Do you subscribe?

I think journalists should subscribe as a show of support for the business.

I think publishers should require their staffers to subscribe, for the same reason.

I also think publishers should then hire tens of thousands of residents from the coverage market, thereby reversing circulation declines overnight.

Problems solved!

 

I think you might be on to something there.

 

At my last paper we would get asked once every three months or so if we were getting the paper. If you weren't, you would get a nasty form letter from the publisher.

I always lied, knowing they'd be too lazy to check.

 

Love it. And if they checked the subscriber rolls, you could always just blame the carrier, saying that the paper showed up even if a bill never did.

 

I worked at one place where they charged employees the lowest amount they were allowed to legally and still have it count as circulation. I think it was about $10 a year or something ridiculously cheap like that.

At my last place, it would have been about $20-$25 a month even with an employee discount.

 

I've heard of places that still give the employee discount to staffers that got bought out or laid off, just because the paper is frightened about losing them from the circulation totals.

 

the same kind of support the honchos show by expecting people to work off the clock, not put in for overtime or get by on low mileage rates when gas prices were at $4 a gallon?

 

I think by deleting the latter half of Joe's post you missed his point.

 

no it doesn't because there are several people saying employees should subscribe to show support for the paper. support is a two-way street. his was just the one i replied to.

 

No, Tex, you did miss the point by truncating my post. Do you walk away from a joke before the punchline, too?

 

what i said still applies to the people saying journos should all subscribe to their own paper.