If you're reading this column in the print edition of The Citizen, there's a good chance you're doing so at the morning breakfast table.
With that in mind, let me pose this question - would you like to be reading this newspaper at this time every day of the week, not just on Saturday and Sunday mornings?
There's a good chance by now you've heard a rumor or two about The Citizen converting from an afternoon paper on weekdays to one distributed in the morning. Let me set the record straight: We've made no decision to make this shift, but it's definitely something we're actively considering.
Before we do decide, we're trying to gather as much input as possible from the community. More on that later in this column.
First, let me explain why we're even contemplating such a move.
A big reason is time - your time. As people's lives seem to get busier every year, the top reason people cite for not reading newspapers is lack of time. Newspapers of all types face that problem, but it can be particularly challenging for afternoon publications. If we're not getting to the newsstand until lunch or to the doorstep until the middle of afternoon, we're reducing the window readers have to use the product.
The numbers are hard to ignore, too.
Data from the Newspaper Association of America reveal a substantial decline in the number of afternoon papers over several decades. In 1970, there were 1,429 afternoon papers and 334 morning papers. By 2006, p.m. dailies had dropped to 614 and morning publications had increased to 833.
Those numbers certainly force us to assess our status, but to automatically switch based on them would be a mistake. Every market is different, and such a move ultimately must come only with solid information from our customer base.
We've posted an online survey to gauge reader habits and their feelings about a possible conversion. I encourage everyone reading this column to share their views at www.auburnpub.com/survey. We've been running ads in the paper about this survey, and we're also reaching out to non-readers by promoting it in our weekly publication that's distributed to non-subscribers. If you know a person who doesn't read the paper, please encourage them to check it out.
We also realize that not everyone has access to the Internet, so we welcome people to call or e-mail with their thoughts. Contact Jessica Harkins, our marketing and innovation coordinator, at
253-5311 ext. 213 or jessica.harkins@lee.net.
Executive editor Jeremy Boyer's columns appear Saturdays in The Citizen and he can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 231 or jeremy.boyer@lee.net
There's a good chance by now you've heard a rumor or two about The Citizen converting from an afternoon paper on weekdays to one distributed in the morning. Let me set the record straight: We've made no decision to make this shift, but it's definitely something we're actively considering.
Before we do decide, we're trying to gather as much input as possible from the community. More on that later in this column.
First, let me explain why we're even contemplating such a move.
A big reason is time - your time. As people's lives seem to get busier every year, the top reason people cite for not reading newspapers is lack of time. Newspapers of all types face that problem, but it can be particularly challenging for afternoon publications. If we're not getting to the newsstand until lunch or to the doorstep until the middle of afternoon, we're reducing the window readers have to use the product.
The numbers are hard to ignore, too.
Data from the Newspaper Association of America reveal a substantial decline in the number of afternoon papers over several decades. In 1970, there were 1,429 afternoon papers and 334 morning papers. By 2006, p.m. dailies had dropped to 614 and morning publications had increased to 833.
Those numbers certainly force us to assess our status, but to automatically switch based on them would be a mistake. Every market is different, and such a move ultimately must come only with solid information from our customer base.
We've posted an online survey to gauge reader habits and their feelings about a possible conversion. I encourage everyone reading this column to share their views at www.auburnpub.com/survey. We've been running ads in the paper about this survey, and we're also reaching out to non-readers by promoting it in our weekly publication that's distributed to non-subscribers. If you know a person who doesn't read the paper, please encourage them to check it out.
We also realize that not everyone has access to the Internet, so we welcome people to call or e-mail with their thoughts. Contact Jessica Harkins, our marketing and innovation coordinator, at
253-5311 ext. 213 or jessica.harkins@lee.net.
Executive editor Jeremy Boyer's columns appear Saturdays in The Citizen and he can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 231 or jeremy.boyer@lee.net