By Joshua Chaffin
Financial Times
Published: 10/16/2006
Excerpt:
Talks about the future of the US newspaper industry tend to revolve around two cities these days.
There
is Los Angeles, where staff at the Los Angeles Times last month
rebelled against a distant corporate owner. And there is Chicago, home
to that same owner, the Tribune Company, where a special committee is
considering breaking up the group's newspaper and television properties
to satisfy frustrated shareholders.
But a better place to divine the future of the industry may be Florida,
where the St. Petersburg Times has been attracting increasing attention
for its innovative ownership structure. Unlike most US papers, the St.
Petersburg Times is not part of a big, publicly held corporation. It is
controlled by a local non-profit foundation dedicated to the teaching
and promotion of journalism. ...
... While Tribune's publicly owned papers have
made repeated cuts to their newsrooms to assuage Wall Street's demands
for ever-increasing profits, the St. Petersburg Times' private ownership
has kept it relatively insulated. ...
... Paul
Tash, the editor, said: "These are challenging times for everybody.
There are some challenges we face down here at the St. Petersburg Times
as well. But we have some great advantages." Other publishers have
taken notice. In Alabama and New Hampshire, newspapers are trying to
recreate the St. Petersburg Times's model. It could also come to Los
Angeles. Eli Broad, the wealthy philanthropist who has expressed
interest in buying the Los Angeles Times, has reached out to the folks
in St Petersburg to learn how they do business.
More of this article...
Search Google News for more quotes by Paul Tash...
