Last week, New York Times Co, parent company of the Boston Globe, threatened to shut down the Globe if the newspaper's 13 unions failed to agree to $20M in concessions. Even though 50 full-time jobs were recently cut from the Globe, Management told union leaders that it stands to lose $85M in revenue for 2009, up from $50M in 2008. So, let's engage the worst-case scenario: What if we engage the worst-case scenario: NYTCo. shutters the Globe. Then what?
Yes, there's the Boston Herald. But the Herald isn't the lone ranger out there. Gatehouse also has a stake in the local newspaper biz.. Still, maybe this isn't about the mainstream papers getting their acts together. Think about this: over the past five years, Boston has developed its own particular flavor in the blogosphere with continual growth in a variety of hyperlocal journalism and content niches. Could Boston and its surrounding metros survive without the Globe?
Cambridge resident Rick Burnes seems to think so, esp. after he read a report in the Boston Business Journal about talks regarding how to save the Globe if the worst-case scenario were to come to pass. "We shouldn't be asking how to save The Globe," Burnes says in his post, "we should be asking how we'll build its replacement."
Burnes goes on to suggest that the Boston Foundation follow the model of the Knight Foundation's News Challenge grant and give some money to worthwhile "experiments" in journalism and information delivery (Placeblogger.com is one of those happy grant recipients.) How about some money to guys like Adam Gaffin at Universal Hub , or the folks at Commonwealth Unbound , or Robert Winters of Cambridge Civic Journal or the other numerous blogs and independent civic sites throughout Boston and the surrounding metro area?
It shouldn't be just about saving the Boston Globe, but about growing the hyperlocal ecosystem that already has some vital roots.
Think about it
Update According to this article in today's New York Times on the matter: Members of the Boston Newspaper Guild, hearing the company’s proposals for the first time, said they accepted the need for cuts, but were shocked at how much the company was asking. And they said the company had refused to provide details of The Globe's finances. That doesn't seem quite fair, considering the 50 job cuts that happened just recently. Employees should have the right to know what a company's finances are if they are being asked to make a great sacrifice for the sake of the company.
Comments