Gannett Going Down the Tubes

by: vmars

Wed Feb 22, 2012 at 03:12:43 PM EST

Gannett is going to start charging for people to read the online version of their 80 local newspapers. That includes the Asbury Park Press, Courier News, Courier-Post, Home News Tribune, Daily Record, and The Daily Journal.

It's not bad enough they've gutted their local reporting, removing any non-bleeding news from New Jersey's communities of less than 50,000 residents. Or that they've essentially merged the editorial boards of papers with each other. Or shrunk the papers by more than half of what they used to be.

No, now they are going to start charging money for us to read their ad-laden websites where it takes multiple clicks through ad-laden pages to get to the ad-laden story you might want to read. It's not like the articles are that well-written or informative to start with

I can't imagine this is going to do anything but erode their reader base the way their home-subscriber base has eroded. I mean, if they aren't going to report on my home-town unless there is scandal or murder, why would I pay extra money to read it?

The result will be less money from advertisements, more staff reductions, and the decimation of most of New Jersey's newspapers.

It's time for a new model to grow.

vmars :: Gannett Going Down the Tubes

Tags: Gannett, The Daily Journal, daily record, Home News Tribune, Courier-Post, courier news, Asbury Park Press, (All Tags)

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Gannett Going Down the Tubes | 2 comments

Long live Patch.com (4.00 / 1)

...check for a site for your town. Gannett just didn't get it. They could have been "Patch" (as many of their reporters are now working there) but they are taking the opposite approach. Every move they made was clearly "how can we save overhead - or squeeze out more revenue" not "how can we offer something people will want to read" "who are our customers". A real shame. Very predictable. I knew they had problems not just when I had to pay to read an article more than two weeks old online, or when the Daily Record reduced itself to a pamphlet that blew off my driveway in a light breeze. Or when the DR fired Snowflack. They just don't get it.

by: Tom Wyka @ Wed Feb 22, 2012 at 21:00:10 PM UTC

Gannett has their version of Patch (0.00 / 0)

called "InJersey". Not much more than retread stories from their crappy papers, but I would contribute from time to time.
I once got a death threat from a commenter, which I reported as a TOS violation. The moderator laughed it off as "lively banter". Gannett deserves everything bad that happens to them.

Blog: Pick's Place

by: jeffpickens @ Thu Feb 23, 2012 at 00:13:52 AM UTC

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