Star-Bulletin on the Web

[Leo Lakio]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

There is one big difference regarding the papers that are closing or will shortly....none of them have their own press. They are all the smaller "partner" in a JOA....

Same situation as the Hearst-owned Seattle Post-Intelligencer. which is likely to dwindle to an internet-only portal within a couple more weeks.

[Media Guy]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

True, the Star Bulletin has fought a great fight.
It's amazing what David Black pulled off in a matter of months to keep the paper going and competitive.

[808golfer]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

The Rocky Mountain News printed it's last paper. The San Francisco Chronicle is on the rocks. The mighty are falling.

There is one big difference regarding the papers that are closing or will shortly....none of them have their own press. They are all the smaller "partner" in a JOA....kinda makes you appreciate the SB a little more. They are the only paper that I know of EVER that has left a JOA, bought their own press, set up their own distribution and sales staff and 8 years later still making a go of it. The Chronicle however is a mess...bloated union wages and staff levels and a market that has no real definition....

[Media Guy]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

Speaking of the emerging online newspaper business model;

"The New York Times now earns about $200 million in annual revenue from Internet ads....not that far from the cost of its global newsgathering expenses. Without a print edition, the Times would be a much smaller business, but quite possibly a better one."

www.tvspy.com/shoptalk.cfm?page=1 - 129k

[IslandBeef]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

As sad as I feel for the Star-Bulletin that people are going around their ads (and trust me, it is the web... there are many ways to get data like using Google cache to read Honolulu Advertiser archived stories).

You are, in essence, voting with your clicks.

The data from their back end will still show volume, but their click-through rates and impressions will fall. This will force them to sell their ads at a lower rate to get the numbers they need to sell... Pushing more pop-ups on those not going through the side door. Either chasing readers away or making them also go through the side door.

[cynsaligia]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

And if their primary computer is a laptop that they take with them?

if you're errr...mobile...then use the mobile website.

if ads are such a hindrance to enjoying your internet experience do what i do: use the mobile version of a website whenever it's available. in fact, bookmark the mobile version for any website you read with any frequency. more often than not, there are either no ads or significantly fewer ads, esp of the pop up or get in your way variety.

[GeckoGeek]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

One of the news-yap channels was talking about the death of newspapers because "kids today prefer getting their news online."

Sigh. Where do they think that online news comes from?

The Rocky Mountain News printed it's last paper. The San Francisco Chronicle is on the rocks. The mighty are falling.

[LikaNui]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

Mahalo to everyone who suggested using the mobile version of the S-B's website... much better!

Ditto from me. What a joy! But... if too many of us admit to that, maybe they'll close it down and force us back to the ad-monster version.

[Nords]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

Mahalo to everyone who suggested using the mobile version of the S-B's website... much better!

[Walkoff Balk]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

I thought news write themselves and automatically appear on Teleprompters.

[buzz1941]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

One of the news-yap channels was talking about the death of newspapers because "kids today prefer getting their news online."

Sigh. Where do they think that online news comes from?

[808golfer]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

Can we keep the topic focused on the Star-Bulletin website.

I agree with you Mel. The POPS were more fun to talk about anyway....and oh by the way...The "HNA" was the most profitable in Gannett (8 years ago), not the Advertiser...that all went away when HNA stopped and the Tizer and SB began their seperate lifes...

[mel]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

Can we keep the topic focused on the Star-Bulletin website.

[Media Guy]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

I'm not saying I'm the only one smart enough to see these "loop holes." You don't think some of those billions were put on the Advertsers' books?
Impairment charges are all above board, and since the union can't say what they saw on the books there's really no point in arguing.
I just maintain that the Advertiser didn't all of a sudden go into the red this year because of a slowdown in advertising revenue.

Under Mike Fisch the Advertiser was the most profitable paper in the company. He won a Gannett Presidents Ring less than two years ago for outstanding achievement and financial success, and Jason Taylor, former VP of Advertising & Marketing, won the Chairman's Award as the top advertising executive of all of Gannett. He also won a President's Ring for outstanding achievement and finished first among advertising executives at the company's 90 daily newspapers.

I may well be wrong, and I'm not genius, but I do understand accounting. It is very easy to show a legitimate loss on the books.
The union auditor, using the generally accepted rules of accounting very easily would agree that the company was losing money with all the write downs and charges Gannett has.

It's important to remember that Gannett isn't broke, it's just making less money. What was the union suppose to do. They had no contract, the parent company was instituting company wide layoffs. There was no bargaining power. Gannett is very well known in the industry as a "union buster."
Ask anyone who worked at the paper in Guam about that.

But then again, you seem to know it all anyway.

[808golfer]

Re: Star-Bulletin on the Web

So, 808 golfer, still think I just don't get it?
You can bet Gannett has twice as much of impairment charges spread over its various operating units and on the Advertisers' books

"Black Press Ltd., the owner of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, will likely record an impairment loss related to the economic and structural challenges facing its U.S. newspapers."

http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/ar...03/90226088/-1

nice try at the pat on your own back...BUT GCI wrote down the value (impairment charge) of their company in the neighborhood of 5 BILLION well over a couple of months ago. No big deal. All newspaper companies have done something similar over the last 12 months. But yeah, to answer your question, I don't think you get it. The newspaper Guild brought in a newspaper accounting expert from the mainland who looks at books on a routine basis throughout the country.You are evidently suggesting that only YOU are smart enough to know how a company might "hide" profits and this "good will" thing is only known by you.....give me a break. I'm sure the union auditor was quite capable and keenly aware of possible loopholes.