In channel surfing this afternoon I found the president of the OC Register addressing a group at OC Forum. In his presentation Terry Horne, president of the Register, put a positive face on the state of his industry during a very challenging time for those engaged in the world of print media. He stated that newspapers have lost $5 billion in want ads since 2000. Mr Horne said we must be “cheaper, better, faster” and offer solutions not products for our customers. He went on to say that “we are dealing with a significant revenue decline” citing competitors such as Craig’s List and others. He later stated that “newspapers are not a dying medium” but did admit that “it is a painful transition.”
In reference to the Internet he mentioned their daily web called “The Juice.” Note: That web site is not related to the Orange Juice blog which was created by Art Pedroza prior to the Register joining those of us who blog on the Internet.
Mr. Horne had some positive numbers to share with his audience such as the four percent increase in daily home delivery and having 500 new advertisers based on a new concept in frequency over volume ad rates. He said they are engaged in re-engineering the paper and stripping out costs to provide a better ROI for their customers.
Between their website and their print media the Register reaches 55 percent of the people who live or work in Orange County.
In closing let me paraphrase president Horne who said something that hits home. Without the print media who will stand up and challenge our government?
For additional information you may contact 949.588.9884. The KDOC program referenced above was on www.ocforum.org.
We were also told to keep our eyes out for a new local search directory in partnership with firms including Amazon to be found at www.orangecounty.com.
Gilbert comments: Months ago I stated that Internet bloggers have had a major advantage over the daily print media in that we could break or cover stories in a matter of minutes, not wait until the morning edition of the paper arrives on our driveways, to see what was happening in our back yards or the rest of the world. The Register recognized that fact and have shifted their focus as admitted by Terry when he said they have now engaged in a “web first policy” for their news reporting. Just as there is room for a multitude of blogs in Orange County, we do need to have our own daily newspaper which has a role to play in serving the 3 million who reside in OC.
While all of us hit the keyboard at the same time, we still have an advantage when it relates to local stories. The local reporters are very cautious about writing anything negative about the cities they cover for fear of being cut out of news stories. I might also point out that they do not engage in the old fashioned investigative reporting to make sure that they touch all the bases. As bloggers we are not beholden to anyone. And while we try our best to verify the facts contained in our stories, lacking the same resources of the print media we may not be perfect but hopefully do not engage in false reporting.
While we have become a powerhouse in the blogosphere, I still enjoy it when the media takes our government to the woodshed. Let us not forget that their circulation is huge as compared to the number of daily hits that we are able to reach. For that reason alone I do not wish to see the demise of the OC Register.
Well, the OC Register is so bad that it probably would be best if it died.
I arrived at this conclusion a couple years back, when, after a fire in the Chemistry building at UCI, a completely clueless reporter from the OC Register basically accused UCI and the Fire Marshall of negligence because there were no sprinklers in the building.
In a letter to the editor I pointed out that anybody with common sense would know that water and certain chemicals don’t mix all that well… Of course, the letter wasn’t printed.
My conclusion from this episode: a newspaper that employs reporters who seem to have slept through basic high school classes is, quite frankly, not worth supporting.
Register President Terry Horne is obliged to put a little bit of a smile face on his industry’s dliemma, but it won’t work.
Here are the facts and numbers. In their heyday, metro newspapers boasted of independently audited circulation figures which distinquished them from empty claims by weeklies, shoppers and small dailies. The audit bureau of circulation still independently verifies paid newspaper circulation (subscriptions and single copy sales), showing steady declines in paid circulation for the Register, Times and mostly all daily newspapers.
Now Horne is making the same type of general claims (55 percent combined readersship for print and website) his industry used to mock its competitors for making.
The ABC is supposed to count only discounted paid circulation that is 50 percent or greater than the regular rate. After cancelling my Register subscription of about $23 per month 7-day delivery, I was enticed back with an offer of $26 for the entire year! That is less than 10 percent of the full price. So if the publisher is counting my subscription among his claimed increase in subs, then his is ignoring ABC. Perhaps ABC has softened its rules to try to preserve the newpaper industry and its own existance.
Either way 50 cents per week is a virtual giveaway, the same desperation of the evening dailies before they disappeared from big cities and the suburbs.
An independent survey conducted by the city of Mission Viejo, only 15 percent of respondents said they get their local news from the Register/Saddleback Valley News. And than was down from 19 percent from a survey two years earlier.
The Saddleback Valley News Wednesday edition is down to 12 pages and should not be considered as a separate newspaper, but more as an insert into the daily.
Larry is on target on newspaper reporters putting government’s spin on stories.
Allan Pilger
Newspapers, if properly guided and directed can be a huge public benefit. They can attend public forums, follow up on police reports, chase errant corrupt politicians and follow the basic carnage of daily living: Including; Fires, Earthquakes, Taxes and New Government rules and regulations. All of which are not usually covered by your basic bloggers in either detail or perhaps even correctly – non-partisanly!
*One last thought:
“If you don’t read the newspaper you are uninformed; If you do read the newspaper you are misinformed.” — Mark Twain.