# Sorry, But Newspapers Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere

- Link: https://chatterblast.com/blog/sorry-but-newspapers-aint-goin-nowhere/
- Published: 2016-06-24T16:44:31-04:00
- Author: chatterblastteam

I received an interesting email last week.

It contained a link to the **U.S. Department of Labor**’s website, and to a page
innocuously called [“_Employment trends in newspaper publishing and other media, 1990–2016_”](http://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2016/employment-trends-in-newspaper-publishing-and-other-media-1990-2016.htm).
The piece features all sorts of data and charts tracing the shifting sizes of employment
pools in various media industries in the United States. Below, you’ll find the big-
time takeaway.[⌊Screen Shot 2016-06-21 at 1.32.04 PM⌉](https://chatterblast.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screen-Shot-2016-06-21-at-1.32.04-PM.png)

_BLS.gov_

We’ve all been watching this state of media affairs unfold over the past decade,
but seeing the number of digital-only jobs _surpass_ print for the first time raises
some questions about the future of traditional media.

In another life, I entered the alternative-weekly newspaper world as an editorial
intern-turned-contributing writer at the [now-folded **_Philadelphia City Paper_**](http://www.citylab.com/work/2015/10/the-alt-weekly-death-spiral-strikes-philadelphia/408502/).
To be invested in the inner workings of Philly media, it was distressing to watch
a **very talented **(_I believe CP took home something like 19 Keystone Awards in
2015_) team of editors, reporters, writers and designers suddenly be told their 
place of employment will cease to exist, effective immediately, last fall. But _City
Paper_ was certainly [not the first beloved alt-weekly](http://archive.boston.com/culturedesk/2013/03/14/boston-phoenix-close/QqQzavbEwKfG70lq9GCWVO/story.html)
to disappear lately, and will likely not be the last.  

> 💽💾💿📀💽💾💿📀 [pic.twitter.com/xYc9DsPfQm](https://t.co/xYc9DsPfQm)
> — alli katz (@allikatz) [June 21, 2016](https://twitter.com/allikatz/status/745313941757300736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

_Illustration and tweet by Alli Katz/@allikatz_

Newspapers, and print media as a whole, may just be headed into a new direction.

### **But First, Consider Vinyl Records for a Moment**󠀁[⏎  ⏎  󠀁[⌊vinyl-records-945396_960_720⌉](http://chatterblast.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/vinyl-records-945396_960_720.jpg)󠁿

_These big discs have surged in popularity among niche audiences in recent years._

We see a marriage of old and new habits happening already, and in _many_ markets.
Music publication and _consumption _in particular continues to forego [the process of pressing physical items](https://www.yahoo.com/music/life-pablo-death-traditional-album-150723890.html)
in place of digital downloads and streaming services. Think about it: When was the
last time you thought to yourself, _“I’d like to go to the store and buy a CD today.”_?

But as traditional medium sales continue to decline, overall culture has begun to
place a greater value on older analogue formats. In this case we’re talking about
the resurgence of vinyl records and, to a much lesser extent, cassette tapes, among
more avid music collectors and fans of owning things that are pretty. Now, popular
outlets like **Urban Outfitters** and **Barnes & Noble** have fairly large vinyl
offerings, catering to a demographic that values aesthetic and tactile reward, all
the while embracing the fact that it is 2016.

Record labels include digital download codes with their vinyl sales. **Crosley**
and **Technics** now manufacture turntables that feature Bluetooth and USB integration.
This industry has capitalized on the way the market has changed not by fighting 
it, but by _evolving _with it.

### **It’s Kind of the Same for the News**

[⌊2012_newspaper_reader_Santa_Cruz_Argentina_7133646327⌉⌊2012_newspaper_reader_Santa_Cruz_Argentina_7133646327⌉[

_The bold prediction we’re making here is that the newspaper industry will similarly
cater to niche audiences, sort of like this guy._

This is the direction the print news industry has been moving in, and should continue
to do so. Recognizing that the internet and digital publishing will only increase
in ubiquity, these big print companies must be constantly finding answers to the
question of how to successfully adapt to an ever-increasingly digital world. Answers
have included:

 * Pairing full digital access with a print subscription, a la the **_New York Times_**
   and **_The Wall Street Journal_**
 * Differentiating the print product’s content offerings from the digital alternative
   through design, diversity in stories and more, thus creating _demand_
 * Modeling editorial strategy to appeal to digital audiences
 * Doubling down on the _experience_ of print, and emphasizing that experience as(
   ironically) intangible and irreplaceable

From a marketing point of view (that is kinda what we do at ChatterBlast, after 
all), it’s that last point that Big Newspaper should be investing in; a strategy
for publishers that hones in on the pleasure and increasingly “old-world” connection
and ritualistic nature that comes with the process and experience of reading a newspaper,
whether it’s with the aroma of bacon frying in the kitchen or accompanied by a latte
in the airport terminal.

Romanticism, and playing to our _feelings_, has certainly kept fluctuating industries
alive. _(See: aforementioned dorks who collect records, or why we still choose to
spend money at a movie theater over streaming films from home.)_

While print media is constantly adapting in the Wild West of the internet, the advantage
it will always have over digital is simple: Turning a page will always elicit a 
response that tapping a screen never will.