This from "The Portland Business Journal":

http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/08/18/daily43.html

Who reads the actual paper anymore? It's all free online!

This is why they need to publish more than just stripped down news stories.

Get some good opinion in the paper, weave the facts together and make some conclusions people can ponder and discuss. Tell us some interesting stories! When they do this, I like to read those, and I like to read them offline when it makes sense too.

BTW: Those things endure past a single daily news cycle. As it stands right now, little of the content of the paper is worth it past the day it's published. That's Internet stuff. Paper costs too much for that. Publish more things that endure beyond a single day, and suddenly that paper has some value beyond just daily consumption.

Don't put those online and they will be worth reading the paper for.

This applies to TV news and other venues now competing with Internet media.

ANYBODY can just publish news briefs and AP retreads. That's rapidly becoming worthless, the AP attempts to charge for quotes aside.

Perhaps we don't need a NEWSPAPER anymore as NEWS is freely available from both established media and ordinary people.

I think we continue to need informed and entertaining commentary that is relevant to where we live. That's not always available, and if it is, it's often overlooked.

They have strong community ties and know who is who. So why not leverage that and publish some stuff that's not gonna be easily found online?

That will be a clear differentiator that makes a purchase of the paper something worth greater consideration.

I still have a subscription. I can't help myself. It's in my DNA.I need my newspaper fix every morning with my cup of coffee. I think I'm only paying $8 per month for daily and Sunday.

Doing the snap-fold thing. Turning the pages between gulps of coffee. Leaning over the paper at the dining room table, perusing the box scores for yesterday's MLB games. Searching for the "Parade" magazine in the big pile of Sunday ad supplements. Using the newspaper as passive/aggressive paper wall when the Mrs. says, "We need to talk. . ."

Some people can't stop smoking. I can't stop my Oregonian subscription.

It's all free online!

Once newspapers are gone, it won't be free anymore.

There was a time when people thought television would replace radio. Didn't happen. Simiarly the prediction of the death of newspapers is premature. The newspaper offers many people a certain confort zone. Who wants to surf the net sitting on the John?

Who reads the actual paper anymore?

(raises hand)

The only reason I still get a paper every day of the week is because I live in a house with some daily newspaper carriers. The particular depot they deliver out of lets carriers have a freebie in addition to the non-inflation-adjusted amount they get per copy of the paper they deliver.

I still read it everyday... not cover-to-cover, but enough to understand what's going on (at least according to the zero). I usually disagree with the opinion page, and I have heard that some have canceled their subscriptions over it (frankly, because they feel the editors views are too conservative, understand that a portion of subscription proceeds go to their salaries, and therefore decide they don't want the paper anymore).

I've always had the O delivered to my house daily. I wouldn't ever consider canceling it.

I do as well.

Same here.

How do you read the paper?

Me:
Frontpage - editorials
Business
Sports - glance/toss
And save the best for last:
Metro
Living

P.S. I F'ing HATE the new "How We Live"!!!
I want "The Edge" on the front page and gossip/advice on page 2.

And I really F'ing hate the "newer" Food Day with the new editor...I used to cut recipes out every week, now it's just a bunch of recipes that are hard to make, take all day to prepare and have ingredients like "eye of newt" and a bunch of other fancy-schmancy crap you need to go to some obscure place to get for $128 an ounce.

The Boregonian is not "Gourmet" Magazine. But it wants to be, and they're catering to all the rich bourgeois ultra groovy "foodies" who probably don't consider the lowly newspaper their bible for fine dining. Finally they touted "Dinners with 5 ingredients" on the front page last week and there were only 3 crummy recipes not worth saving. Something with zucchini?

A&E is a joke and a mess to decipher...

OK, I'll stop ranting. I have to have my "Pearls before Swine" and "Mutts" and "Get Fuzzy".

I wish I could afford to get the Bend Bulletin by mail everyday.

