September 26, 2008
Washington City Paper Changes Include End of Cover Stories
Early last week Fishbowl DC had more about the coming changes to the Washington City Paper we first reported at the end of August. Now the Georgetown Voice has the full story in its latest edition, which confirms that the alt weekly is undergoing a massive transition away from long-form features and investigative pieces and toward a larger online presence. Within a few weeks, the paper will cease to run its trademark lengthy cover story, instead likely running a sort of wire cover story common to all Creative Loafing titles. Sounds like things are more than a little grim in the City Paper newsroom these days: “Now [the response is] more outright angst and anger and misery over what’s going on,” the Voice quotes editor Erik Wemple. Read the whole thing. UPDATE: Wemple wrote to tell us we've got the future of City Paper covers all wrong: "No one here has ever, ever talked about, proposed or even considered publishing "wire" cover stories from Creative Loafing papers." We definitely shouldn't have used the word 'likely' there -- a source had told us something like this might be in the works, but it's definitely not something the City Paper intends to do, according to Wemple. As for what readers can expect to see on City Paper covers in the future, we've asked Wemple to fill us in, and will let you know if and when we hear anything.
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Really depressing. One wonders if there might be an opportunity for a real alternative local weekly to spring up in CityPaper's absence.
Several things to point out...
- collecting blog entries is not the same thing as sustained investigative reporting. The lack of investigative reporting will be something DC will miss dearly, and our local pols will rejoice over.
- part of the problem is that the CityPaper blogs are simply not very good. There is no friendly banter or interaction with an audience like on the best neighborhood blogs (e.g. PrinceofPetworth). Thus there is no compelling reason to turn to the CityPaper web site, except to get movie listings.
- finally, you can sit on the metro and leaf through a web site. There's value in paper copy. Sad that the economics don't work out somehow.
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oh god, you didn't just say that, did you?
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seriously, though, it's a shame there isn't someone with a deep set of pockets who could open their own alt-weekly that actually works. would run the rump operation that used to be the city paper into the ground once and for all. too bad for them...
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oh, now everyone loves the city paper and wants to save it.
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Oops... meant to say you *can't sit on metro and leaf through a web site*...
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As much as I can't STAND the City Paper (for reasons I won't get into), I think this is a major FAIL. Whats the purpose of having a LOCAL alt-Weekly without major local content? Its like the Washington Post metro section having only AP wire stories.
And yes, I tried to start a City Paper alternative a while ago but me pockets ain't deep enough.
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Those cover stories are what often drove readers to pick up issues of the City Paper.
They do need more web content, but they should trim circulation and drop at fewer sites and use the savings to develop more web content and keep the feature story. They should really look to Politico and Examiner for some ideas. Granted, those are different entities, but there are some lessons there.
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The cover stories are/were crap. I can't think of one I read all the way through in the past five years. That said, I like the paper and use it to get insights into what is happening -- books, music, theater events. I even like the ads. Cover stories, not so much.
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The cover stories are good (landlord tenant is the latest great). So is DeBonis's column.
Look: CP doesn't have the pockets to be everything to everyone all the time. But it's frequently the only/first source for important/overlooked truths.
Have to say, though, I don't really look at the paper copy anymore.
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I agree that the reprinting of blog posts is weak. Even though I get a little shock when my comments are published in the dead-tree edition. I didn't sign no release! Those words are gold Jerry! Where's my cut?
But seriously, I like the cover stories. Or at the very least, I like the covers. They're normally somewhat provocative. Maybe they could just trim down the stories themselves.
I get so tired listening to people bag on the CP. I don't know what their problem is with it. Did they once make fun of your favorite band? (and if it is their arts, music, and movie reviews that is bugging people, then whatever. I hardly ever read them; it's not what I look to the CP for). Frankly, I'd take CP over the Village Voice. The VV is full of hyperbolic and far left crap. The CP normally has a decently informed opinion on the dysfunctional family that is DC.
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The cover stories and Loose Lips are the best parts of the City Paper. If you take the local coverage away, there isn't much left that's worth reading. They've already proved inept at covering local arts news, for whatever reason.
I guess the writing was on the wall when Creative Loafing took over. That was the beginning of the end.
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Their cover story on the origins of the halfsmoke is a great piece of cuilinary archeology. It's like Indiana Jones with diarrhea.
The hipper-than-thou music/film coverage I could live without. My parrot won't even defecate on the stuff.
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The City Paper's movie coverage may be snobby at times, but it provides one of my fundamental rules of DC moviedom: "If there's a movie that sounds like something you might want to see, and the City Paper liked it, see that movie."
(Unfortunately, knowing that the City Paper didn't like a movie is totally useless. Only positive reviews help. Likewise, a good review of a movie that doesn't interest you doesn't mean much. But that's still better than the Post.)
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everyone should be disappointed at the possibility that we won't have another nose trying to get under the tent, if you will, when it comes to local stories. it's always better to have as many journalists trying to make the comfortable uncomfortable, if you know what i mean. losing the city paper would mean one less organization making sure that the city's tax dollars are well spent, making sure that the schools are held accountable, and making sure that we're a better informed citizenry.
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City Paper Owner Files For Bankruptcy
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Gee, thanks, Creative Loafing, for helping run a once-great alternative weekly into the ground.