What IF the Oklahoman Went Away?

[Doug Loudenback]

Interesting discussion going on here ... http://blog.newsok.com/okccentral/20...-you-get-bell/ ... chime in and say what you think.

[mugofbeer]

Then OKC would be the largest city in the country, by far, to not have a local newspaper.

Personally, I'd love to see the Dallas Morning News start an Oklahoma edition for the entire state (yeah, I know it won't ever happen). It would be fun to see how the circulation of the DOK would plummet.

[okcpulse]

Then OKC would be the largest city in the country, by far, to not have a local newspaper.

Personally, I'd love to see the Dallas Morning News start an Oklahoma edition for the entire state (yeah, I know it won't ever happen). It would be fun to see how the circulation of the DOK would plummet.

Ummm... no. Local competition would be better. I have and will always see Dallas as enemy territory, and I prefer their tentacles stay out of the state of Oklahoma.

[adaniel]

Personally, I'd love to see the Dallas Morning News start an Oklahoma edition for the entire state (yeah, I know it won't ever happen). It would be fun to see how the circulation of the DOK would plummet.

The DMN and its parent company Belo are in just as bad if not worse financial straights then OPUBCO.

Local media, when it was in a healthier state, served as an important watchdog for the doings of the people in power, whether that was in business or government. On the other hand I can't really say the DOK has ever been known for its hard hitting journalism and earth shattering exposes.

Don't get me wrong, the DOK does do a lot of things right. If the community lost it, it would be a blow to the community's fiber. You only need to look at the numerous small towns that have already lost their papers. Where would you go for local high school sports or community announcements or local business news? And don't say "I'll just watch TV," because you cannot cram a whole metro area's happenings in a 30 minute flash (and sadly, even local news is probably next on the chopping block after newspapers in media realignment.). The "town square" analogy is spot on.

I just remember how excited I was when in the eight grade I got in the newspaper over a choir concert at my middle school and I have to think that future generations will probably never experience that, unless Rachael Maddow or Bill O'Reily suddenly take interest in choir concerts in North Texas. And I'm only 24! Its kinda funny how fast things can change.

[Soonerus]

We need the Oklahoman...

[mugofbeer]

The Oklahoman needs competition.

[Spartan]

The Oklahoman needs competition.

The Dallas Morning News is a great newspaper, so much better than the Jokelahoman, but cities the size of OKC, particularly with our poor educational attainment stats, don't do well at supporting a plethora of newspapers. We need to just be happy with the Oklahoman and the Gazette and smaller less relevant papers, and hope that the Oklahoman can improve and remove the 'J' from in front if its nickname.

[jmarkross]

The Dallas Morning News is a great newspaper, so much better than the Jokelahoman, but cities the size of OKC, particularly with our poor educational attainment stats, don't do well at supporting a plethora of newspapers. We need to just be happy with the Oklahoman and the Gazette and smaller less relevant papers, and hope that the Oklahoman can improve and remove the 'J' from in front if its nickname.

And the Los Angeles Times makes the Dallas Morning News look like the Hicksville Gazette...and so on...

[Spartan]

And the Los Angeles Times makes the Dallas Morning News look like the Hicksville Gazette...and so on...

Ha, I disagree.. Morning News makes the LA Times look like Pravda.

[skyrick]

Ha, I disagree.. Morning News makes the LA Times look like Pravda.

I have to agree with you Spartan. I've had the opportunity to be exposed to several newspapers over the years; from 3 months of the LA Times on an extended visit to lala land, Boston Globe 2 weeks at a time about a dozen times in the last 20 years, Tulsa World for about 6 years, the Oklahoman for 30 years and the Dallas Morning News for the last 22 years.

DMN is, hands down, the best of the lot. The best Sports section in the country, too.

[BOBTHEBUILDER]

The Dallas Morning News is a great newspaper, so much better than the Jokelahoman, but cities the size of OKC, particularly with our poor educational attainment stats, don't do well at supporting a plethora of newspapers. We need to just be happy with the Oklahoman and the Gazette and smaller less relevant papers, and hope that the Oklahoman can improve and remove the 'J' from in front if its nickname.

The only way that the Oklahoman can remove that J is by reporting news without the slant, agenda or spin that they try to put on their stories. Whatever happened to reporting the facts and facts only and letting the readers draw their own conclusions and not the ones the newspaper want you to draw. I quit taking the Oklahoman almost 20 years ago and have came across from one from time to time. The stories now are far worse than they were 20 years ago. I am confident that we have good even great journalist in this city. Let those journalist do their jobs, lets not butcher their stories to have a spin to one side or the other. Until this happens, the Oklahoman reputation will not change....its sad sad sad for oklahomans wanting fair and impartial news coverage.
I would love to see a newspaper come about that would put the Oklahoman out of business, but we know the likelihood of that happening is slim to none.