Inthemiddle: "Who reads the actual paper anymore? It's all free online!"

We don't and never have.

When our kids were younger they would have destroyed the paper for other creative endeavors. The house was already filled with enough masking tape displays, glue gun disasters and some sparkly stuff we'll never be able to remove.

I always read The O. Delivered too. When I travel, I have someone save the paper for me. When I do travel, I like to read the papers in the places I'm at. There are surprisingly decent papers in places you'd least expect, Like Bismarck, ND. On the other hand, you don't have to go far for a disappointing read: The Statesman-Journal.

I hate "How We Live" too.

How do I read the paper?
-Toss the classifieds and any ads.
-Comics while the coffee's brewing.
-Business Section
-How We Live-the advice columns; TV: late show guests
-Front Section
-Sports
-Metro/Opinion

Sundays, I read the travel section first, followed by comics. Everything else about the same order as weekdays.

I toss the classifieds and ads before I touch the paper as well!

-Front Page
-Metro/opinion
-Business
-Sports
-Living if I'm super bored.

I also enjoy the Thursday local insert.

I F'ing HATE the new "How We Live"!!!
I caught a bit of subliminal messages the minute they started it.
'This is how we live. If you don't live like this, you're not one of us. You therefore have no reason for living here (in our opinion).'
I could care less about the latest rip-off movie, waste of time on TV, anything going on at anything "cultural" downtown, etc. And I definitely don't want to hear about how great Republicans are! (They seem to throw in something about that on the front page of the section every now and then.)

Have you noticed that a lot of religion/religious stuff has crept in on Page one of "How We, The Cool People, Live" on days beside Saturday, which it used to be on.

I also throw out the ads and classified before reading. I also go through my mags and toss/rip out any "hard paper" stuff and all the postcards and perfume ads. Grrr.

My 85 year old neighbor complains when a paper shows up she didn't order. Usa Today shows up and she thinks they will charge her for it!

Here's a little bit of inside info on newspaper delivery in the area.

The Oregonian has their own network of "independent" distributors. Their carriers deliver Oregonian publications, specifically the daily paper, FoodDay, MIX, and some home & garden publication. Carriers usually stick around for quite a while, and get the tips that subscribers pay.
As for the unrequested papers such as samples... some of the distributors will put a business card in the bag along with a card explaining it's a free sample subscription. If someone doesn't want it, they can call the number directly and the distributor will remove the address from the list. BTW, Calling the Oregonian directly about samples, unwanted FoodDays, etc., is useless, the phone reps in Downtown Portland will say "it's a free paper, you can't unsubscribe," and hang up on you.

Many other papers delivered in the area are delivered by a slimy in comparison outfit called "PCF." They used to be The New York Times' in-house national delivery service, but they expanded to include many other papers, including Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Financial Times, Investors' Business Daily, several Korean papers, and probably several others whose names escape me.
Carriers often spend most of the money they make in fuel costs (and the rest in self-employment taxes), there's extremely high turnover, and the papers keep the tips that subscribers think are going to the carriers (in fact, many of the carriers there spend their own money making fliers around Christmas in hopes the subscribers will send tips directly). BTW, PCF carriers get paid 10 cents per delivery and charged $1 per missed delivery... so if the 85-year-old neighbor calls the USA Today and explains she's not a subscriber but is getting their paper, each and every day she calls the carrier will be charged $1 (and can eventually lose their delivery contract) for it.

I was flabbergasted at seeing The Oregonian this morning. A compressed thickness of a mere 3/32". One of the skinniest ever!

In defense of The O., Mondays are the "skinniest" usually. Still, I thought today's paper was a good read for a Monday. And I was looking for the "cutback effect".

"In defense of The O., Mondays are the 'skinniest' usually."

As a 35 year subscriber, I agree. However, this morning's edition seemed particularly anorexic.

