September 16, 2008

Telegram & Gazette Increases to .75 Cents

What do you do after you lay off a bunch of people? Increase the price of the newspaper. On October 6th the newspaper will cost you .75.

Wonder who will be the first to leave downtown, UNUM or the Telegram?

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Print is dying. By increasing the price they are just quickening their own death.

Anonymous said...

I thought the Millbury T&G left years ago and is now located in Hillbury.

Womag to soon follow suit?

Will Rosalie be the only Worc paper left?

It's all the fault of Silly bloggers & Craigs list & E bay and 24/7 TV news.

Worc news soon to be in a weekly Globe supplement?

David Z. said...

Jahn,

The Worcester T&G still has the newsroom and editorial offices downtown on Franklin Street. The paper is printed in Millbury.

Yes, this is a very tough economic time for newspapers everywhere and the T&G is certainly feeling the crunch, too. Will this be the last gasp of our “esteemed” daily? I certainly hope not. With the lack of a major TV outlet in the city, WCRN trying to “play” with the big boys and market themselves as Worcester/Boston, and the lack of local news from WTAG (I couldn’t even get a local newscast last Saturday morning on TAG), we need the Worcester T&G. It is certainly not what it used to be in terms of pages and readers but it is a local voice that needs our support.

I do agree with you Jahn that at some point, we may see the Worcester T&G fold as an independent newspaper. I do believe that if that scenario was to unfold, we would get the Boston Globe with a local Metro section devoted to Worcester. It would be very similar to the soon to be consolidated zoned editions of the current T&G.

As for Bill’s question, both UNUM and the Worcester T&G are not leaving downtown any time soon. UNUM will become the “trigger” tenant that gets CitySquare off the ground and even if the T&G as we know it folds, it won’t happen for the foreseeable future.

Bill Randell said...

Dave:

You have no idea how much I hope you are right about UNUM.

Bill

Anonymous said...

why do we need a newspaper or major TV...the folks interested in this stuff are leaving and being replaced with folks who's only concern is that their name is on the mailbox on the first of the month..

Anonymous said...

Dave I realize T&G is still on Franklin St. I agree with what you about the newspaper business in general it is tough times for them.

One of their problems is they never really had to compete with any other print media for timely local news and to a lesser extent advertising, now that's all changed w/the internet.

On the one hand, I do feel we should support T&G even at $1.00 a day,but on the other hand, kind of like the fire dept., times have changed greatly and manpower/ work strategies have to change too.

Given the internet, I sometimes wonder how long it will be before we only need residentail mail delivery every other day or maybe even only every 3rd day. E.g. 95% of my Friday mail is junk.

WTAG also needs to lose former Mayor Motor Mouth ( a.k.a. Mr Backpedaler) and get some real talent in that afternoon drive time slot.

BYW how's the issue with Worc Comm Access Tv coming along..........now there's welfare TV channel that needs to go the way of black & white porn flicks!

Anonymous said...

"WTAG also needs to lose former Mayor Motor Mouth ( a.k.a. Mr Backpedaler) and get some real talent in that afternoon drive time slot."

I found Howie locally and listen to him..JL never say's anything..yells alot and he kisses almost every local pol...I can clearly see why he was bounced out of Boston..real loud about the Big Dig but where is he on local issues?? I rarely if evah see him within the urban core of the city

Anonymous said...

My preference is Carr too.

Frankly, I wish Levy stayed w/the local womans store that he was a buyer for, for years. It may have been Marcus?

The guy is one of the worst people to ever have been a local pol in Worc...........and he has stated may times he never helped anyone get on the city.........lol25 yrs as a couucillor and 8 or10 of those years as a mayor...ya right !!!.....never got anyone a job...........wants less gov't involvement in business matters......... yets cries and moans when his business, which he located on a flood plain, gets flooded.

The Guy is a complete joke and what he did to former CM Jeff Mulford is truly reprehensible...disagreement is one thing.........being a complete attack dog is quite another thing.......I wish he'd move to Fla. and I'd pay for his 1 way tix on Direct Air.

Anonymous said...

Carr is on WCRN at 300 pm now....used to be not until 500pm???

IN the last 1/2 hour I have heard 2 ads for the Marlboro Area C of C networking gig at Marlboro Holiday Inn.

