Sunday, May 10, 2009

Concern over newspaper scale back (in Flint)

The Flint Journal, as far as I know the only newspaper that serves that city, is going to a 3-day/wk. publication schedule.

Strangely - or not - the paper reports that the biggest concern has been about obituaries.

Changes coming in June to The Flint Journal include a comprehensive strategy to ensure current obituary information is available, even as the newspaper moves to a three-day-a-week print schedule.

"Access to up-to-date obituaries has been the top concern I've heard from our readers," said John Hiner, executive editor of The Journal, The Saginaw News and The Bay City Times. "We've listened, and we think we have a solution that covers all the bases."

Obituaries will continue to appear in the newspaper on publication days of Thursday, Friday and Sunday. Also, death notices will be posted daily through an obituary link on the newspaper's Web site, http://www.mlive.com/.

I remember, when I was a little girl, going to pick the paper up from the front lawn. It was always tightly wrapped in reddish paper, into a roll.

In fact, I do believe there is a photo somewhere of a much smaller version of me standing in my grandparents' driveway, clutching a roll of Journal.

I look exactly the same now as I did then, except for the much smaller part.

3 comments:

Dick Monahan said...

The choice of Sunday seems obvious, but why do you suppose they chose Thursday & Friday for the other two days? I would think spacing them out would be better; i.e., maybe Tuesday & Friday, or Tuesday & Thursday.

But, it probably doesn't matter. I don't think it will work.

Gillian Swart said...

Dick, I could find no explanation for the days.

I agree that Thurs. and Fri. seem like strange days to pick. But then, I know people like to send out news releases and such late in the week (esp. if it's something controversial like a landfill decision or mayors applying for other jobs).

Politicians and other governmental folks know how to work the press so I guess the paper is working from some acknowledgment of that.

Dick Monahan said...

Tucked into this AM's Globe was a card informing us that the delivered price is going up from about $1.20 a day to about $2.00 a day on June 1. I will guess that the newstand price will go to at least $2.00 a day, also.

Of course, the delivery person, who no longer gets the paper onto the porch, added a tip envelope to the package.