My grandparents jokingly used to call the Monday Oregonian the "Coquille Valley Post" for being so small.
As I was told, the Post was only eight pages back then (we're talking 3/4s a century ago), and was published weekly.

Well I found the first major cutback in "The Oregonian" on Sunday. Did any of you notice the "TV Click" section being thinner? The O has now discontinued the overnight daily listings from Midnight to 6am.

Thank goodness no one watches TV after midnight.

A little bird said thoughts of taking the buyout has crossed the minds of S. Renee Mitchell and Steve Duin.

Anybody else know who or what the bird is?

How do I read the paper?
-Toss the classifieds and any ads"

Save me the coupons!

Sorry, I have to save the Thomas Kincaid/Franklin Mint ads in 'Parade' for Craig Adams!

I'm praying that he'll buy me some new "Precious Moments" gee-gaws for Christmas!

Order Now! Send no Money! Easy Installments!

Yes, I noticed the anorexic TV section. Also gone are the detailed morning and mid-day listings. A note on page 2 suggested that readers who want full daily TV listings go to the zero's website. There are probably dozens of TV info. websites out there, why would the zero think anyone would view theirs?

IMO... dump cable listings. List 24/7 programming of local stations only.

Another thing I noticed was the four page Metro section on Saturday (and two of them being the opinion page).

Much more of this, and I might find a weekly trip to Vancouver to pick up a Columbian worth it.

IMO, S. Renee Mitchell would be no loss. When I lived in the suburbs, her columns didn't even appear in those zone editions. When I moved to Portland proper, I figured out why... just about every single column seemed to be about how anything who said anything against any minority was a racist by default, and the latest flak about how giving free TriMet bus pases to Jefferson and Lincoln H.S. students will solve all problems for high school students and won't give them a sense of entitlement (yeah, right!).

I still wonder about that lady she single-handedly got fired from Starbucks? Mitchell is a moron (regardless of race).

"Much more of this, and I might find a weekly trip to Vancouver to pick up a Columbian worth it.

"A Columbian"? What is he going to do for you?

I think you're referring to "The Columbian", aka the "The Cliff Notes". Its a daily paper you know, what day of the week is best to pick up "a Columbian"?

Yes, I'm referring to the newspaper:
columbian.com
(wow, I haven't seen their new website until now... nice! And it's always been better than the Oregonian's!)
Those I know call getting a newspaper "getting an Oregonian," (as in getting a copy of the paper) and I've referred to whatever newspaper by that since:
"A (Portland) Tribune"
"A (Newberg) Graphic"
"A (McMinnville) News-Register"
"A (Tigard) Times"
etc.

Mrs merkin: Sorry but I just picked You up (on sale) the new "Thomas Kincaid Seasons Greetings Plunger"!

Yes, now you'll be able to get into the Holiday Spirit even when things get plugged up!

Built into the handle is a tiny music player, filling the air with the festive holiday music such as "The Restroom Door Said, Gentlemen" & "The Little Plunger Boy" plus many more!

I know You can't wait 'til Christmas, so here's a sneak peek. Found this promotional picture featuring Thomas Kincaid demonstrating Your present:

http://www.goodmorningmaine.com/Rich%20With%20Plunger-1.jpg

Here's the latest news on The Oregonian's decline, reported in the September 10, 2008 Willamette Week:

MURMURS

"The Oregonian newsroom is buzzing over coordinating editor Quinton Smith leaving abruptly after Executive Editor Peter Bhatia blew up at him at a daily editors meeting late last week. Bhatia reportedly said “shut the fuck up” to Smith, who had asked when the meeting would end. Sources say Smith was frustrated at outside calls coming to his phone from the desk of the vacationing receptionist. Bhatia apparently tried to make amends later. But Smith, who’s worked at the paper for a couple dozen years, said forget it and told Editor Sandy Rowe he’s leaving and will take the buyout offered staffers last month by Publisher Fred Stickel. For more buyout updates, go to wweek.com"