The Print Media Thread (Books, Magazines, Newspapers, etc.)

[RGMike]

OK, it's a Rich Lieberman "scoop" so... grain of salt alert, but he sez things are not good at the Chronicle, folks are being asked to pay more for a crappy healthcare plan, just as the paper puts up a paywall on SFGate.com. Morale apparently is in the toilet. Oy.

[Lightnin' Rod]

OK, it's a Rich Lieberman "scoop" so... grain of salt alert, but he sez things are not good at the Chronicle, folks are being asked to pay more for a crappy healthcare plan, just as the paper puts up a paywall on SFGate.com. Morale apparently is in the toilet. Oy.

I was just checking out the subscription offers (my daily Jon Carroll is a habit I don't want to break), and they don't make a lot of sense.  Still thinking about it.

[RGMike]

OK, it's a Rich Lieberman "scoop" so... grain of salt alert, but he sez things are not good at the Chronicle, folks are being asked to pay more for a crappy healthcare plan, just as the paper puts up a paywall on SFGate.com. Morale apparently is in the toilet. Oy.

I was just checking out the subscription offers (my daily Jon Carroll is a habit I don't want to break), and they don't make a lot of sense.  Still thinking about it.

yeah, I assume Mark Morford is another that they want folks to pay for. Mick LaSalle... notsomuch. 

[urth]

OK, it's a Rich Lieberman "scoop" so... grain of salt alert, but he sez things are not good at the Chronicle, folks are being asked to pay more for a crappy healthcare plan, just as the paper puts up a paywall on SFGate.com. Morale apparently is in the toilet. Oy.

I was just checking out the subscription offers (my daily Jon Carroll is a habit I don't want to break), and they don't make a lot of sense.  Still thinking about it.

The "paywall" thing seems to be a trend among newspapers. Both of our local twice-weeklies went that route since the first of the year, and I am expecting the Oregonian will do so soon, too.

Frankly, if the Chron would promise to not have video ads set to auto-play (and maybe get the pages to load quicker without dependence on third-party ad servers) it would be worth it.

[Lightnin' Rod]

OK, it's a Rich Lieberman "scoop" so... grain of salt alert, but he sez things are not good at the Chronicle, folks are being asked to pay more for a crappy healthcare plan, just as the paper puts up a paywall on SFGate.com. Morale apparently is in the toilet. Oy.

I was just checking out the subscription offers (my daily Jon Carroll is a habit I don't want to break), and they don't make a lot of sense.  Still thinking about it.

The "paywall" thing seems to be a trend among newspapers. Both of our local twice-weeklies went that route since the first of the year, and I am expecting the Oregonian will do so soon, too.

Frankly, if the Chron would promise to not have video ads set to auto-play (and maybe get the pages to load quicker without dependence on third-party ad servers) it would be worth it.

I don't mind that they're trying to get people to pay for the "paper".  Writers, editors and such cost money.  The layout of the Chronicle "premium" seems pretty clean.  I will probably subscribe next week.

[Tinka Cat]

OK, it's a Rich Lieberman "scoop" so... grain of salt alert, but he sez things are not good at the Chronicle, folks are being asked to pay more for a crappy healthcare plan, just as the paper puts up a paywall on SFGate.com. Morale apparently is in the toilet. Oy.

I was just checking out the subscription offers (my daily Jon Carroll is a habit I don't want to break), and they don't make a lot of sense.  Still thinking about it.

yeah, I assume Mark Morford is another that they want folks to pay for. Mick LaSalle... notsomuch. 

Morford isn't on the premium site: He's been sfgate-only for years.  (He used to be in print, but that was only for about a year a long time ago.)

[RGMike]

No more Ben Fong-Torres column in the Sunday Chron?  Shoulda been one last week, but no. His archives are still there.

[urth]

No more Ben Fong-Torres column in the Sunday Chron?  Shoulda been one last week, but no. His archives are still there.

Were you looking in the print edition or online? If it's the latter his new material may be behind the paywall, like a lot of the other Chron columnists.

[RGMike]

No more Ben Fong-Torres column in the Sunday Chron?  Shoulda been one last week, but no. His archives are still there.

Were you looking in the print edition or online? If it's the latter his new material may be behind the paywall, like a lot of the other Chron columnists.

I thought that might be it, but it seems odd that a twice-a-month column written by a freelancer would be considered pay-worthy.

[RGMike]

No more Ben Fong-Torres column in the Sunday Chron?  Shoulda been one last week, but no. His archives are still there.

Were you looking in the print edition or online? If it's the latter his new material may be behind the paywall, like a lot of the other Chron columnists.

I thought that might be it, but it seems odd that a twice-a-month column written by a freelancer would be considered pay-worthy.

More on the paywall: I'm loving the nasty comments by readers about the suddenly ubiquitous practice on SFGate of writers using their (free) blogs to promote paid articles -- "Read my take on [fill-in-the-blank] here" -- even tho' the link on the main page implies that you're clicking over to a complete article/review/whatever.  Movie and theater reviews, for example, are behind the paywall; Mick LaSalle will do a blog post related to a new movie but it will have a link to take you to the you-gotta-pay-for-it review of said film.

[urth]

No more Ben Fong-Torres column in the Sunday Chron?  Shoulda been one last week, but no. His archives are still there.

Were you looking in the print edition or online? If it's the latter his new material may be behind the paywall, like a lot of the other Chron columnists.

I thought that might be it, but it seems odd that a twice-a-month column written by a freelancer would be considered pay-worthy.

More on the paywall: I'm loving the nasty comments by readers about the suddenly ubiquitous practice on SFGate of writers using their (free) blogs to promote paid articles -- "Read my take on [fill-in-the-blank] here" -- even tho' the link on the main page implies that you're clicking over to a complete article/review/whatever.  Movie and theater reviews, for example, are behind the paywall; Mick LaSalle will do a blog post related to a new movie but it will have a link to take you to the you-gotta-pay-for-it review of said film.

Funny how they think that by intentionally creating a bad user experience, that will inspire readers to instead give them money.  I understand that they need to generate revenue, but pissing people off is not the way to accomplish it.

[RGMike]

and -- BOOM! -- just like that, the Chron gets rid of the paywall after just 4 months:

http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2013/08/chronicle_kills_its_paywall_--.php

[Big Fingers McGee]

and -- BOOM! -- just like that, the Chron gets rid of the paywall after just 4 months:

http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2013/08/chronicle_kills_its_paywall_--.php

I like how they refer to sfgate content as 'dreck'.... the quality on that site has certainly declined in the interim.

[Tinka Cat]

and -- BOOM! -- just like that, the Chron gets rid of the paywall after just 4 months:

http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2013/08/chronicle_kills_its_paywall_--.php

I like how they refer to sfgate content as 'dreck'.... the quality on that site has certainly declined in the interim.

eh, you get what you pay for.

[Lightnin' Rod]

and -- BOOM! -- just like that, the Chron gets rid of the paywall after just 4 months:

http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2013/08/chronicle_kills_its_paywall_--.php

I like how they refer to sfgate content as 'dreck'.... the quality on that site has certainly declined in the interim.

eh, you get what you pay for.

Agreed. 

I don't blame the Chron for trying the paywall.  It's unfortunate that nobody has figured out a viable model for funding quality content for true journalism.  You know, with editors and experienced, talented writers and stuff.