2009-06-26

Decline of newspapers

This past year we saw the Seattle PI shut down the press. Denver's Rocky Mountain news also shut down. I commented on some of those issues here.

As the summer approaches we see the continuing impact of the disappearance of newspapers.

Today I saw Alton Brown's Good Eats episode, "Tender is the Pork." Alton is of course, awesome. He is also nuts. But still awesome. Regardless, he grilled a pork tenderloin over charcoal. He used a chimney starter. And how did he get that chimney starter going?

Newspaper.

When I was a kid I got my mother a parakeet for her birthday one year. (The cat got a big kick out of that.) What lined the bottom of the cage?

Newspaper.

In 1998, I moved from Boise to Seattle. I boxed up my clothes, disassembled my electronics, and wrapped up my dishes (mainly Travel Lodge and Best Western glasses) in what else?

Newspaper.

Forget journalism.

Without newspaper, what else are we are going to use when we have to burn something, clean up animal waste, or keep other stuff from breaking?

We must stop reading news online and go back to the newspaper just so we have something we can use to line our boxes and refuse containers.

What choice do we have?

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow, your post just put me under a charm. What a picture of the newspaper! I understand that my awe has nothing in common with the reply to your question "
What choice do we have?" yet let me thank you the hot for the return of the smile to my eyes while facing the sunset of the beliefs that headed us till now.
Your "Decline of newspapers" is the real masterpiece. That is like art canvas where the colors talk and voice the Time in the silence of the showroom

Jan from BetterSpines said...

Well, newspapers have not had much "news" for quite a while. Advertising, hype, misinformation certainly, but very little genuine journalistic news. So that's why newspapers are good for the uses you suggest. Maybe we could buy blank ones for the same price? Instead of wasting ink.

Joyuna said...

I looove Alton Brown! Good Eats is my favorite show at the Food Network.

Newspapers may be in decline but there will always be some around... There's at least 5 free papers circulating at my college campus. No shortage of packaging material or waste paper here.

Not John Chow said...

Egads! They will now sell newspaper at Wallmart as a replacement!

yanjiaren said...

I like newspapers. Thank God even though My Hubby rads some Chinese news online, he always likes to grab a paper to read as well on his day off. I think it is sad that so many traditional things are getting lost along with many jobs too. I ALSO wanted to say a humongous thanks for advertising on my blog, made my day. I am awaiting funds to upload on CMF so i can do the same. God bless.

Cromely said...

@artbytomas: Well that's just what I was going for.

@Jan from BetterSpines: I am concerned about the coming lack of local journalism. We have to figure out a way to profitably separate the process of journalism from the medium it is delivered in.

@Joy: That's it. Maybe I'll wander over to the UW next time I need paper.

@Not John Chow: You mean I'll actually have to go to WMT?

@yanjiaren: It seems the only ones I actually read these days on the Sunday papers. And that's for the non-news stuff.

Daisy said...

lol. that's a funny way of looking at things. But you have a point! ;-)