Unable to find a buyer for its print operation, Hearst Newspapers has opted to convert the Seattle Post-Intelligencer into an online-only operation.:
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer will roll off the presses for the last time Tuesday, ending a 146-year run.
The Hearst Corp. announced Monday that it would stop publishing the newspaper, Seattle's oldest business, and cease delivery to more than 117,600 weekday readers.
The company, however, said it will maintain seattlepi.com, making it the nation's largest daily newspaper to shift to an entirely digital news product.
"Tonight we'll be putting the paper to bed for the last time," Editor and Publisher Roger Oglesby told a silent newsroom Monday morning. "But the bloodline will live on."
In a news release, Hearst CEO Frank Bennack Jr. said, "Our goal now is to turn seattlepi.com into the leading news and information portal in the region."
Of course, if the online-only venture ends up in failure, the future of all-digital conversion for the ailing print industry could arguably be rather grim.
After all, in January Forbes named the Emerald City the number one "wired" city in America and the region is home to a lot of tech-savvy, highly educated talent employed at companies such as Microsoft, Boeing, and Amazon.com.
If digital-only doesn't work in Seattle, isn't it all the more riskier an option in less tech-savvy urban centers?
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
Hip-Hip
March 16, 2009 - 16:32 ET by BlazerHip-Hip Hooooooooraaaaayyy !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hip-Hip...............
"You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious. "
- Ben Kenobi on Liberals, and the MSM.
" The Cake is a lie."
....Another one bites the
March 16, 2009 - 16:35 ET by BD....Another one bites the dust
Another one bites the dust
And another one gone, and another one gone
Another one bites the dust
Hey, I'm gonna get you too
Another one bites the dust ...
Tonight we'll be putting
March 16, 2009 - 16:34 ET by Dan The Man 2Tonight we'll be putting the paper to bed for the last time," Editor and Publisher Roger Oglesby told a silent newsroom Monday morning. "But the bloodline will live on."
My inmmediate impression is taht of the famous Hammer Dracula films with Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. The bloodsucker always finds a way to spread his villany and come back after being killed. Th vampire legend lives?
Nuke em til they glow then shoot em in the dark.
Let's not forget that
March 16, 2009 - 16:39 ET by BlazerLet's not forget that Roger Oglesby is the decider in which new's is fit to print.
Sorry Mr. Oglesby, but your not the frickin' decider, I am, and I'll have a cheeseburger all the way, no onion's with a Diet Coke.
"You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious. "
- Ben Kenobi on Liberals, and the MSM.
" The Cake is a lie."
Hi Dan... I love your
March 16, 2009 - 16:40 ET by bigtimerHi Dan...
I love your impression here, along with your sentiments.
one down
March 16, 2009 - 16:37 ET by katainkentone to go. (in seattle, that is)
I can not imagine
March 16, 2009 - 16:42 ET by doug1950anyone paying for a subscription to a liberal newspaper, paper or online, if they can get all the same biased and bent news online for free or off the local evening news, particularly when folks are cutting expenses. If they were losing readership and advertising it most likely no one wants their product any longer. This is not just a Seattle thing. Liberally slanted news outlets everywhere are going under and will continue to do so. Don't be surprised when conservative alternatives start springing up everywhere.On another post Newsweek joined with Air America; man, nothing like coiling the anchor chain around your own neck on a sinking garbage barge.
newspapers
March 16, 2009 - 16:45 ET by Joe CamelIt is funny what most would say is the death of the "paper" editions out there. Our local talk radio hosts had a show about "why" the local papers are having issues. Seems most think it is just due to the economy, advertisers not paying to run ads, and it is cheaper on the internet than the print versions. Very few had anything to say about the lack of balance.
Now, I on the other hand gave it up after 35 years of reading it word for word every day. Everyone else I know gave it up for the same reason as I..that being, we could not any longer stomach the content. I know the Editorial Page was liberal and slanted, always was. But, even the articles were full of commentary, knowing that most only read the first paragraph of any article. Thus, the crust of the news was buried for the last of the piece. Pityful way to do things, but..always someone else's fault for their issues.
