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Growing up in the Livermore Valley and writing for publication since I was 17 years old, I have seen huge changes in the newspaper industry and journalism over the decades.
In my time, production has gone from hot lead typesetters to offset printing to cold type, pagination and directly to plate on the technology side. Underwood typewriters were replaced by IBM Selectrics and then by early computers recording data on floppy disks to Radio Shack Trash 80s and finally to desktops and then laptops. Life has gotten much easier than the cut-and-paste days when I started.
I left the daily business after 39 years among major newspaper group consolidations that led to bankruptcies when revenue started to crater. Print revenues hit their high point in 2006. I worked for Media News Group, a corporation known within the industry for its tight editorial budgets. It eventually was acquired by the Alden Global, a hedge fund that is way cheaper and interested only in fattening its bottom line regardless of the news product.
The shrinking revenue has come home to roost here in the valley. Earlier this month, Embarcadero Publishing, the parent company of the Pleasanton Weekly, DanvilleSanRamon.com and the Livermore Vine, announced it is transitioning to a non-profit foundation on Jan. 1. Local real estate has been the core revenue source—a category that the Weekly team took from my former employer, the Tri-Valley Herald—and that is down 45% over the last four years.
Embarcadero has been pushing memberships (as opposed to subscriptions) to build another revenue source, one they hope will provide about 20% of their budget next year.
At the invitation of Kelly Bowers, CEO of the Three Valleys Foundation, I attended the California Journalism Summit at Stanford University. Community foundations were a driving force in pulling the event together because they see a crisis in local news coming in many communities because the revenue models are broken.
Non-profit status will allow foundations to provide funds to journalistic operations. What was clear is that a variety of models are evolving and there’s lots of potential in the low-cost digital world.
One of the more striking examples came from the Arizona Community Foundation that invested $600,000 in the for-profit Arizona Gazette so it had the reporting resources for an investigative report into the foster care system in the state. The foundation had no control over content, but it verged on pay for play—that’s become common these days, but it’s clearly labeled as either advertising or content that was paid for. This would have been unheard of, but now is common as are ads on the front page.
Another challenging notion is local government investing in journalistic operations so they have the resources to cover the government. The hair on the back of my neck stood up when I heard that one—where’s the watch dog role and the separation? It may end up there, but where are the guard rails?
Local newspapers in particular are struggling thus the foundation interest. The Wall Street Journal reported last week on a Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism report that found that 2.5 local outlets are failing each week and more than half of the counties in the United States do not have a local news source.
For instance, when I was running the Herald newsroom in the 1980-90s, I had 14 reporters covering news from the country seat of Martinez in Contra Costa to Lathrop in San Joaquin County. The competing Valley Times had 16 people focused on Alamo through Livermore with its sister paper covering central Contra Costa. Our group also had well-staffed newsrooms in Fremont, Hayward, Alameda and eventually Oakland. Today, I think there’s 1 full-time reporter covering Alameda County.
The Medill report found that 43,000 journalists had lost their jobs since 2005, representing about two-thirds of the prior work force. What’s more is that newspapers still were publishing in communities without any local reporting staff other than contractors.
Earlier this month, the Pleasanton City Council discussed what to do with the permanent newspaper rack podiums downtown. I had a senior role with the Herald when those discussions initially took place and newspaper racks were strewn around sidewalks downtown. There’s obvious First Amendment issues if cities start picking and choosing what outfit gets a rack and where and, at that time, four dailies wanted spaces plus the weeklies.
The podiums were a reasonable compromise that cleaned up the clutter and still offered people a range of choices.
The irony now is that there are only two dailies, the East Bay Times that’s a sad remnant of what were once two vibrant local daily publications, and the San Francisco Chronicle. There’s plenty of open space in the podiums and the racks are looking pretty shabby.
Their condition and the lack of demand sadly reflects the state of the industry today and we are lucky with a daily and two weeklies paying attention to the area.
One thing that immediately comes to mind to enhance media surviving is for journalists to adopt the Freedom of Speech meme created by Elon Musk when reporting on corporate power: https://click1.email.zerohedge.com/vggjmjjhpvpnhdcznkqcznycgjnttqgtzjrvcvvvjppr_ccgthpgdgftjhtgpmdhh.html?a=&b=2057
Having been in the newspaper publishing business myself, I agree and disagree with your observations.
Newspapers survive on advertising revenue not subscriptions or news stand sales. Want-ads are another source of regular income.
Reading the news online has replaced hardcopy and inclusive cookies have replaced advertising via SPAM.
While I still prefer to read a conventional newspaper, I am in the minority as this ‘technique’ is outdated and reserved for older people who do not rely on computers and smartphones to stay current on the news, sports, and local events.
It’s the same with road maps. Instead of going to AAA and keeping a bunch of them in the glove compartment, most people nowadays use GPS.
When my sons were in the Boy Scouts, they used to participate in weekend newspaper drives, collecting old newspapers for recycling and troop fundraising efforts. Not anymore as there are few newspapers to collect.
I assume the point of “agree” is reached the moment you are prepared to tell your revenue source “GFU”…
All in the interest of Freedom of Speech.
Most modern-day people get their news either online or from viewing TV news sources such as Fox News and CNN/MNBC. For others, social platforms like X and TikTok cover all of the pertinent bases.
Newspapers are for the older generation and only the New York Times, Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal carry any weight these days.
It is also more ecologically sound to reduce the use of newsprint, ink, and the production methods used to create conventional newspapers.
