Monday, October 28, 2013

Why I hate newspapers

In keeping with the theme of my previous post, I wanted to talk about why I hate newspapers.

  1. I dislike reading.  If I'm going to read something it's going to be something I find interesting such as a technical document, scientific article, etc.  Not the newspaper.
  2. I hate the smell of newspapers.  I don't know if it's the paper, the ink, or a combination, but newspapers have a distinctive smell and I hate it.
  3. I hate the way newsprint rubs off on your hands.  They use the cheapest form of printing which results in the inks rubbing off as you read it.
  4. I hate the feel of the paper.  Newspapers use the cheapest paper they can find and I don't like the feel of it.  The difference between newspaper and high quality paper is significant.
  5. Newspapers cost money.  Whether it's a one-time fee from a newspaper machine or a regular subscription, you're still paying money for what is available elsewhere for free.
  6. There are far better "electronic" alternatives (more on that later).
  7. It's a huge waste of time, energy, money, and resources.  How many trees go into making newspapers every year?  How much gas is burned delivering it to houses?

To me there is absolutely no redeeming quality to newspapers.  The "content" they provide can be gotten off the Internet for free on sites such as cnn.com, nbcnews.com, local TV stations, etc.  You can get classifieds and jobs off craigslist and monster.com.  Store sales, ads, and coupons can get viewed going to that stores website.  And the best part is, all of this "electronic" content can be easily searched using a computer, something you can't do with newspaper.

It's no secret the newspaper industry is really hurting.  Less than a decade ago the newspaper ads brought in about $17 billion dollars annually in the US.  Today that number is less than $4 billion and dropping.  As an industry you can't sustain losses like that and continue.  Already major newspapers throughout the US have been closing.  The whole industry is in a downward spiral that will not stop in my opinion.  As newspaper revenue drops they have no choice but to reduce the content of newspapers.  But as content decreases, the number of subscribers will decrease also.

I don't think I'm alone in my projections here.  Most younger people won't touch a newspaper, they prefer something electronic.  So newspapers are clinging to the "older generation."  But once they pass on, no one will be left and they will be forced to close.

In my opinion, the newspaper industry missed a golden opportunity here by not looking forward.  A decade ago they should have shifted their focus to an online presence.  The goal is to create online content that people want enough to be willing to pay for an online subscription.  In addition to news, opinions, ads, classifieds, etc. they should have taken advantage of the benefits afforded by the electronic medium.  For example, show a map centered around the readers location and put a "dot" on the map where ever a news event took place.  Then people can see news events that happened near them.  Yes, such a system would require tons of money to develop, but all the newspaper houses throughout the US could have pooled their resources and created such a system.  This would have prevented sites like craigslist from "eating their lunch."  But as it stands, it's too late.  The damage has been done and I don't think they will recover.  I think the industry will die.

5 comments:

  1. I feel exactly the same. Just hearing the word "giornale" (newspaper in my language) utterly disgusts me. And using the Milan Metro almost every day in the morning, I have to hold myself back from fainting and throwing up because of all the people reading newspapers. I've never met anyone who feels like I do, but seriously, you could fart on my face and I'd still be less disgusted by this than I would be by someone reading a newspaper in front of me.

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    1. Absolutely hate the smell and texture of newspaper it makes me cringe. I will not touch it

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  2. I hate them too! The smell of them makes me feel sick. I hate touching one because then your hands stink too. They end up black. And I hate the way they feel! Yay! I'm not alone!

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  3. Me too! Always have since I was a kid. Parents used to think it was strange. Couldn’t do paper mache at school. And now as an adult if I receive something in the post from EBay and the buyer has wrapped the item in newspaper, I immediately feel sick at the smell and touch. I’ve always thought I was strange and it was irrational so it’s great to hear other people have it too

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  4. Never realised this was an actual phobia. So glad it appears it is and that other people have the same reaction to newspapers as I do. Hated everything about them since early childhood..

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