Fate of the American Newspaper

It’s old news that newspapers have been taking a beating as of late, but The Week Magazine just published a very clear and comprehensive article explaining the problems American newspapers are facing and how the industry is reacting to them.

According to the article, it seems there are three main components driving newspapers into the ground: the ease and specificity of the Internet, the environmental and economic inefficiencies involved in production, and their outdated ‘one-size-fits-all’marketing model. 

The general consensus is that traditional papers are plain and simply becoming obsolete.  But the article does propose some potential remedies:

Publishers are experimenting with generating several versions of the paper to target various market segments, such as young people. Some may start giving away their papers free, relying entirely on advertising revenue. One school of thought is that newspapers should become “hyper-local,” focusing intensely on community news not available on the Web or TV. But most industry experts believe that the era of print newspapers is nearing its end. Newspapers, says media analyst Ken Marlin, “have to either adapt to the new economics, or die.”

The Week Magazine: The Decline
of the American Newspaper