As my younger aunt (28) says, “old newspapers harking yesterday’s news are only good for wrapping fish and chips.”
Many Asin newspapers have well over 100,000 daily circulations in the English language. Japan’s top three newspapers circulation is 8.65 million, 5.90 million, and 1.64 million. The top ten Asian newspapers each have circulation numbers of 1.57 million and higher.
China with over 400 daily newspapers has a daily circulation of 108 million. The official Chinese Communist Party newspaper, “China Daily” an English print newspaper has 600,000 daily circulations overseas and 300,00 here in the United States.
Several years ago, a local East Bay newspaper was throwing the China Daily newspaper in Pleasanton driveways, as well as other East Bay cities. They stopped throwing that paper when I contacted them and explained they were throwing the official communist party English print newspaper.
All those Asian newspaper readers, have televisions, I-PAD, cell phones, etc. Asians are information hungry.
“Several years ago, a local East Bay newspaper was throwing the China Daily newspaper in Pleasanton driveways, as well as other East Bay cities. They stopped throwing that paper when I contacted them and explained they were throwing the official communist party English print newspaper.”
^ Does the First Amendment also apply to foreign print…in this case, potentially subversive Communist reading material?
@Michael Austin…
Good call on your part as we do not need subversive foreign reading materials circulating in the United States.
@Greg Williams…
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees the right to freedom of speech and of the press. However, this right generally applies within the jurisdiction of the United States. Foreign printed materials, such as those from China promoting the Communist Party, are not necessarily protected by the First Amendment.
Anyone receiving subversive foreign material from outside of the United States should be thoroughly investigated by the FBI or Homeland Security and immediately deported if they do not meet rigid vetting protocols.
Anti-American publications from China or the Middle East have no place in our country.
What you may not know!
The Chinese communists are in U.S. American cities. The China Daily has offices in New York, Washington DC, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Settle.
The Chinese communist party is firmly ingrained in America. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) are major landowner in America. They are everywhere, in American industries, American colleges, our military, American finance, and American politics.
Recall our local congressmen Swalwell and the female (PLA) Chinese spy Fang Fang?
America is occupied.
@Michael Austin
In addition to the China Daily, pro-Islamic Al Jazeera ‘America’ has bureau offices in Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Denver, Dallas, Chicago, Detroit, Nashville, Miami, New York, and Washington DC.
During an interview with a Palestinian parent at a Gaza hospital, the concerned parent mentioned that Hamas fighters were also embedded at the facility and the Al Jazeera correspondent immediately cut-off the news feed to prevent further dissemination of this information.
The China Daily and Al Jazeera America should be permanently banned from the United States along with TikTok because they have no publishing rights under the U.S. Constitution and are subversive elements detrimental to the well-being of the United States.
TikTok recently posted Bin Laden’s 2002 ‘Letter to America’ justifying 9/11 and many Gen Z online readers are now blaming America for the fateful turn of events.
BTW…TikTok is also ownwed and operated by China as well.
The China Daily and Al Jazeera America should be banned in America because of their anti-American leanings. and the same should apply to China’s TikTok as the only ‘influencing’ that it is creating among our younger generation is misleading propaganda and un-American sentiments.
Had the United States gone to greater lengths to restrict foreign immigration into this country, we would not be having this conversation about subversive publications.
America is coming apart at the seams and much of this conflict (outside of our own internal issues) is directly related to our extended involvement with other countries around the world.
Looking back, nothing good or productive came from our involvement in Viet Nam, Iraq, or Afghanistan and now we are defending both Ukraine and Israel with billions of taxpayer dollars…dollars that could be better spent improving the American infrastructure.
I don’t get it. If the National Review and The Wall Street Journal are subject to restrictions in China, why should the United States allow The China Daily to be distributed in America, most likely to PRC Communist sympathizers residing in the United States? This has absolutely nothing to do with The First Amendment because the publishers are not American citizens. We should never lose track of who our enemies are.
@Holly Simpson
The Chinese government severely restricts the dissemination of certain news topics if they find it offensive to the party line or legacy.
Case in point…a Chinese chef was recently reprimanded after he posted his online recipe for Egg Fried Rice on the anniversary of the death of Mao Zedong’s son during the Korean War.
As the story goes…Anying Zedong was serving in the Communist Army and overslept so he decided to prepare himself a late breakfast of egg fried rice. U.S. reconnaissance planes spotted his campfire and moments later, a squadron of Navy fighter planes napalmed the encampment wiping-out the entire company.
In the PRC the chef’s cooking demonstration was viewed as an insult to the Chinese Communist Party but his recipe is quite good and readily available online or on You Tube. I was later informed that the cooking of Egg Fried Rice is considered a form of silent protest against the PRC.
That tragedy could have been avoided if Mao’s son had opted for some Asian Trail Mix rather than starting a fire which can easily attract others.
In the military service (American of course) we were instructed never to light up a cigarette at night while on recon patrol.
Starting a fire in a war zone just to cook some leftover rice borders on stupidity.
@Bill Clarke:
I don’t think Asian Trail Mix was being made or available during the Korean War.
Why didn’t he just opt for a bowl of Rice Krispies? No heating or re-heating required and many lives would have been saved.
Marie:
Regarding the Rice Krispies option, maybe Mao Jr. did not have any canned milk readily available and so he had to fire-up a wok to prepare his fried rice.
In any event, the other PRC soldiers who perished alongside him paid a steep price for his hasty oversight.
If I were a U.S. State Department official entertaining dignitaries from the PRC, I would have Egg Fried Rice on the menu.