July 31, 2018

Bad days for New York City newspapers

NY Times - Once upon a time, The Daily News sold more than two million papers a day. Now its circulation is only about a tenth of that, and the paper’s non-hometown owner, the Chicago-based media company Tronc, which bought the paper last year, does not have the patience for non-profitability that the prior owner, Mortimer B. Zuckerman, did.

At a cultural moment when the very idea of New York City as a hometown is quickly dissolving, and when most people get their news from some sort of glowing screen, the thirst for local ink is not what it used to be.

.... The New York Post, The Daily News’s longtime rival for tabloid dominance, has seen its circulation plummet, too. Rupert Murdoch, whose News Corporation owns The Post, has long tolerated the paper’s unprofitability, but there may come a time when his successors have far less stomach for red ink.

The digital landscape for local news media in New York is also unsettled. DNAinfo and Gothamist, two popular news sites, were shut down last year by their owner, Joe Ricketts, the billionaire founder of TD Ameritrade. Gothamist has since re-emerged under new ownership, but in a less expansive form.

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