With Vancouver’s Columbian filing for bankruptcy, and many industry observers expecting the same for the The Seattle Times if it too fails to renegotiate its debt, I want to take a moment to distinguish between the poor fundamentals of the newspaper industry as a whole, and the poor business decisions of some of its most troubled publishers.
No doubt this is a difficult time to own and operate a daily newspaper. The growth of the Internet and changing consumer habits have been undermining the once dominant dailies for more than a decade, but the sudden, recession-induced plunge in advertising revenues has greatly accelerated the process. Local news monopolies, reliable cash cows for much of the past century, are slashing budgets and staff nationwide as they attempt to weather the current economic storm, while the industry as a whole struggles to invent a sustainable online business model.
Quite frankly, the fundamentals suck, and thus it would be understandable if those at the helm of papers like The Times and The Columbian take some solace in the woes of their fellow publishers. But not too much.
For while the whole industry is struggling, the financial precariousness of some of our most threatened papers is at least partially due to the awful business decisions of their owners, in particular, the incredibly over-leveraged position they find themselves in as a result of ill-advised acquisitions and other bone-headed ventures.
For The Columbian, it was the construction of a new $40 million office tower that landed a shrunken newsroom back in its old digs, and publisher Scott Campbell in bankruptcy court. For The Times, it was Frank Blethen’s ill-fated foray into the Maine media market that has left him with a couple hundred million dollars of debt coming due, and no obvious means of raising more capital. Both papers are currently losing money on their daily operations, but neither would be struggling to survive this particular recession if the bankers weren’t pounding at their doors.
And they’re not alone. Indeed, while most local papers have remained at least marginally profitable despite the industry-wide turmoil, their corporate parents are being crushed under mountains of debt incurred via highly leveraged acquisitions. It’s not that most newspapers are losing money—in fact, on average, the industry’s operating margins remain higher than most of its advertisers—it’s that they simply can’t sustain the 20 to 30 percent margins on which many of these deals were predicated.
For all the whining about Google and bloggers and high taxes and changing demographics and the reluctance of consumers to pay for content, it’s not the core business of newspapers that has put so many dailies at death’s door, but rather, the poor business decisions of their owners.
Over the years we’ve heard a lot from the conservative editorial boards at the The Times and The Columbian and elsewhere about the need for folks to take personal responsibility. It is time they demanded the same of their own publishers.
Virtually ALL media experts disagree with your analysis as to why newspapers are failing. They cite things such as the rise of Craigslist, etc.
What, no mention that the liberal bias of newspapers is driving them out of business?
It’s starting to happen to cnn and msnbc as evidenced by their declining ratings.
@2: LOL
Who wants to read anything by these lap dogs? You know it’s not going to be fair or balanced. Why pay your opposition’s employees.
“One of my clients was directly threatened by the White House and in essence compelled to withdraw its opposition to the deal under the threat that the full force of the White House Press Corps would destroy its reputation if it continued to fight.”
-Bankruptcy lawyer Tom Lauria
Troll @1,
Once again, you don’t bother reading my post before commenting.
@1 Who are these “media experts” you’re referring to, trollski? Names and cites, please. Your hamster doesn’t count.
“Quite frankly, the fundamentals suck”
The fundamentals of working suck, too — high fixed costs, uncertain and steadily declining revenue stream, overseas competition, high taxes — so I don’t work. Many financial problems can be avoided simply by not owning a newspaper or having a job.
I read your post. While acknowledging the worsening fundamentals of the newspaper industry as a whole, you’re pointing out that certain newspaper owners are making …
brb. International business call.
Troll translation @ 8- Mom wants me to take out the trash
We’ve all heard for years about the decline of the American education system. Well, guess what? Those backwash, leftovers–the short bus skulkers have grown up and “blossomed” into conservatives, Republicans, tea baggers and torture apologists. As clearly evidenced in posts 1 & 2.
The auto industry used to be a huge repeat & rock steady customer for newspapers.
Goldy, when was the last time you bought a classified ad in the Seattle Times?
And with that, I believe I just won this argument.
So you agree that the american educational system is failing, good. At least that proves you are able to see a failing democrat government program.
What can be done to fix it? Of course you can throw more money at the program and hope that this time more money helps.
Considering the connection between teachers, teacher unions and the democrat party, do you feel that taking politics out of education would be a step in the right direction?
Would allowing the students to form a union so when the corporate fat cats in the educational system make decisions that the interests of the students would finally be considered. I know you support teacher unions being involved in how the money is spent, what about the kids.
And why do government employees need unions?
Why worry about this, the Kentucky Derby is about to start in 15 minutes or so.
Here is my exacta box…
Pioneer of the Nile
Papa Clem
Hold Me Back
In addition, I’m betting Pioneer of the Nile to win & place.
PS–
Y’all know my track record on pickin’ stuff.
The only pickin’ I’m real good at is my nose.
I;m not sure when goldy spent money on an ad, but a google search for goat sex goldy donation did find a craigslist ad.
http://seattle.craigslist.org/.....66111.html
Personal responsibility? Is this HA or a blog with actual thought? I was getting disoriented for a moment.
Oh, I get it. Personal responsiblity only applies if it’s an evil businessman. If it is a welfare rat or a fool taking out too much debt for a trip to Cabo or a 4000 square foot house he can’t afford that doesn’t count.
