Editors of BJ, PD, Rep bullish on papers

BJ staff writer Bill Lilley’s entire story on the Akron Press Club is reprinted here. Also check out Abe Zaidan's comments on his blog Grumpy Abe.

By Bill Lilley
Beacon Journal staff writer
The Internet isn't going away. Nor are newspapers.

The bullish view of newspapers was shared by Beacon Journal Editor and Vice President Bruce Winges, Cleveland Plain Dealer Editor Susan Goldberg and Canton Repository Executive Editor Jeff Gauger at Wednesday's Akron Press Club meeting at the University of Akron. The topic was The State of Ohio Newspapers.

''They are changing, but they are never going to leave us,'' Goldberg said. ''Our paper and manufacturing costs are huge and we will see some communities without newspapers.

''But you've got 76 million baby boomers and they all have a very high comfort level holding their newspaper.''

Winges said the drop in advertising revenue has forced newspapers to be more efficient.

While the cuts have been painful, Winges said, he believes there is a path for renewed success.

''If you want to survive and be in a unique position, you have to focus on local news,'' he said.

Winges said an example of the industry's willingness to be creative is the Ohio News Organization, a collaboration of the eight largest newspapers in Ohio that shares stories and works on joint projects.

''We are looking toward the future and finding ways to survive, and this is one of the ways,'' Winges said. ''We're all about trying to get good stories to our readers.''

Goldberg said the days when the industry ''basically gave the paper away'' and let the advertisers carry the financial burden may be over.

''A greater and greater proportion of the revenue has shifted to subscriptions,'' she said. ''If you're willing to pay $3.50 for coffee at Starbucks, why wouldn't you pay $2 for a paper?

''We will end up with a smaller group of people, but they will be people who really want the paper and will be willing to pay for the content, which costs money to produce.''

There may be a need to produce stories quicker to compete with the various sources of news, but the editors all agreed that the careful, quality work of journalists at newspapers is irreplaceable.

''The last story we do will be an investigative story,'' Goldberg said. ''Nobody else will do the story the way we can do it with our expertise and resources.

''Google doesn't have reporters at city hall.''

Winges said the Beacon Journal also remains committed to investigative journalism.

''What's critical is that we maintain our independence as a newsroom,'' Gauger said, ''so that we are not beholden to anybody or anything.

''The changes in newspapers are a temporary adjustment to a temporary problem. The content and the size of the papers will continue to change. But I'm in my late 40s and I believe that we'll have newspapers throughout my entire career.''

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