Ann Arbor News going to mostly web

mustang: The site is ready. AnnArbor.com will launch Friday. We delayed the launch a few days to stress test the system. No pooches were violated. Once we delayed for a day, it made sense to give The Ann Arbor News room to tell its story. A rough last few days for all who still worked there, and today's edition is a keeper.

 

Agreed. It's been a long time since I was there and you still feel an emptiness with this news.


And to the original poster, this really isn't new news, since it's been known that it was closing for a couple months now. This was just the actual end date.

 

Moddy: Consider it done.

 

How did I curse the Ann Arbor News?

 

From the AP story, this is the quote that haunts me:

My argument always has been: Someday, those young, transient apartment dwellers will get married, have children, and purchase a home. When they do, they'll want news about their community, their schools that only a local newspaper can provide. (And let's be honest here ... a lot of this watchdog-type journalism doesn't translate at all to a Web site)

I guess for the sake of many of our careers, I hope I'm right.

 

Within the last 36 months, Laurel Champion sat in a room with myself and other staffers and emphatically insisted the paper was still profitable. Now, she insists the paper has been bleeding red ink for years.

I'd just like to know when she was lying.

 

When her lips moved? (Sorry, he hung a curve)

 

Yeah I know. It is sad and unfortunate for the people that work there.

But for the people that got hired at AA.com, I would have hoped the site was ready when it was supposed to be.

Instead, the readers' first experience of this new news source is a launch four days late. That's four days for the readers to find somewhere else to get their news.

 

Ah, Mark. I knew you'd take the bait sooner or later. Just pointing out that both your papers have gone to a Web-mostly model.

 

Of all the Booth properties, it's still hard to believe that Ann Arbor would be the best option to close.
I mean, they got a pretty nice office building, an almost brand new publishing plant off site, and no real competition.

I'd think Bay City or Saginaw, given their proximity to each other and ability to pick up in the other's absence, would be a better choice.

 

Just checked out the site a few moments ago, I can't say I'm impressed. It looks like a blog.