Posted 5:06 PM by Gene

A lot of news hacks presume the downfall of their business just -- happened. It's a systemic thing. More people are getting their news from the Web. The Do-Not-Call Law hurt. Kids don't know how to read. Perhaps it's all these things. Perhaps getting the news from the Web is so much more convenient than leafing through tons of newsprint. And then again it might be the content. Just possibly. When Mort Zuck has the gall to run tripe like this and this you wonder what some readers may think. Perhaps they reflexively roll their eyes and grimace, or figure insults to their intelligence are like City Hall -- you can't fight them. But one thing is certain: some readers -- maybe not very many, maybe not enough to matter at the honor box, but some -- remember they were insulted. And they take it out the best way they know how: by not buying newspapers, and possibly even not frequenting their Web sites. And if they do continue to force themselves into their embrace -- and many of us have no choice but to surf as many sites as we can to be well-informed -- they spread the contempt to the whole business, like a thin greasy coat of grime. We note DA NOOZ used to be owned by TRIB, and by Robert Maxwell. We wonder how the fraction of His investment He'd earn back in a sale would compare to, say, PINCH's. We suspect it's a topic MORT does not like thinking about. We suggest His readership should remind him.

A NEUHARTHISM OF THE MONTH AWARD TO MORT ZUCK!