Obnoxious Newspaper Bailout Begins

Senator Kerry isn't cutting Arthur Sulzburger a fat check or anything so obvious, but make no mistake: the newspaper bailout is on. Washington Governor Chris Gregoire today approved a 40% tax cut for that state's newspaper printers and publishers. The Seattle Times buried the news in a tiny, seven-line item on its local news page. It's not prudent to gloat, afterall. The Washington law follows a hearing held by Senator Kerry on the "Future Of Journalism" and the President's remarks during the annual White House correspondent's dinner that "a government without newspapers, a government without a tough and vibrant media of all sorts is not an option for the United States of America.” We favor a government without newspapers and Monday we came up with 9 one-line reason this kind of bailout is a terrible idea. Briefly, they were: It's bad to reward outdated businesses based on outdated tech. Newspapers delivery trucks don't run on water. Just because newspapers go away doesn't means sources will. Newspapers employ just 0.2 percent of the nation’s labor force. 66% of people get their news from TV. Newspaper owners think Google is a parasite. Ask them when they last bought a paper, much less subscribed. A government subsidized "free press" isn't a "free press" at all. Here's a new one, for good measure: As newspapers go away, a shrinking supply of ad inventory will drive up ad prices, rewarding innovative new media. Join the conversation about this story » See Also: Newspapers Must Be Allowed To Fail Of Course There's Going To Be A Newspaper Bailout (NYT, WPO) The Death Of Newspapers, On TV

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