‘The Paper’ adds insight to current newspaper woes

I know, I know, I need to stop. It’s just hard to sit idly by while idiots run my industry into the ground. I’ll say it one more time… newspapers are not dying. Oh, who am I kidding? I’ll shout it from the mountaintops until the last printing press stops turning.

What’s happening in the industry now is that the rich (or at the very least wealthy) aren’t getting richer. And, guess what? They don’t like it. I can’t say that I blame them. I wouldn’t want to take a 15 to 20 percent pay cut either. But the purpose of the news has never been to get rich. When media focuses on the bottom line it fails. I’m not saying that newspapers shouldn’t operate in the black. I’m not even saying that they can’t be (or shouldn’t be) profitable. What I am saying is that we shouldn’t jump ship, abandoning an industry that has served the American public for hundreds of years just because the economy is a bit wobbly.

Our global business model is in jeopardy. Business owners are looking for ways to cut costs and maintain profits. The biggest companies are being hit hardest. The newspaper industry is no exception.

I love this link sent to me by a former student. David Warsh, a former journalist, sums up my feelings about the newspaper industry through one of every journalist’s favorite movies, “The Paper.” Check out What Comes After a Golden Age.