Joe
March 16, 2009 - 16:55 ET by doug1950We quit taking any kind of paper over 20 years ago for the very same reasons. You kind of expect some slant in editorials but like you said even mundane articles were biased. That coupled with the extremely poor writing skills of the reporters and editing by the editors caused me more than once to throw the paper into the floor and rant "I just read this article twice and I still do not know who the hell did what to whom!" The overuse of pronouns left up to the reader to decipher who the culprits and victims were, often times when there were a cast of dozens. The local mullet wrapper called here recently to tempt us with an offer of, "If you will just take the Sunday paper we will give you the rest of the week for free." Told them to shove it, that I would not take it if it were completely free.
Liberal slant in print? Surely not...
March 16, 2009 - 18:03 ET by IndianaCarlThe local paper here had a forum called Rapid Response where they would e-mail out a question and readers could respond - they'd pick a few to print. I was on that group for quite a while, and during the Bush years, it was good - there was a conservative pointing things out, and I would always get comments posted. Also, I would post letters to the editor, and our viewpoint would be shared, and people around town would actually talk about what I said. November 5th, I quit receiving those invites to print, my forum posts online get edited frequently, and none of my letters are ever posted now. Liberal bias in the media? Why, how could that be?
Pardon me now while I don't care about the PI - or about business actually doing what can and should happen if it fails to provide a service, which is fail. The only thing I'm amazed at is that there wasn't a huge bailout for the paper.
Liberal = Hypocrites
Na na na na Hey Hey,
March 16, 2009 - 17:19 ET by ArchConservativeNa na na na Hey Hey, Goooodbye!
The best way to start the week is to see liberalism go up in flames. (Laughing wildly). Ahhhhh I love it so.
You support the troops by supporting the mission! If you don't support the mission, have the guts to say you don't support the troops.
Obama: Not my President. Ever.
Seattle P.I.
March 16, 2009 - 17:30 ET by blazermaniacNow you can join the Sonics as history!
Now THAT is harsh! But
March 16, 2009 - 20:11 ET by ArchConservativeNow THAT is harsh! But funny!
HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!
March 16, 2009 - 18:23 ET by Lord ErondLiberal print media sucks....next up? NY TIMES!
"To sin by silence when we should protest, makes cowards of men" -Ella Wheeler Wilcox
Number one wired or weird?
March 16, 2009 - 18:24 ET by ConservativeFLYou did it to yourself Seattle PI, if you were not so biased to the left you may have had some readers. Seattle is a great city however you cut your own throat with the extreme left opinion. Didn't you see this coming as evidenced by all the loony left papers across the country going broke?
"Republicans believe every day is the Fourth of July, but the democrats believe every day is April 15." Ronald Reagan
Think of all the trees that
March 16, 2009 - 18:30 ET by Clear thinkerThink of all the trees that will stand and applaud tomorrow.
Ecofascists are gonna have ahard time with this one. On the one hand, it saves trees. On the other hand, the paper printed all their clap-trap. Too freakin bad!!!
Dump The GOP Before Libertarians Take It
Making Fun of AGW http://giovanniworld.wordpress.com/
The bad news...
March 16, 2009 - 18:42 ET by slickwillie2001There is some bad news here folks. The remaining paper, the Seattle Times, will end up stronger.
Excellent point. Dump The
March 16, 2009 - 18:46 ET by Clear thinkerExcellent point.
Dump The GOP Before Libertarians Take It
Making Fun of AGW http://giovanniworld.wordpress.com/
slick... Exactly
March 16, 2009 - 18:50 ET by bigtimerslick...
Exactly right...same in Denver...this isn't good news in my eyes in some ways, it just gives more power to the other bigger leftist rags.
