Print isn't dead. It's just different.

I used to work for a national magazine wholesaler until I was laid off over the summer when the company filed for bankruptcy. So as Eagon said in Ghostbusters, "print is dead"

all joking aside, yes there will always be niche demands for high glossy, specialty magazines. Publishers are moving more towards bi weekly/quarterly/annual titles rather than weekly and all the added expense that comes with weekly distribution. Newsstand sales are plummeting overall yet the capex and costs are pretty consistent.

I will in most cases prefer print over website access...there's just an intangible element to having the feel of the paper in your hands that just can't be replicated looking at a phone or laptop. Ultimately though, soon there will be a generation that has never even read a paper or a magazine which will be a sad day.

 

I love mags and grew up reading them (especially car and video game mags) but I can't wait for the tech to catch up to where reading on a device can replace paper. It's a massive waste of trees, water, and other precious resources

 

It's bound to happen, Fahrenheit 451.

 

From the footnote on my company's e-mail template:

Yes, we are a print shop and FSC Certified. Not as black & white as most may think.

 

Not to mention the fact that most electronics and their components aren't recyclable; paper is.

 

I think it's direct from FSC, but hey -- if the BA mag is using recycled/recyclable paper it fits the bill.

 

Well, they are, it's just more costly to do so. My municipality finally started taking electronics at their recycle depot recently (they've been taking paper products for years) -- made me happy to know I could properly dispose of that sort of thing -- including batteries, as Todd mentioned. Eventually they'll streamline that type of recycling too.

 

Print won't die until they invent something to replace the bathroom.

 

Man you guys should take a chill pill, I wasn't taking shots at anybody's job. I'm well aware of the costs of modern technology, that's why I'm hopeful it will evolve to the point where it doesn't have to be that wasteful. But thanks for the condescension

 

Thanks, it's good to know those effort are taken seriously in the industry. I owe you a beer!

 

As someone who spends most of his day online, I am grateful to be able to unplug, power down, open a beer and read from a printed page.

Electronic and Printed media both have their pluses and minuses. I would hate to lose either.

 

Okay but how many are in spacious healthy old growth forests as opposed to impenetrable second/third growth thickets.
I still read the newspaper almost every day, but printed words are clearly a dying breed.

 

Agreed, I can understand where you're coming from. I was a bit too aggresive. I've worked in IT for a college and seen how easily electronics are replaced & wasted, it's pretty appalling.

 

Taking a dump while reading something off of a screen just isn't the same as printed material.

 

Been in the printing industry for 25+ years and I believe there will always be a place for the printed piece. Yes I read plenty of stuff via the internet but saying it's dead or dying is just not accurate. Scaled back compared compared to 25 years ago, no question and undeniable. I work for a publishing company that produces 15+ niche publications and all of them have seen an increase in subscriptions over the last several years
years. Still something about holding a printed piece that's appealing to many, many people. A good printed piece can be passed on for generations, don't think there are too many 1984 mac's being used, could be wrong but I'd bet my money on it......