Katharine Weymouth, the publisher of The Washington Post, referred to the Newhouse strategy of cutting back daily home distribution of The Times-Picayune as a “death spiral.”
Weymouth, the granddaughter of the late Katharine Graham, made her comment Sunday night during a question and answer segment before the annual conference of the City and Regional Magazine Association (CRMA). The session, which I attended, was held at the Newseum, a museum dedicated to journalism, located in Washington D.C.
Weymouth, who earlier in the interview had said that one day in the future print journalism might have a different platform, was critical of the reduction of dailies to less frequency. She said that readers have developed a habit for dailies.
There is no lack of awareness to the global impact of the Internet at the Post. Last October the newspaper was purchased by Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon.com. Nevertheless, Weymoth, who retained the position of publisher, assured that The Washington Post will be around as a printed daily for “a long time.”
There is no better presentation of journalism history than at the Newseum, located on Pennsylvania Avenue, within sight of Capitol Hill. One continuing exhibit concerns the nation’s daily newspapers. Each day the front page of dailies from American cities is posted on a wall. Under the heading of New Orleans, the slot now contains The New Orleans Advocate.