Memo to the Seattle P-I
March 16, 2009 - 19:17 ET by UnsaneContent. Content. Content.
"It's in the P-I?" No. Content was definitely NOT in the P-I. And now they and their employees are paying the price.
"CONSUMED DEMOCRACY RETURNS A SOCIALIST REGIME" - Slayer, "Fictional Reality", from Divine Intervention (1994)
Pelosi is looking for a bailout for her local paper...
March 16, 2009 - 19:32 ET by JTPJust read on Drudge.. Pelosi is looking for a way to save the SanFranCron. Can't live withoutthem you know... Who would watch the government.
"I need more cowbell!" SNL
good riddance
March 16, 2009 - 20:56 ET by WesenThe PI was a liberal trumpet. In fact, their left leg was so long they they walked in circles. They could not strike a balance on anything and I for one will not miss them.
The USA Can Not Afford to have the Seattle Post-Intelligencer
March 16, 2009 - 22:50 ET by Rush Fango out of business. Please write your congressman and Speaker Nancy Pelosi and ask them to step in and help keep this paper in business.
Now some of you are saying let this leftist paper go out of business. But we need this paper to help fight terrorism, and specifically those terrorist who are hiding in this country.
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer may be a leftist newspaper, but it is a patriotic newspaper that will place it's patriotism ahead of its leftist democrat agenda.
For example, back in 2007 recall that photos were taken of two men who were acting suspiciously on a ferry in Seattle. The FBI asked the newspapers to publish the photos to help them identify the two men. Didn't the patriotic Seattle P-I make every effort to assist the FBI as documented by Michelle Malkin?
What! Are you telling me that the Seattle P-I refused to help the FBI?
Well, as Emily Litella would say when she realized she was mistaken: "Never Mind."
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"There is no longer a media in this country. There is simply an established propaganda arm for the Democrat Party and any and all who relate to it in any way, elected and unelected." ~ Rush Limbaugh
Polar Bears Rejoice!!!
March 16, 2009 - 22:53 ET by AMR1960Oh Happy Day!
Yet another Major source of Global HotAir Warming striken from existence...
__________________________
Long Live...THE REPUBLIC !
Let's hope it's
March 16, 2009 - 23:40 ET by RR GOPLet's hope it's catching.
One of the 34% who thinks George W. Bush was a great President. One of the 61% who wants to bring back the stock and pillory (yep...approval for Congress now at 39%...do you believe that!?).
They dug their own graves
March 17, 2009 - 03:18 ET by SmorgasbordThe best part about the propaganda newspapers going out of business is, they dug their own graves. They even kept adding more grave diggers to the job as time went on.
I think we can watch what
March 17, 2009 - 07:42 ET by ForeverOnTheRightI think we can watch what happens to this rag and get some idea what will happen to the other rags if they go they same route. I don't think that going to an online version will save them. I think they will just fade away.
bloggers
March 17, 2009 - 08:31 ET by sevenHow do they expect to blog better than the next blog?
Local tv has online editions also. I can't see how they will suddenly start to differentiate themselves.
Ah the irony...
March 17, 2009 - 14:45 ET by political mavenIf these NEWSpapers would report the NEWS they would actually make money
The left slant did them in and they go down with the ship swearing it isn;t true.
→ What a concept!
March 17, 2009 - 14:55 ET by Cool ArrowAnd if the MSM TV tried it, their collective ratings might edge out QVC.
LYDSEXICS UNTIE!
Good riddance
March 17, 2009 - 15:25 ET by Republican_by_DefaultThat paper has been on a death-watch for decades. They catered to Seattle's liberals but the liberals had all they wanted from the Seattle Times, local TV, NPR and some local rags of lesser note.
Funny how their own readers strangled them to death... by leaving. They should have gone conservative. It might have saved them.
And fyi, Seattle isn't the city that billets itself as "America's #1 Wired City". That's Tacoma, right next door. I guess Tacoma could be referring to the meth and crack problems.