Comments on: Et tu, Southland Publishing?! LA City Beat Bites the Big One

By: David Markland

David Markland — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 08:59:35 +0000

News outlets need to recognize and emphasize why print remains valuable, if it still does.

If people aren’t picking up the free paper anymore, they need to figure out why.

For me, I stopped getting the LA Weekly on a regular basis after they discontinued the crossword puzzle. And usually, when I grabbed the LA Weekly, I also picked up City Beat.

While only a small part of the equation, I do think stuff like crosswords, comic strips, and coupons, are all things that make grabbing paper more useful than skimming the news on the web. These are the only reasons I largely keep the LA Times subscription.

Weeklies, however, keep sacrificing some of these elements, and seem to think good journalism will be what keeps them going… for better or worse, I would prefer to just read this stuff online.

By: Jodi

Jodi — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 03:39:53 +0000

Sad news, indeed. I have no business sense whatsoever and have no clue what print media needs to do to survive. I hope someone out there does though. It’s so tough though when just about anyone can open their cell phone and scan headlines, look up events, restaurants, etc.

By: Mike Winder

Mike Winder — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 19:52:25 +0000

Aw, this is sad. It’s like every publication I ever freelanced for is cursed. Oh wait, did I just type that out loud?

By: Spencer Cross

Spencer Cross — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 17:56:01 +0000

That really is a bummer. City Beat had a great vibe and the Weekly really needs the competition.

By: frazgo

frazgo — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 17:49:29 +0000

Losing these small hyper local papers worries more than losing the LA Times. They were the “feet in the street” really giving us the scoop on what hits us directly. In my not so humble opinion they often did a better job at neighborhood and issue coverage than the Times. Very sad indeed.