I can get used to so many things in life, but when things change, it bugs me.
I can get used to the changing of the seasons; heck, I can even get used to the changing of Daylight Saving Time and Standard Time. I can never get used to it being dark at 4:30 p.m. in the winter.
I can get used to watching great golf at the Masters, but I cannot get used to seeing the old golf heroes like Jack Nicklaus limping to the green and striking a bad ball at 86 years old. I want to remember him in his heyday.
I can get used to having family and friends for most of my life, but I have a hard time when those same family and friends pass away. I can never, ever get used to that.
I can get used to getting on a tennis court and running around like a nut, but I can’t get used to aging and not feeling youthful on the court.
I can get used to watching my two daughters growing into adulthood, but yet, I can’t help but think back to when they were children, knowing I can’t have those days back again.
I can get used to new technology, but I long for the days when life was a lot simpler.
I can get used to it when the Phillies and Eagles are winning, but I think that won’t last forever.
I was so used to newspapers being a big part of my life, whether I delivered them as a child or got to be a writer and photographer, but what I really can’t handle is how longstanding newspaper institutions have either gone or are slipping away.
Newspapers were such a fabric woven into the DNA of our lives, but not anymore.
I knew the writing was on the wall years ago when the New York Times and Washington Post had reported the huge loss of subscribers; the New York Times had 1.2 million subscribers in 1993, and today they are down to 580,000. The Washington Post had over 832,000 subscribers in 1993, and now it has 87,600 print subscribers. That’s a huge, oh my word… pardon the pun.
Unfortunately, with the digital age, a lot of people find their favorite news source on a tablet, desktop, or their cellphone, getting it at the speed of light, the minute something happens.
There isn’t just one reason for the collapse of newspapers. Ad revenue had taken a hit because of so many free ways to sell an item, for example. With big tech being a huge contributing factor, ad revenue is the biggest financial hit.
Rising print and delivery costs are another contributing factor, and younger generations have not developed a habit of reading a newspaper.
This may be true. A few years ago, representatives from the Times Leader Media Group visited area schools in Greater Pittston, offering them a chance to contribute to the paper with school news. That effort did not last very long.
I could remember in high school, everyone wanted to be a writer for the Sunday Dispatch school column. That didn’t happen.
Newspapers did pick up some revenue when the paper went digital. Some charged a fee to access their paper online, while others, like the Times Leader and Sunday Dispatch, offer to read news and sports items for free.
Another loss came in the form of changing owners. The trend used to be that families would own a newspaper, but today, hedge fund companies and corporations have purchased newspapers, and it always seemed the first thing they would do was cut services and departments.
People have lost confidence in newspapers because of the “fake news” phenomenon.
When revenue drops, so do full-time positions at the paper.
In essence, newspapers haven’t been failing because of journalism; they are failing because the business model has changed, and it happened too fast for many, eventually shutting down operations all over the country.
Is a newspaper even necessary? Some believe it’s a dinosaur, and others can’t start their day without flipping through the pages of the paper.
I don’t know how many times I’ve heard, “I need to read the paper with my morning coffee.”
Newspapers are necessary, and there’s still a niche for them, and many people still want to have that paper in their hands each day.
The powers that be at the Times Leader Media Group are refocusing, readjusting, and making an effort to make things better.
As the saying goes, “it takes two to tango,” meaning newspapers need subscribers, they need people to get excited about buying an edition off the newsstand, and they need to believe in local news.
That’s where you, my friends, come in. We need people to contribute to the paper, we need organizations to send in information, we need Pittston Area and Wyoming Area school districts to contribute to the paper like the good old days, and we need people to buy the paper.
Believe me, as a student, you couldn’t wait to read your senior bio in the paper. In just a few short paragraphs, we got to name our parents, our favorite teacher, and where we may be going to college.
I’d love to see the Sunday Dispatch return to being Greater Pittston’s ultimate source of information, as it used to be. We need the Sunday Dispatch.
Quote of the week
“The press is the best instrument for enlightening the mind of man, and improving him as a rational, moral, and social being.” —Thomas Jefferson
Thought of the week
“Newspapers are the schoolmasters of the common people.” —Joseph Pulitzer
Bumper sticker
“A great newspaper is a nation talking to itself.” —Arthur Miller
