Twice in one day I’ve heard about the pending layoffs and cut backs at the Virginian-Pilot, Hampton Road’s primary print media source.
I had lunch today with a former employee. He mentioned the pending doom. Then this evening, I get an email from another former writer for The Pilot, John-Henry Doucette.
He wrote a blog entry discussing the layoffs, with little detail but more than was mentioned at lunch today.
But it’s going to be more than a few folks who have worked a lot of years for the best and absolutely-most-important media outlet in Hampton Roads.
“They’re just going to turn this thing into a shopper,” one disheartened staffer told me. “There’s not going to be anything left.”
Several remarks by John-Henry were obviously from an “insiders” perspective and would only mean something to people in the know. But the bottom line is, they are cutting back. Way back.
I have taken my share of swipes at the Virginian-Pilot. Some of their editorial writers are, in my opinion, so far out to lunch they will never make it back before supper. I disagree with most, some of the time and some, most of the time.
Columnists are in the same boat. Some yes some no, all sometimes. John-Henry was one of those. I disagreed with John-Henry on several of his columns and a few of his articles when he was covering the Portsmouth Courts/Crime beat.
But that never stopped us from enjoying a laugh and a joke standing out by the Courthouse during the week.
Jen McCaffrey, same thing. Though I almost blew it big time with her just this week. Due to a misunderstanding on her part, an overly defensive and mostly juvenile stance on my part, we had a minor email kerfuffle. It all worked out in the end, but Jen? I still feel like a butt, but thank you for being so gracious. Matt Roy, Ron Crow… never met you guys but spent some amount of time on the phone with you. Hope all of you fair ok tomorrow.
At lunch today, the talk turned to the “new media” and its affect on print media. My lunch companion and I came to the conclusion that blogs are far less powerful than what most bloggers tell themselves, and the print media is going to remain mostly unscathed by their proliferation. The economy however is something alltogether different.
I mentioned that there is “just something” about grabbing a cup of coffee, a couch cushion, and “today’s paper” and kicking back. It’s most enjoyable on a Saturday or Sunday morning. It’s tactile. He mentioned the sound and feel of tearing out a particular article from the paper, and sticking it on the fridge with some over-sized magnet of Bozo the Clown or other silliness. Its tactile.
My thoughts now are going to the old newspaper clippings one might find in our grand mother’s bible. Or stashed in an envelope in a shoebox in the closet. The feel, the sound of the newsprint rustling in the box. The yellowed paper and faded ink, and sometimes almost indiscernible typeface.
No I don’t think newspapers are going the way of dinasours. It’s an age old communications medium, but it is not going to die of old age. But I do believe their refusal, or at least reluctance to shift paradigms is going to give them a bruising.
But not until the economy takes it’s shots first.
Best of luck to the (soon to be) former staff of the Virginian-Pilot. I wish you all the best in the future.
