shrivelling newspapers

Since I hadn’t been back to the USA since January 2007, I noticed the Shrivelling Newspapers Phenomenon for the first time in Atlanta in April, then again in Chicago in May, and once more this morning in Los Angeles. Newspapers are becoming tiny and mediocre.

I’m of course aware of the historical reasons for this, but it’s still a shock. I’ve already lived through the downfall of the Big Three TV networks, which were still awesomely powerful in the 1970’s and even a bit into the 1980’s before cable TV’s selections and, I daresay, VCR’s began cutting into their control over our time. Everyone watched The Love Boat and Fantasy Island back-to-back on, what was it?, Thursday nights? Now there are no collective national viewing experiences except major sporting events, big Presidential speeches, and live catastrophes on CNN and Fox. (Well, I guess I’m oversimplifying. There’s also garbage like American Idol and reality shows, and better things like new Simpsons episodes.)

In any case, the newspapers are a pitiful sight. It was especially painful in Chicago, not because the two papers were ever that great, but because nothing beat picking up copies of both and spending an hour or so with them over coffee somewhere on a Chicago morning in around 1994. Hell, the Sun Times building doesn’t even exist anymore. Donald Trump tore it down and put up a 95-floor skyscraper there.