I have to assume this advertising is directed at Worc. area, as I assume it's advertised on WCRN but not on WRKO in Boston.

So Marlboro isnt part of teh Metrowest Area C of C and they're advertising on a Worc based station?????........interesting.

Does our Worc C of C advertise in Marlboro when they have networking shindig in Worc?

Bill Randell said...

maybe the worcester chamber of commerce will move out of worcester next?

Anonymous said...

My favorite Levy show was the one where he was complaining about the Worcester Airport changing their name to Boston/Worcester. He went on and on about how that wasn't true, and they couldn't call themselves Boston because they weren't in Boston.

All the time, he's broadcasting his 'Worcester' show from Paxton.

Anonymous said...

Jahn for President! As bad as JL can be, does it get any worse than Hank? Talk about a mouthpiece for the union blowhards. I too have noticed WCRN switching over to Howie's show earlier than usual. The switch is on! PS- the T&G stunk even back in the day. It was always a third stringer. The Hartford Courant blew it away when they were both in thier prime. When was the last time you saw a twentysomething reading any paper. I think dailys will be gone a lot quicker than the forcast of 20 years.

Anonymous said...

anyone remember Jerry Williams going after the prison to be built in New Braintree, his rendition of "A Child's Christmas in Wales" on Christmas Eve (I got hooked on Dylan Thomas the poet after hearing it just once by Jerry)..or his yearly sex survey with women-never allowing men on cause "men lie"??..the weekly Governors meeting with Barbara Anderson of Ciizens for Limited Taxation, Howie Carr & Jerry..folks that actually uncovered stuff and at least made you aware-you may not have agreed but it made you think!

Jerry was merciless on Mike Dukakis

Jerry had real opinions and he made them-these local guys all sound alike and always have the same gals & guys in day after day talking about the same thing...

I am not sure I have evah heard Hank make a statement..he ask's non-stop questions and that is about it..

The other day I listened to Diane Williamson chat with a local blogger who regularly call folks douchebags and batshit publically...chump stuff to be on the radio at high noon level...when was the last time we had a media guy actually talk about an issue that realy matters or took one on?

Jerry singlehandedly took down the seatbelt law back in the 80's and was most influential in that prsion not being built in New Braintree...I remember traveling out to New Braintree from Wakefield in the 80's with an ole gal to check out the site where it was to be built..that was a long haul back in the 80's for a twenty-something checking out farmland that was being talked about on talk radio..I still can remember Tina saying "we are going where to see what that you heard about on the radio"

Jerry would have guys like Malcolm X on in the 60's...we get to hear about douchebags and batshit..seems being controversial in Woostah means just being willing to use foul words:>)

How about some hardbiting topics that would allow the populace to actually learn something and be able to respond

*the recent census showing Worcester losing a defined population and gaining a defined population

*continued loss of employers

*increasing property taxes and declining real values

*crumbling schools and a real assessement of the Worcester Public School System versus charter schools in Worcester

*a discussion on the "bad science" that we keep hearing about in regards to the EPA assessment of our water discharge

* how about a real discussion on the airport from someone oher than a commissioner

Nice piece on Jerry by the Phoenix below-he passed away a number of years ago:

http://www.bostonphoenix.com/boston/news_features/this_just_in/documents/02860422.htm

I used to love when he had Jackie Mason on or Steve Sweeney - The Mayor of the Schitty of Bostahn..both comedians (do we have any comedians in Worcester??

If you get a chance..check out some of the audio clips..there are many and from many segments of Jerry's career...sniff em' out like Jerry used to do his callahs

http://jerrywilliams.org/index.php

"I'm getting out of the business" Jerry Williams RIP

Anonymous said...

Great Howie Carr interview with the authors of the book on Jerry..a real roar


http://search.everyzing.com/viewMedia.jsp?dedupe=1&res=191927656&index=1&col=en-all-pod_wrko-ep&e=19252941&il=en&num=10&s=PZSID_pods_pod5_8_4_0002;WRKO+-+Howie+Carr&start=0&expand=true&match=query,channel&filter=0&y=0&x=0

Bill Randell said...

Hank is a good guy, but he agrees with everyone. He never challenges anyone.

I am not saying he needs to be a shock jock, but when someone states something that is factually incorrect ask another question?