Comments on: The Future of Newspapers http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2009/02/the-future-of-newspapers/ Macro Perspective on the Capital Markets, Economy, Geopolitics, Technology, and Digital Media Sat, 21 Nov 2009 15:05:43 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: sst3d http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2009/02/the-future-of-newspapers/comment-page-1/#comment-146353 sst3d Tue, 17 Feb 2009 19:23:46 +0000 http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/?p=19183#comment-146353 Agreed with my friends who have already commented; particularly re: Zuckerman, and with special kudos for the tribal commentary. Mortimer is incapable of avoiding self promotion even when discussing hard times. He shills for himself with admirable verbosity. On a personal level re: newspapers, I began reading the Chicago Trib (sports and funnies) when I was ten years old. Forty three years later and still a Chicago resident, I cannot seem to cancel my subscription even though Sam Zell (and market forces) have turned the Trib into a flimsy, shoddy rag. I like a local paper even if it sucks ass, I guess. Besides, taking my laptop into the crapper just feels wrong. Scott in Chicago Agreed with my friends who have already commented; particularly re: Zuckerman, and with special kudos for the tribal commentary. Mortimer is incapable of avoiding self promotion even when discussing hard times. He shills for himself with admirable verbosity.

On a personal level re: newspapers, I began reading the Chicago Trib (sports and funnies) when I was ten years old. Forty three years later and still a Chicago resident, I cannot seem to cancel my subscription even though Sam Zell (and market forces) have turned the Trib into a flimsy, shoddy rag. I like a local paper even if it sucks ass, I guess. Besides, taking my laptop into the crapper just feels wrong.

Scott in Chicago

]]> By: Mark E Hoffer http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2009/02/the-future-of-newspapers/comment-page-1/#comment-146223 Mark E Hoffer Tue, 17 Feb 2009 04:08:51 +0000 http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/?p=19183#comment-146223 much like/for similiar reasons as Forty2, above, I didn't bother with the vid itself.. though, something tells me that the daze of 'Newspapers' holding sway, as they have, over geographic regions, is, already clearing.. further, the *Future of, what's left of, their model, will be trending toward hyper-localization cross-bred with a healthy dose of psychographic, rather than demographic,-based interest reporting/gathering.. those narrow "families" will be "cross-stitched" into Tribes and, further woven into Clans, large enough, to exert leverage, via demand-pull, on various Economic actors.. is merely one, short, take, your orbit may perturb... much like/for similiar reasons as Forty2, above, I didn’t bother with the vid itself..

though, something tells me that the daze of ‘Newspapers’ holding sway, as they have, over geographic regions, is, already clearing..

further, the *Future of, what’s left of, their model, will be trending toward hyper-localization cross-bred with a healthy dose of psychographic, rather than demographic,-based interest reporting/gathering..

those narrow “families” will be “cross-stitched” into Tribes and, further woven into Clans, large enough, to exert leverage, via demand-pull, on various Economic actors..

is merely one, short, take, your orbit may perturb…

]]> By: Forty2 http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2009/02/the-future-of-newspapers/comment-page-1/#comment-146185 Forty2 Tue, 17 Feb 2009 01:36:19 +0000 http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/?p=19183#comment-146185 I was laid off on Friday from a supplier of software and services to the global newspaper industry. Sales have collapsed and service contracts are being cancelled worldwide. So I don't need media moguls like Zuckerman talking his book on about the future of newspapers and newsmagazines. I can tell you their future in one word: doomed. It is an 18th-century information distribution model, one that had an amazing 100+ year run, but one that is now horribly obsolete outside of the 3rd world. The general graphic arts/printing industry will consolidate and shrink, but printed, subscription ad-supported news media will not survive. The "big iron" printing press and post-press equipment manufacturers will not survive as independent entities, and neither will the pre-press software and services vendors. Niche magazines will be around longer, but are on borrowed time as advertisers finally realize that nobody gives a shit about their ads. Actually, sales of printed news media in developing countries were rising quite rapidly as literacy rates in countries like India, Brazil and China rose and many people might not have the money for a computer and internet service but a lot do have a few rupees or reals to drop on the day's paper. But that's all on hold for now. I was laid off on Friday from a supplier of software and services to the global newspaper industry. Sales have collapsed and service contracts are being cancelled worldwide. So I don’t need media moguls like Zuckerman talking his book on about the future of newspapers and newsmagazines.

I can tell you their future in one word: doomed. It is an 18th-century information distribution model, one that had an amazing 100+ year run, but one that is now horribly obsolete outside of the 3rd world. The general graphic arts/printing industry will consolidate and shrink, but printed, subscription ad-supported news media will not survive. The “big iron” printing press and post-press equipment manufacturers will not survive as independent entities, and neither will the pre-press software and services vendors. Niche magazines will be around longer, but are on borrowed time as advertisers finally realize that nobody gives a shit about their ads.

Actually, sales of printed news media in developing countries were rising quite rapidly as literacy rates in countries like India, Brazil and China rose and many people might not have the money for a computer and internet service but a lot do have a few rupees or reals to drop on the day’s paper. But that’s all on hold for now.

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