We started receiving The Oregonian today – for free – for some period of time. I am of two minds over this.
First : the positive. I love getting things for free. Who doesn’t. I love holding a newspaper, seeing all of my reading options laid right out in front of me. I like being able to scan the large page and see the layout of the articles and ads. I like how having it all right there in front of me tends to make me read more of the articles about subjects I would not have seen in my RSS, Twitter, and Facebook scanning. (Who knew that no one seems to like the two candidates for Mayor of Portland?) I like knowing a bit more about the area I live in and the world in general. (kinda – more below)
Now, the negative. I hate having paper laying around after I’m done with it. I hate the news print on my fingers. (don’t want to dirty up the iPad or iPhone….) I actually didn’t like most of the articles that I read – way too much negativity and ‘bad stuff’ happening. I think I was better off before knowing about all that junk going on. I don’t like that I can’t find other articles or more information about a topic very easily after reading it. I don’t like that I’ll have more recycling to do.
I think it is a telling thing that I had to be given The Oregonian in order to get me to read it. Obviously printed papers (and magazines, like US News and World Report) are on their way out and this is an attempt by the paper to keep “readership” numbers up to prop up advertising rates. I just wonder how much longer they can keep playing that game?
Do you read the newspaper any more?
Matt Gorski 