Wednesday, February 25, 2009
More Endangered Newspapers: San Francisco Chronicle & Washington Post
As I watch the mounting list of faltering newspapers, I'm reminded of the typical storyline for a horror movie- Everybody is a potential victim, and you don't know who's going to die next, but it's going to bloody.
Following Chapter 11 Bankruptcy filings by the Philadelphia Inquirer and the New Haven Register, the Washington Post (NYSE: WPO) is reporting a 77% drop in 4th quarter net profit and the San Francisco Chronicle, America's 12th largest daily paper, could close unless its parent company,Hearst Corp., can find a quick way to slash costs. Ad revenue is falling faster than the Hearst can cut staff to account for and one-third of the Chronicle's readership has left since 2001.
As the former leaders of print journalism continue to fall, I can't help but wonder if and when executives and editors will request a newspaper bailout plan from the federal government. Of course, the very concept of a state or federally supported newspaper is a hard one to ponder, because many of them established a government watchdog reputation with the average citizen.
By Matt O'Hern at 02:00 PM | Comments (2)
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