"OUTTA PRINT"

Due to the economic crisis were living in, the once heralded print edition of many national newspapers across many regions of the US are shutting down completely or moving their editions to online-only subscriptions. With cash-strapped consumers cutting out luxury items in their increasingly diminishing budgets, newspaper prints are losing profit margins and are slashing jobs, and now in many cases, ceasing publication on many or all days and either transferring to an Internet-only subscription or just shutting down all-together. This is one of the many tragedies of the crisis, and one that is being overlooked by the mainstream media; unfairly so since these are such a huge part of American culture as we see it. For many, the consistency and tradition of reading the morning paper is embedded within our lives; not a neccessity by trait but a tradition by choice. While news is obviously and undeniably much more viable and effective via the Internet or cable news networks, the detail and care provided in a newspaper, be it a local tribune or a national publication, is something that is irreplaceable in this society. The care that writers, journalists and editors put in to bring you the stories as accurately and unbiased as possible is something many of us readers cherish. While these characteristics may carry over to the online world, there is just some intangible aura about indulging in a daily print edition. Whether this is just an overrated American tradition or not is a matter of opinion, but the fact that an important cornerstone industry of American culture is slowly dying away is one of the many sad storylines that has come to fruition during this unique downturn. So while major papers such as the Rocky Mountain News, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Ann Arbor News and others collapse under the weight of unsustainable revenues and turn to the internet for survival, the one dismal question that remains is: who's next?