Quote Originally Posted by Pete View Post
Yes, I didn't realize that classifieds were such a huge source of income for newspapers and of course that revenue has almost completely vanished.

They also make good money off obituaries and wedding announcements. The former is something that absolutely should change, as it's outrageous to charge so much money for what should be a public service.
I think the escalation in prices for those kinds of announcements are just indicative of the scramble the industry is in amid a failing effort to make the existing model match today's business realities. Unless you're a society type where money isn't so much of an issue, the idea of publishing a wedding announcement with a photo is now an absurd expense and most/many just skip it. Obituaries vary a great deal, however; I think people tend to want to memorialize a life in that way and are more willing to spend the money..nothing empirical there, just a feeling.

Then there are always the "legal" notices that have to be published IAW court proceedings, and if that's not an anachronism, I don't know what is. I remember when a family member handled a relative's estate and there were seemingly always "publication notices" for this or that related to some aspect of resolving the estate...