Uncut Gems
It's excruciating and exhilarating.
At least newspapers are more profitable than movies or music!
Barron's reports, "This Dying Medium Has Plenty of Life":
Recent hysteria over the imminent demise of daily newspapers is misplaced. As an economic matter, most newspapers still are far more profitable than other, higher-profile consumer media. As a policy matter, those calling for government subsidies or other protections ignore the true state of the marketplace of ideas: It has never been so vibrant.
Newspapers do face a genuine crisis, but the nature of this crisis is misunderstood. [...]
Doing worse doesn't mean doing badly. Until recently, many newspapers had profit margins exceeding 30%. By 2008, the industry's average margin had fallen to the mid-teens. The speed and magnitude of this decline have resulted in wrenching changes in the way these historically stable businesses must operate.
The continuing drama shouldn't distract from real earnings power. Many newspapers still have almost double the profitability of other media sectors, such as movies, music and books -- which have long struggled to achieve margins of even 10%.
One note: Does it seem peculiar to anyone that the word "even" is used to characterize a 10% profit? Since when is profit of any size something to sneeze at?
(tip: Daily Dish)
Advertisement
Next Article: On ballooning and weenie-wagging in these troubled economic times... Previous Article: Talking Heads > American Psycho > Christian Bale > Tom Cruise > Miles Fisher > Mad Men
Popular Blog Posts
Not defending the Marvel Cinematic Universe
A Far Flung Correspondent weighs in on the MCU controversy.
The Best Television of the Decade
The top 50 shows of the 2010s.
The Unloved, Part 72: Solaris
Scout Tafoya's video essay series about maligned masterpieces celebrates Steven Soderbergh's Solaris.
Cannes 2019: Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood
A review of the newest film by Quentin Tarantino.
