The newspaper today

[TripleF]

Did you ever have a newspaper route? I did.

I know new ways to obtain news is quickly taking over the traditonal morning delivered newspaper. Very few get the newspaper anymore.

It's saddening for me to see something this traditional slipping away. Kinda represented simplicity. Guess I'm just old fashioned.

[MedicCook]

How about in the old days when there was an evening edition of the paper.

[DPD6030]

Or when milk came in glass bottles by the milkman. Not that old just saw it on tv.

[SmokeyJoe]

I was an "alternate" paper-boy. I would do the route for three guys who had three different routes if one of them was sick or on vacation. Remember delivering during the blizzard of 1977... 3 feet of snow with some huge drifts.

I haven't taken the paper in 6 years or so...

[cricky101]

I still like to buy a newspaper on the weekend when I have time to read the whole thing. But most of my news comes from newspaper Web sites these days.

[TripleF]

How about in the old days when there was an evening edition of the paper.


I do remember the evening newspaper. Now I'm even sadder.... :(

[DPD6030]

Our city paper where I work used to be thick and huge back in the 50s and such (I looked at the archives). Now it's about 3 pages of worthless crap.

[MedicCook]

I only delivered a couple of times when my brother was not able to do his route. It took me forever since I did not know the route and it was on a Sunday with the huge paper.

[TripleF]

Or when milk came in glass bottles by the milkman. Not that old just saw it on tv.


Yes sir I do remember the milkman. I actually collect milk bottles from my grandmother's dairy:
http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc32/fishforfree2/leenhouts001.jpg

[floydpink]

I tell my kids about riding my bike through rain and snow on my bike with bag strapped on filled with newspapers and making 2 trips on Sundays due to the size of the papers.

My mom only felt sorry and drove me on a very rare occasion of a blizzard.

More than once, I wiped out on ice and had to pick up scattered papers off the road and put them back together and I remember a particularly mean German Shepard that never quite caught me although he tried for years.

I knew all my neighbors by name and for a 12 year old, the money was pretty good.

My newspaper route, shoveling snow from driveways and hot walking horses at the racetrack after they ran excercises at 5 am, I believe, gave me the work ethic I carry today in my 40's and probably explains why I feel that today's youth is lazy and has no idea what growing up really means...

[TripleF]

I tell my kids about riding my bike through rain and snow on my bike with bag strapped on filled with newspapers and making 2 trips on Sundays due to the size of the papers.

My mom only felt sorry and drove me on a very rare occasion of a blizzard.

I knew all my neighbors by name and for a 12 year old, the money was pretty good.

My newspaper route, shoveling snow from driveways and hot walking horses at the racetrack after they ran excercises at 5 am, I believe, gave me the work ethic I carry today in my 40's and probably explains why I feel that today's youth is lazy and has no idea what growing up really means...


Here! Here! Brother!! Preach it!! :tu

[MedicCook]

Yes sir I do remember the milkman. I actually collect milk bottles from my grandmother's dairy:
http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc32/fishforfree2/leenhouts001.jpg

There is a country store up by me that has a huge collection of old glass milk bottles. You can see some of the bottles on the shelf top right of the picture. There are hundres of them around the store.

http://www.lakesidefarmscidermill.com/side_images/store_inside_500w.jpg

[BlackDog]

I still occasionally buy a Sunday paper, but otherwise rarely read a paper. By the time I get today's newspaper, the news is a day old. I can get "fresh" news on the internet.

[kaelaria]

I had two huge routes before the internet existed obviously. I'm shocked there are any left now to tell you the truth - I literally only buy them when I need more fuel to light my charcoal.

[GreekGodX]

With the advent of the Internet it was only a matter of time before newspapers became obsolete. In the world now, people need everything now including the news. Throw in the economy and newspapers simply cannot make enough money to produce the paper form everyday.

[Starscream]

Newspapers in NC went up to 75 cents today. I hate to see them fail, but...

[MedicCook]

It would be interesting to see if the papers make more advertising money with paper or internet.

[Starscream]

It would be interesting to see if the papers make more advertising money with paper or internet.

I may be wrong, but I think most papers make more revenue from their internet sites than the papers.

[MedicCook]

I may be wrong, but I think most papers make more revenue from their internet sites than the papers.

That is what I would guess also.

[ucla695]

I used to deliver a free, local paper in my neighborhood on my bike. It made money from advertising and I got paid a couple cents more per paper when there were inserts. Luckily, it only came out once a week so it didn't take up that much time. :) I lost my job when they decided to find delivery people who could cover more area in a car. Anyway, I still get the paper every day and enjoy reading it more on paper than I do online. Gotta like the ability to write on it and take it with you wherever you want (read: easy to toss after sitting on the throne a while - a place you might not want to bring a laptop or 3G phone :D). That said, unless it can reinvent itself, I think it's just a matter of time before old media dies out. :(

[rizzle]

Never had a route, but I still have the paper delivered every day. It's just something I do. I really hate going to a newspaper website.

[BMTA]

Delivered several newspaper routes growing up and one in college, but they are doomed I have several friends who used newspapers to advertise, not anymore they say they get a better response with craigslist.

[68TriShield]

My local just discontinued the Monday edition and started with a Monday advance edition that comes with the Sunday paper.
All in a effort to stay viable.

[Starchild]

I had a paper route for about 5 years in high school and my first couple years of college. The hours stink, but the pay was nice. Working 365 days a year builds a good work ethic. I always ended up being the driver since I had to be sober enough to go to work at 4:30. My parents actually kept my route when I left for school. They would each do three days and both go on Sunday.

It was always interesting during hurricane season :rolleyes:

[stitch]

When I was a kid (Was I ever really a kid??) I worked at a "Service Station"
We pumped the gas, Cleaned the windows, Checked the oil and the tire pressure, brought them thier change and said "Thank you Sir/Ma'am have a nice day and come back again." ...No matter how foul the weather was.

[jcruse64]

Like some of you, I had a route w/ our local. First couple of years, it was come home from school, fold the papers, stuff the bike saddle, and hit the road. Thanksgiving and Xmas, it took 2 trips. I kept it into my senior year in high school, and got to drive the route. Ended up giving the route to my mom, who picked up another one for extra cash. I enjoyed it most of the time, and liked most of my customers. Thing I hated about it was collections. Most folks were good, and I had some good tippers, especially with holidays, but there were several route customers who would not answer the door when I rang, and I could tell they were there. One of the worst was a guy who was an anchorman on the local television news. Really bad thing was, the station was owned by the paper.

Like some of you now, I just don't read it much anymore; in fact, we just let our sub go. Our local doesn't do a Sunday-only sub, and I get my news off the 'net. I'm probably going to go internet sub with them though. I do hate to see the trend, for those who are in the business, as it means job losses, and I've been on the wrong end of that myself. But, it's a natural progression, it seems, with the advent of the internet. I imagine there were similar responses when the press became widely available to make newspapers and journals, and town criers found themselves out of work.