The Rocky Mountain News is shutting off the presses today after nearly 150 years. As institutions like the Rocky go under, it's becoming harder to shake the feeling of loss and sadness for the way things once were.
What's particularly frustrating is how rapidly time is running out for print journalism. It's becoming more apparent that, in this recession, it may be impossible for debt-ridden newspapers to reinvent themselves. A successful reinvention will require a significant investment, and that doesn't seem to be forthcoming. What would sort of replacement would pop up if a city's last daily disappears?
A number of small, web-only start-ups? A leaner, but more traditional paper?
A number of web-only local news organizations (the most ambitious of which are non-profits) currently exist, and while they put forth an admirable effort, these sites still aren't close to matching the breadth of reporting and the resources of a large daily.
Part of what has made the public service mission of newspapers possible is their mass appeal. It's unclear whether a web replacement would be equally influential.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
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