Says:
April 5th, 2009 at 2:19 pm

Why do so many people, including this blog apparently, equate journalism with newspapers? If only there was a better, more cost-effective way to reach many people at once. Hmmm….

I’m off to check out my RSS feeds now.

Oh wait…

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