[ljbab728]

The only way that the Oklahoman can remove that J is by reporting news without the slant, agenda or spin that they try to put on their stories. Whatever happened to reporting the facts and facts only and letting the readers draw their own conclusions and not the ones the newspaper want you to draw. I quit taking the Oklahoman almost 20 years ago and have came across from one from time to time. The stories now are far worse than they were 20 years ago. I am confident that we have good even great journalist in this city. Let those journalist do their jobs, lets not butcher their stories to have a spin to one side or the other. Until this happens, the Oklahoman reputation will not change....its sad sad sad for oklahomans wanting fair and impartial news coverage.
I would love to see a newspaper come about that would put the Oklahoman out of business, but we know the likelihood of that happening is slim to none.

You obviously remember the paper differently than I do. The amount of slanted articles now don't compare to what we used to see 30 or 40 years ago when the Gaylords were very actively involved.

[BOBTHEBUILDER]

You obviously remember the paper differently than I do. The amount of slanted articles now don't compare to what we used to see 30 or 40 years ago when the Gaylords were very actively involved.

Unless you were alive and reading these articles 30 or 40 years ago, how do you know that they were slanted or not? We can agree to disagree, but you need to remember that those have the power and influence in the media are going to support and further their own agendas. To insinuate that these media related persons dont have an agenda is absolutely naive on your part. It would be nice the read or listen to media that doesnt have a predetermined agenda, spin or angle.

[stlokc]

I am beyond frustrated. I just tried to post 2 lengthy comments to Steve's blog, and both times an error wiped out my whole post. I guess it's because I'm trying to do this on an Iphone.
What I wrote was that Steve is correct in his assertion about newspapers exposing corruption, but I think there is something more fundamental than that. A daily newspaper, at it's best, serves to unify a community. It is the only institution set up to do this. Think about it: Aubrey Mclendon picks up an Oklahoman, and a janitor or shoe shine boy picks up an Oklahoman, and they are involved in the same conversation. It unifies the community. Look at broadcast news, I'm too young to remember the days of Cronkite when there could be a national conversation based on the same facts. Today you have one segment of the population that turns to Fox, another that swears by MSNBC, and look at how polarized the country is. People seek out the facts and opinions that only serve their side of an argument. It used to be just opinions, now people are presented with completely different facts. Only a general subscription, daily newspaper is in a position to be the kind of "town square" that seeks commonality. For all of us who love OKC Talk (and I do) the reality is this site's visitors are a tiny fraction of the community. We need newspapers who try, at their best, to be inclusive of everybody (even those, gasp, that don't go on-line at all). We can't lose daily newspapers. I, for one, subscribe to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, even though I don't always read it, primarily to support this mission.

[jmarkross]

There are all sorts of reasons why people want to see newspapers like the Oklahoman keep going...but they are all doomed, in any city. The cost of paper and printing and delivery are quickly tipping over into the loss side--compared to the revenue they can generate, the delivery of such weight is a thing of the past. A weekly for each large city--done in tabloid or magazine style is the only viable alternative. News has long since been gone from newspapers in the sense of immediacy. TV and the internet have almost completely replaced them. Advertising dollars are not sufficient to support the production of newspapers as we know them today. It is as simple as that. Many will moan and yell and scream...but unless people want to pay a *whole* lot more--they are dead. They are, in today's world, a poor use of resources as well. One must avoid being emotional about progress, why?--they isn't anything you can do about it. I think the Oklahoman MIGHT have an extended life as a weekly publication...but daily delivery is lunacy in 2010. The Oklahoman could perhaps make an effort to have a comprehensive--well done and run--online service for a charge. People would pay for that. That is why--I think--the Skyline Cam exists today for subscribers only, which is OK, but a lot more would need to be offered to get a substantial subscriber base. But--it also would have a staggering decline in overhead cost. You have to change with the times--they stand still for no one.

[CO-To-OKC]

The idea of any newspaper going away is a bad idea. I'm part of the younger generation that supposedly doesn't care for newspapers, but I make it a point to look through my local newspaper every day. If my newspaper isn't delivered in the morning, I'm out of sorts because reading it is part of my morning routine.

We need newspapers because they are a valuable source for information and they are tangible.