That makes sense, now.
@14 Geez, Cynical, you’re a fucking genius! That is, any sentient person with an internet connection could do a cursory search of the phrase “Kentucky Derby odds” and come up with exactly the same horses. If you’re really smart you’ll correctly predict which one is gonna break a leg.
Racehorses have weak ankles for the same reason conservatives have weak minds: Inbreeding.
Nearly all of the horses in today’s Kentucky Derby are descendants of Native Dancer.
When enough generations of hillbillies keep fucking their sisters you get a clan that has both weak minds and weak legs. The GOP is living proof of that.
This may not be the best time to be a newspaper reporter. Unless, that is, you have an independent source of income. Then, when the doorbell rings and the postman hands you a certified letter from your employer, instead of swallowing your heart, you do cartwheels and handsprings! When you don’t need the job, getting fired is the best thing that can happen to you! You get to sleep in every day! You get six months of unemployment bennies! And best of all, you get huge tax breaks for not working!! Take it from me, nothing beats getting fired from a job and not working anymore, when you don’t have to work! I love being unemployed!!! Frankly, I don’t see why anyone works under this fucked-up tax system we have that punishes workers and rewards loafers like me with a two-thirds discount on my income taxes. It doesn’t make any damn sense. But then, nothing Republicans do ever did.
One of the reasons the Seattle Times may fail, is people are using Craigslist to place classified ads instead of newspapers. So my point was, if Goldy isn’t buying classified ads from the Seattle Times, he is part of the problem.
I say Pioneer of the Nile will not win the Kentucky Derby! Horse races aren’t that predictable. Something always goes wrong. Just ask John McCain.
I say Chocolate Candy will win! If there was a horse named Carrots in the race, I’d pick him, but since there’s no Carrots I’ll settle for Chocolate Candy.
See? What did I tell you? Cynical, you’re an idiot!! You should’ve put your money on the longshot. But what can you expect from a guy who lies about trading in and out of a bank stock? A bank stock, for God’s sake!
Mine That Bird, 60 to 1, wins the Kentucky Derby in a “spectacular upset.” Remember that the next time Cynical tries to give you investing advice!
9500 bucks. That’s what the owner paid for the Kentucky Derby winner. You just gotta know how to pick ’em, Cynical — and obviously you don’t.
Your horse wasn’t even in the fucking race, Cynical! Mine That Bird just blew him away! Your horse looked like he was walking!! Mine That Bird wins, shows, and places!!! The other horses were half a mile behind. Sorta like the 2008 election.
My horse, Chocolate Candy, was 5th. That was a darn impressive pick for a horse far down in the odds, if I do say so myself! Any dummy could have picked Pioneer of the Nile and Papa Clem! Ya gotta know something about running! Rabbits know more about running than Cynical does. So does Forrest Gump.
so the media sings the synchophant songs of the fascists, and stupid shits like troll think they’re thinking instead of repeating what they’ve been told to … ha ha ha… ‘think’,
and millions of us find sources of news, INSTEAD of fascist fucking lies
and the owners of the fascist rags go outta business? WHAT THE FUCK? I thought it was just us peeee-on workers who paid for shitty management? After all, this is America, where, for every inventor of google or pencillin who gets rich, there are 100 aristocrat parasites fighting to stay in charge…with the aid of the idiots like troll.
too bad management isn’t paid for performance – like, if 3 or 5 months or years after you leave the company is on its ass, you owe ALL the money you fucking stole – cuz, you sure as hell didn’t EARN it!
rmm.
@26 Cynical’s oddsmaking on the Kentucky Derby straight out of the pages of Sports Illustrated demonstrates these wingnuts’ inability to think for themselves.
Rog–
Your chronic illness has impacted your alleged mind. Nothing you say is true anymore. Just rambling stuff you make up.
My #1 pick was the 3rd choice at 6-1
My other 2 picks were 12-1 and one finsihed 4th.
Your 10-1 pick finished 5th.
I lost $60 on a $10 exacta box.
But I won $108 on a $20 win–$40 place bet on Pioneer of the Nile.
Net result +$48
If you had bet just one the winner you mentioned, you would have lost.
Are you getting enough air??
Suck harder on your inhaler.
@28 I didn’t bet on the race, Cynical, so I didn’t lose a dime. Any idiot can pick the top-seeded horses like you did. I called this race correctly: I said Pioneer of the Nile would not win! And he didn’t. Furthermore, the long-odds horse I picked finished ahead of all the other nobodies. You can’t pick ’em any better than that, Cynical. As a rabbit, I know something about running! As a fat bow-legged goatfucker, you don’t know squat about running.
So is it the “liberal bias” at Faux News that caused a 56% percent decline in their year-over-year revenue?
Man publicans are just such stupid fucks.
I’ll give Cyn credit where it’s due for the place bet, good call. This year’s derby was pretty much crap anyway, and things weren’t helped when I Want Revenge was scratched due to a bad ankle. ESPN Radio told the story as I was pulling into the MontBleu up at Lake Tahoe at 6am while running my courier route. Believe it or not, there were a handful of horse players there already, and nobody was happy when I’d told them what I’d just heard on the radio. But a brave move on the part of the horse’s owners, because nobody wants to see another Eight Belles again.