The venerable Seattle PI has given up the printed ghost, and has gone all online. I'm not the first to say it, but allow me to be the latest person to say, good riddance.
For all the weeping and gnashing of teeth over the impending demise of newspapers all across the country, I’m surprised more commentators haven’t pointed out that this is a great time to be in the newspaper business. It’s fantastic even!
Why? Because it’s a chance to reinvent an industry. In great crisis lies great opportunities, and if there’s any industry out there who can take advantage of opportunity, it’s the newspapers.
An all online paper has numerous advantages to a printed competitor. From the mundane (no more print costs, ease of correcting mistakes), to the entrepreneurial (Craigslist has been begging for a decent competitor for awhile; it would be poetic justice if an online newspaper were able to come up with a CL killer).
The point is, as a geek, I look at print media (aside from books) as old and obsolete. A dinosaur, ready to be replaced by something faster, cheaper, better. And whether it’s a device like the Kindle, smartphones, netbooks, or even just a surfacethat displays information, my sincere hope is that the resource-wasteful and outmoded newspaper gives way soon, and with as little fuss as possible.
And a sincere best of luck wish for the PI in its new online venture. I hope they pave the way to the newspaper of the 21stcentury.
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