[ljbab728]

The idea of any newspaper going away is a bad idea. I'm part of the younger generation that supposedly doesn't care for newspapers, but I make it a point to look through my local newspaper every day. If my newspaper isn't delivered in the morning, I'm out of sorts because reading it is part of my morning routine.

We need newspapers because they are a valuable source for information and they are tangible.

I agree. I'm not in the mood to go sit at my computer in the morning before I go to work to catch up on the news. I want to sit in my recliner with my feet up, drinking my orange juice, and reading my paper.

[Spartan]

I know I would certainly miss being appalled at whatever Jenni Carlson has wrote about that day..

[jmarkross]

Everyone loves and needs a newspaper--until they have to charge you what it really costs to bring it to you...

[bombermwc]

Meh, i've managed to survive completely without it for several years...in fact I've never owned a subscription. About the only part I read is the comics if someone has them out at lunch. I'd rather get an unbiased opinion on events from elsewhere. Won't find me giving them a penny of my money....ever.

[adaniel]

Meh, i've managed to survive completely without it for several years...in fact I've never owned a subscription. About the only part I read is the comics if someone has them out at lunch. I'd rather get an unbiased opinion on events from elsewhere. Won't find me giving them a penny of my money....ever.

Playing devil's advocate here...what unbiased news source exists anywhere, particularly one that doesn't charge you anything?

[Prunepicker]

I believe the Oklahoman has gone too far left.

Look at the front page. The focal point is nothing but touchy,
feely and idiotic human interest crap. Who in the world wants to
read touchy, feely human interest crap?

I don't!

I want to read "The illusion of a president, BO, Stinks!" I want
to read NEWS. Not human interest BS.

We take the Oklahoman for the shopping coupons. The day that
it doesn't have more coupons that it's worth to subscribe is the
day we end our subscription to the Oklahoman.

BO Stinks. The Oklahoman should announce that on the Front
Page every single morning!

If the Oklahoman returns to being a good newspaper, i.e. isn't
liberal by any stretch of the imagination, then we'll subscribe more
than the Sunday and Wednesday papers. As long as the DO
doesn't say that BO Stinks then you can forget anything else.

[ljbab728]

I believe the Oklahoman has gone too far left.

Look at the front page. The focal point is nothing but touchy,
feely and idiotic human interest crap. Who in the world wants to
read touchy, feely human interest crap?

I don't!

I want to read "The illusion of a president, BO, Stinks!" I want
to read NEWS. Not human interest BS.

We take the Oklahoman for the shopping coupons. The day that
it doesn't have more coupons that it's worth to subscribe is the
day we end our subscription to the Oklahoman.

BO Stinks. The Oklahoman should announce that on the Front
Page every single morning!

If the Oklahoman returns to being a good newspaper, i.e. isn't
liberal by any stretch of the imagination, then we'll subscribe more
than the Sunday and Wednesday papers. As long as the DO
doesn't say that BO Stinks then you can forget anything else.

You can get most of those same coupons on the internet, prunepicker, so feel free to cancel your subscription.

[UnclePete]

Quote:

In Oklahoma, the Tulsa World, a.m. and the Tulsa Tribune, p.m. publish better newspapers than the larger monopoly conbination, The Daily Oklahoman and Oklahoma City Times, due largely to lack of competition, tighter squeeze on news space, complacency, and the sophomoric interest of sub-editors in blood, bootleggers and bistros.

Written by Walter M. Harrison, December 1, 1954.

Recommended reading: "Me and My Big Mouth" by Walter M. Harrison copyright, 1954. Mr. Harrison was E. K. Gaylord's managing editor.

[Doug Loudenback]

I believe the Oklahoman has gone too far left.

Look at the front page. The focal point is nothing but touchy,
feely and idiotic human interest crap. Who in the world wants to
read touchy, feely human interest crap?

I don't!

I want to read "The illusion of a president, BO, Stinks!" I want
to read NEWS. Not human interest BS.

We take the Oklahoman for the shopping coupons. The day that
it doesn't have more coupons that it's worth to subscribe is the
day we end our subscription to the Oklahoman.

BO Stinks. The Oklahoman should announce that on the Front
Page every single morning!

If the Oklahoman returns to being a good newspaper, i.e. isn't
liberal by any stretch of the imagination, then we'll subscribe more
than the Sunday and Wednesday papers. As long as the DO
doesn't say that BO Stinks then you can forget anything else.

Aw, shucks, Prunepicker guy. Form some right wing opinions, would you?